Matamoros

Matamoros Grocery
193 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, NY

In the back of this tightly packed mexican grocery store, you can find a no-frills eatery with such favorites as tacos, tamales, sopes, tortas and burritos, all served up on paper plates and styrofoam, as if you bought them on the sidewalk. But leave any hoity-toity standards at the door because fresh ingredients and a hot grill are all it takes to make this a great place to eat.

I like to go to Matamoros in the winter time and order one of their burritos. They have once been described as "caveman food" by another diner who was commenting on their brick-like girth and lack of yuppie flair. Neanderthals would love them. All that is inside one of these puppies is meat, beans, and rice. No Lettuce or cheese or anything else to get in the way of the basics. The burritos at Matamoros are "wet", meaning that they are covered with crema and a hot sauce of your choice. On my most recent visit I ordered the chicken burrito with red sauce, which really hit the spot.

Other favorites are the tacos. The al Pastor is pretty good, but the Carne Enchilada (spicy pork) is better. If you like beef, don't be afraid to try the Cecina- salty steak bits that happen to look like wet dog food chunks. If you don't eat meat, I'd recommend the veggie tacos or the excellent veggie/cheese tamales. The tamales are filled with peas and carrots and cubes of that firm, chewy type of Mexican cheese. yum. On the weekends they have a special: hangover-reducing pozole soup with chicken, served with tortillas smeared with refried beans and topped with dry cheese. Wash it all down with a choice of about 100 different canned and bottled juices and mexican sodas.

The place is no secret in the neighborhood and the three tables are often crammed together, spotted with taco grease, or you have to perch up on a stool next to the ice machine. No matter that the bathroom is marked "OUT OF ORDER", the food is worth holding it for a little while longer. The Last time I was there, they had some interesting music playing on a CD instead of the usual spanish-language radio station. It was some awesome kind of mexican video game/ pop music. It's the kind of music that a cactus wearing sunglasses would be listening to. Yeah, somewhere warm they are listening to this weird music and eating spicy food like this..