Best Return 2024 | Kristen Martinez | La Vida | Phoenix
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Best Return

Kristen Martinez

Kristen Martinez said she'd never return to Arizona, but life had other plans. The noise rap artist who founded musical act Moodie Black toured with Puscifer in 2022 and moved back to the Valley in 2023, but her focus since returning has been on food. While Martinez was living in Minneapolis, she built a successful eatery centered on what she calls "new era Tex-Mex" that pulls from childhood memories growing up in El Paso, Texas. First getting off the ground in the Valley with the food trailer MB Foodhouse, serving taquitos, tacos and wings, Martinez has taken Moodie Blacks inside the kitchen of Tempe's Yucca Tap Room. There, Martinez is serving a growing menu that includes smash burgers, hot chicken tortas and a selection of brunch bites on the weekend. And, there's more good news for fans of Martinez: She hasn't hung up her mic and is beginning to book shows for Moodie Black, too.

Best Mexican Restaurant

Bacanora

Jackie Mercandetti

There's really no competition when it comes to the most talked-about chef in Phoenix right now. Chef Rene Andrade is a man about town, making appearances on TV shows and partnering with friends and other companies to grow his brand. But his original restaurant remains one of the hottest tables in the Valley. Bacanora, a tiny space in the heart of the Grand Avenue arts district, is Andrade's ode to his home state of Sonora, Mexico. Almost everything on the menu spends some time on the roaring wood-fired grill, producing smoky flavors that rival the artisanal agave spirits used in the restaurant's cocktails. The menu is mostly made up of rotating specials, but the enormous tomahawk steak is a staple. Don't skip the less flashy items, such as the rich, savory beans; bright and citrusy salads; and supple flour tortillas.

Best Late-Night Mexican Food

Baja Roots

There's something so special about chowing down on a delicious meal under the glow of streetlights at the end of a fun night out. But what makes this experience even better is amazing food that shines at any time of day. Baja Roots is a local food truck that pops up around town. It frequently resides outside Cobra Arcade Bar in downtown Phoenix, where owner and chef Emilene Carillo serves her menu of Tijuana-style eats. Try tacos piled with carne asada, pollo, al pastor or veggies; crunchy vampiros; elote; savory quesabirria; or the customer-favorite spicy birria ramen. Also, there's a secret menu with new items Carillo is playing around with — you just have to ask. Follow Baja Roots on Instagram to see where the truck will pop up next.

Best Mexican Food Truck

Comiendo Con Memo

Chips and salsa? Hardly. Take a seat under his tent, and Memo will saunter over with a smile and a greeting and a freshly charred slab of carne asada. He slices the meat into thin ribbons right under your nose and leaves it on a rustic wooden cutting board as a complimentary little nosh to tide you over while you decide what to order. Memo's quesabirria is solid, and his tacos al pastor are made with a bold, flavorful marinade, but the grilled beef is the focus at this food truck compound in the middle of a field in Laveen. Whether you take it as tacos, vampiros or flanken-cut costillas, it arrives perfectly seasoned, sizzling and imbued with the scent of mesquite charcoal, alongside tortillas, a massive garnish plate and bowl of fresh whole Thai chiles to gnaw on for a little fiery zip.

Best Pueblan Food

El Rincon Poblano Mexican Grill

You can't spend all of your time eating Sonoran food, and why would you want to, anyway? It's a big country down there, and little gems such as El Rincon Poblano feature regional specialties from parts of Mexico that aren't just over the border. This particular family-run restaurant serves a tight list of excellent homestyle specialties from Puebla, one of the most revered cradles of Mexican gastronomy. You'll find the famous mole Poblano, a perfectly balanced blend of nuts, spices, chiles and — of course — a touch of chocolate. But the pipian verde is equally bracing, less sweet and nutty, built on ground pumpkin seeds and loads of herbs. The influence of Lebanese immigrants is seen in tacos arabes, a lesser-known relative of tacos al pastor that marries seasoned pork with caramelized onions. But arguably the most indispensable dish here is the cemita, Puebla's signature torta, available with your choice of filling plied with avocado, onion, stringy Oaxaca cheese, house-pickled chipotle chiles and a pungent herb called papalo (when it's in season), tucked into a fresh house-baked sesame roll.

Best Oaxacan Food

Oaxaca Restaurant

This place has come a long way since the bowling alley. Once hidden away in Sunnyslope's Let It Roll Bowl, Oaxaca Restaurant now boasts two stand-alone Phoenix locations. The standards like tacos, tortas and chilaquiles are here, but you can get those anywhere. Best to focus on the Oaxacan specialties of the house, such as memelitas — thick masa boats similar to sopes topped with black beans, Oaxacan cheese and tasajo, thin sheets of salted beef. Tamales Oaxaqueños, steamed in banana leaves, are deliciously fragrant, especially when smothered with a complex mole negro. The tlayuda — a crunchy, pizza-sized tortilla piled high with all manner of toppings — is an awful lot of fun to share. The house flan might fool you. It doesn't look like much, but its flavor is intense. And if your meal leaves you feeling inspired, a small market's worth of chiles, spices and other Oaxacan specialty ingredients are available to purchase and take home.

Best Chihuahuan Food

Testal Mexican Kitchen

Tirion Boan

The burritos at Testal probably are unlike any you've tried before. First, you need to order at least two for a good-sized meal. And second, they're not folded up into neat little parcels. These saucy bites are open on both ends, meaning the toppings and juices will run down your arms a little. But take one bite, and you won't care at all. Super soft flour tortillas envelop rich, savory fillings, such as the bright red pork Colorado, cheesy rajas or shredded beef with green salsa. The best part about the burritos' smaller size is that you can try multiple flavors per visit. The hearty fillings also can be served as tacos, inside gorditas or as bowls. Wash it all down with a Jamaica agua fresca or a bottle of pinole, a roasted sweet corn drink. Enjoy your meal inside, underneath a giant painted map of Chihuahua, or find a seat on the small patio, which often hosts live music.

Best Mexican Diner

El Horseshoe Restaurant

Shelby Moore

For nearly three decades, the Avitia family has run El Horseshoe right under the noses of the Phoenix fooderati, housed in a brightly muraled building on an industrial stretch of Buckeye Road near downtown Phoenix. The Avitias may not bill their restaurant as such, but this homey little joint is the epitome of the American diner — a no-frills, working-class breakfast and lunch joint serving classic dishes with a focus on simple, honest flavor and not a lick of pretense. Those classics include dishes such as supple cheese-stuffed chiles rellenos doused with bright tomato sauce; silky chunks of beef tongue plied with a fragrant, complex mole; tender-crisp chilaquiles made from torn tortillas pan-fried to order; and a steaming hot bowl of caldo de res, gelatin-rich, loaded with vegetables and served with thick, scalding hot fresh tortillas. The flavors are familiar, but rarely are they so honest and vibrant. In a town that reveres its homey Sonoran cooking, El Horseshoe remains an underappreciated gem.

Best Vegan Mexican Food

Tacos Veganos

Dominic Armato

Bring a ream of napkins or some paper towels if you plan on eating Tacos Veganos' ridiculously good hot messes of street tacos. Plant-based carne asada, chicken or pork is piled on a chewy and greasy corn tortilla, then heaped with guacamole sauce and studded with onions and bright cilantro. The burritos are as big as the tacos are messy, packing significant heft from being crammed full of rice, beans and your choice of plant-based meat. Other highlights include the mountain of nachos covered with refried beans and a rich cashew-based "cheese," and beer-battered cauliflower Baja-style tacos that taste like a party in the mouth thanks to pickled red onion and chipotle mayo. Your carnivore friends would never know the difference.

Best Upscale Mexican Restaurant

Santo

For their second restaurant together, Armando Hernandez, Nadia Holguin and Roberto Centeno went bigger. The trio, who worked together on Espiritu (along with Rene Andrade), opened Santo in Arcadia in early 2024. At the bright, airy 200-seat restaurant and bar, Centeno has expanded on the land-and-sea-spanning menu that wowed diners at Espiritu, while infusing some fusion along the way. Take the birria dumplings, which are a star among the primeros. Tender smoked beef cheek is stuffed into each dumpling, which arrive in a bowl of rich, umami-loaded beef broth studded with Chinese broccoli and sesame seeds. The larger plates are often big enough to share, including a flame-kissed dry-aged ribeye that's served with beans, potatoes, salsas and flour tortillas. While there's an ample selection of cocktails and Mexican wines, if you're ready for a nightcap, ask your server about Pecado. The sister bar is a dark, sexy contrast to Santo with its own unique roster of drinks inspired by the seven deadly sins. After a decadent evening, we like to roll the dice and ask for Wrath, Pecado's version of bartender's choice.

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