This is a beautiful market with high quality produce, wide variety of corn tortillas, bulk hot…read morepeppers and spices, fresh dairy products, and really pretty Mexican pottery. I highly recommend this shop. What a gem.

I come to this little store at least once a month. They have very good chorizo as well as Oaxaca…read morecheese, you can find a variety of Mexican products in here at cheaper prices than other stores. Workers here are quite friendly and they even helped explain to me how to cook certain things.

Loved this place. Took my wife and teenager here today for the first time. Saw a ton of stuff I…read morehaven't seen since my last trip to Mexico. We spent like $40, mostly on candy... but they have some real delicacies there. You'll even find huitlacoche (corn mushrooms) in a glass jar (you'll either find them beautiful, or absolutely gross looking, but I suggest you try some on your quesadillas). They had some of our favorite junk food, Bubu Lubu... and some imported vegetables (a squash that you cannot find locally, similar to our zucchini). We saw 3 different brands of tortillas... and I'm the refrigerator they had cemitas and other things you can't commonly find in a store. The line moved quickly. They'll charge you extra if you want to use a credit card, but at least they're not cash-only! Piñatas adorn the ceiling, even our teenager was impressed by the place.

Delicious and fresh avocados with no spoilage! The prices are super affordable. Highly recommendread more

I have an idea for a store. It's going to blow your mind. It's a store that sells ONLY avocados…read more Damnit. Someone beat me to it! I frequently find myself in a situation where I'm throwing a party that requires me to fill a bathtub with guac. In these situations, the problem is usually twofold: 1. Where do I find 600 pounds of avocados? 2. That's going to cost an inordinate amount of money! Well, AAA avocados has got you covered. It's a 600 squarefoot store filled to the ceiling with fresh, delicious, unbruised avocados! When you buy in bulk, there's an additional discount but when you just need a few they usually run about $1 a piece (depending upon availability from their suppliers - damn Hurricane Patricia). They have some ripe and some almost ripe so they got you covered whether you're ready to fill your guac bathtub immediately or in the near future. Some tips for avocado usage from a pro: 1. You can tell an avocado is ripe by *gently* squeezing the narrow end. It's ripe when there is some give (as opposed to hard as a rock). 2. Freshness is indicated when you pop off the little stem nub and it's green underneath. The fruit is overripe if it appears brown or hollow under the stem. 3. Ripe avocados can be stored safely in the fridge for about a week. 4. My favorite no-chop/easy guacamole recipe: take 1 whole avocado (pitted and removed from skin) add garlic powder, salt, red pepper flakes, and cumin powder. Mix and serve with chips.

This Met Fresh opened a few months ago right at the entrance of the Fresh Pond Road train station…read morewhere Capital One used to be. I have to say that since this grocery store opened up, it's done major damage to my wallet since it's so easy to just stroll in as soon as I get off the M. Was it a necessary addition to the neighborhood? I would say yes! Even though Checo's is right across the street, it pales in comparison to MetFresh. It's not a huge space, but we'll organized, clean and efficient. The star here is the employees. They certainly know how to treat you and make you feel welcomed and appreciated. Good selection of fresh produce and ready to drink teas/coffee upon entrance. Lots of international foods. They have a deli counter in the back that not only slices your cold cuts but they also have a hot bar that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner! Rotisserie chicken. Pre-made wraps, sandwiches and deli salads/meals. Presliced cold cuts ready to grab and go. You'll find a lot of things here that would be hard to find at other places. Biscoff sandwich cookies in 3 flavors! 7UP cupcakes! Prices are comparable to other grocery stores. Their sales are usually very good. Sign up for their points program. You get money off/coupons when you reach a certain amount of points. No reward card necessary! Just punch in your phone number on the special pad every time. They have parking around the corner that also has some table and chair seating on the side. I come here multiple times a week. It has become my go-to supermarket. It may not be the kind of store you a huge haul at, but it's perfect for me!

Very nice grocery. Great organization and selection, and it's brand spanking new so the whole store…read moreis spotless. The neighborhood is definitely gentrifying, but I'm not quite sure it's ready to absorb the pricing that this store is charging.

La Marqueta is a lovely food court with small shops that sell a variety of items, from Puerto…read moreRican-inspired paintings to a custom T-shirt print shop to a bookshop offering Latinx-inspired stationery, stickers, and a charm bar, along with a variety of books. It's a lovely, quaint spot, which, I imagine, gets a bit busier during the summer, especially during community events. When I visited on a weekday afternoon, it was very empty. There are also a variety of food stalls to choose from. I ordered jerk mac & cheese from Black Eyed Peas NYC. I also ordered a couple of pastries from Mama T. I enjoyed their matcha white chocolate cookie and ube cookies. I loved that Mama T offered a variety of Asian comfort foods with clear inspirations from Filipino & Japanese treats. I hope to see La Marqueta grow! I should go back for their community event nights. :)

BOTTOM LINE: Tipsy scoop's ice cream making class was Fun…read moreTIP/S: Pulsd (the app) has a discount code that reduces the $79 pricetag ...WHO: party of 2 WHY: belated birthday celebration for Dougie WHAT: (Deets) 2 hours (real time 1.75 hours) of tasting, pouring, mixing, scooping and licking My classmates were kind to accommodate the rollator and give us the end spaces. Light Snacks were also provided along with unlimited sweet toppings. We concocted our spirits-filled potions and set them to freeze. We even got to taste the mixtures fresh out of the mixer as we filled our containers...yum. My favorites were the mango margarita, the hazelnut coffee, and the maple bourbon bacon...because bacon. WHEN: 10/4/19 6p WHERE: La Marqueta (sign up for the class for more specific location) HOW: public transportation. Parking is near impossible, bus trains to 116th then walk over to 113th. BATHROOM: 1 stall, gender neutral WIFI: did not use DRESS CODE: as you like SERVICE: Our instructor Abby was comedian and knowledgeable. Her support Skye was accommodating, friendly and wore a smile for our time together. Thank you both for elevating the experience.

Big news: El…read moreAtoradero is re-opening in Brooklyn... yay Lina! Thanks Gillian for the info! http://www.grubstreet.com/2015/07/el-atoradero-reopening.html This is *not* the same building nor business as the place it shares a street address with, and a name with. It is next door, and it is completely different. This is a bodega, that's a restaurant. This is run by Lina, that used to be. This review is for the bodega on the left hand side at this address, which is owned and run by Lina, the Mexican homestyle culinary genius who used to own the restaurant on the right hand side of this address, which is now using her name but is a different restaurant, and should be changing the name soon. Pigs. If you miss El Atoradero, or if you never got to try it, don't wait around for it to come back. Visit this bodega on the weekend, meet Lina and get some of her home cooking. Just please don't go to the place next door which is basically illegally using her name and promising to take the sign down and "shockingly" not getting round to it. Since she doesn't have a restaurant at the moment, you can come here and experience her and her food for the time being. Below is my review of the closed restaurant next door with all the details: ************************* Update Edit: Thanks to Andrew, I've now discovered what happened. The landlord stupidly raised the rent by $1200 just because the place was getting popular, so Lina (who runs it) had to shut it down. You can still meet Lina and get some of her food at the bodega next door, which I recommend all of you do because it really is that delicious. Do not visit the restaurant at this location, though, because it is no longer Lina, it's someone else just using the same store. Go to the Bodega next door and get food from Lina instead. Here is an article about El Atoradero. It'll be great once she gets a place opened up again. Her full name is Denisse Lina Chavez. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/26/dining/hungry-city-carnitas-el-atoradero-in-the-south-bronx.html?_r=1 This one is about her braving the drug lords on the Mexican highways to go home and find spices. It says she was recently abducted by a cartel. http://ny.eater.com/2014/10/2/6890073/braving-the-drug-lords-bronx-restaurant-owner-dives-deep-into-mexico And this one is about her closing down, and why it happened. http://ny.eater.com/2015/6/9/8751937/carnitas-el-atoradero-closed-relocating Below is my original review. I'm absolutely heartbroken to find that this place has closed down. This was one of the best Mexican meals I ever had. I came back here several times and loved every single thing I ever ate here, from the tacos, to the amazing albondigas, to the dreamy homestyle red sauce... they really knew how to cook. It was like being in someone's kitchen in East LA or in Mexico City (same thing). And she was one of the friendliest women I've ever been served by. I was here what seemed like just a couple of months ago. The lady that ran it was asking me to spread the word and get more customers for her because she wasn't doing so well. The food was insanely good and insanely cheap. It was perhaps the best meal I ever had in the Bronx, and one of the best Mexican meals I've ever had. Consistently, every time I came here. I can't tell you how disappointed I am that all of you guys won't get to try it, and that I can't come back here anymore. If anyone knows if the woman is opening a place elsewhere, or has any news about El Atoradero, please let me know. It's a sad day. I can't even bring myself to make any jokes about it. Yet another one of my favourite family-owned places closes down. I am delighted, though, that so many New Yorkers were starting to embrace El Atoradero. I am proud of New York for venturing up to The Bronx in large numbers to try this place and frequent it. I've complained before that nobody gives The Bronx love. But this is the most delicious place in The Bronx, and you gave it enough love to make it popular enough for the landlord to double the rent. I heart you NYC. With customers like you guys, who needs my reviews. Goodbye, El Atoradero.

Very delicious carnitas and extraordinary salsa to go with that! I witnessed the carnitas being…read moreprepared fresh in the morning and tasted the finished product in the evening! The recipe does not contain any artificial ingredients and the tacos are handmade. Truly authentic experience!

My faithful neighborhood standby for the past 5-6 years here in Astoria. Opens early, closes late,…read moreand has all the essential goods that make survival here possible... especially if I don't want to venture too far out into the real world. I will say that the joint does the country that it bears on its namesake proud (i.e. Mexico)... as the people who run this joint churn out some of the tastiest tacos the north side of the border. "No good Mexican food on the east coast!" you snobby snobby west coasters on your high horses may exclaim?!? Hmph, we'll go back to dreaming in your little bubble over there... cold weather builds character... living here generates grit (we were built to survive, thrive, and discover the exceptions to your flawed maxims). As well as providing tasty wares, they also carry some essential toiletries, over the counter meds, and prophylactic rubbers (if you're in a bind). Def the spot to direct your loyalty too if you're residing in the immediate vicinity.

The food from here is amazing, tried the tacos and tamales, all delicious. They also have a wealth…read moreof products including avocados that are perfectly ripe, tomatillos, the best tortilla chips, locally made bags of tacos. The staff are always super friendly, good spot to dive into for a quick beer and taco! Everything is made fresh right there and brought over to you. May take a wee bit longer but worth it for fresh cooked food. Support this neighborhood gem.

This is like a mini-Costco, but for Mexican food products. Shelves loaded with salsas, sauces,…read moresyrups, juices and canned/jarred veggies. If you like to cook, there are bulk spices including many varieties of dried chiles. There's also a small fresh produce selection, which I should note might grow larger as we enter the warmer months (April's too early for tomatoes, chiles, etc. in NY). It seemed to me there were vans from Mexican eateries loading up on product, but you can walk in "off the street." The staff are very friendly and speak English. In fact, they invited me to check out their cheese market across the street. I was already in a hurry to be somewhere else so I'll have to review it another time (or you can). I'll definitely return because there are some dishes I learned to cook in New Mexico and can't find a couple of key ingredients here... these guys seem ambitious enough to source them. But hey, you can pick up a jar of hot sauce and not worry about such things.

I was thoroughly impressed by this Mexican bakery. When you walk in, it doesn't seem like much. A…read morebit barren even. We were instructed to take a pan and head to the back. When you pass through the doorway, you're knocked around by the sweet smells of fresh pan dulce. You serve yourself and take your finds to the cashier to be runs up. If you love Mexican pastry, you can't beat this spot.