Chicago’s Best Mexican Restaurants | Eater Chicago

"With its vibrant papel picado and an altar dedicated to the Santa Muerte, this dimensional door to Mexico is at the very least, visually fascinating. Half-Mexican grocery store and half-taco wonderland, César “El Molusco” Castillo consistently delivers some of the best tacos in town from behind the counters. His technique uses a flat, thin, and circular hot surface with a dome in the center called comal con sombrero, much like the ones you will find on the streets of Mexico City. Start modest with a sampling of the more traditional variations (including al pastor and asada), then dive into the adventurous items. Cabeza (beef head), crispy tripe, and sesos (brain) are go-to’s for regulars of this Little Village establishment. The tacos de canasta (basket tacos) are also favorites, and unlike other tacos, which are better when consumed immediately, de canasta tacos travel well by design. Beverage options include aguas frescas of tropical fruits like guanabana and exotic ones like alfalfa with pingüica, a small wild berry that looks like an apple and grows in shrubs, and the fermented tepache made with pineapple juice. La Chaparrita was featured among a few others on this list in the latest season of the Netflix series Taco Chronicles." - Brenda Storch