La Salsita

If you want Mexican fast food that’s slightly more authentic than Taco Bell, there’s a Filiberto’s ready to serve you in every part of town. But if you want cheap, convenient Mexican grub in a joint where practically everyone is speaking Spanish, you have to go somewhere a little less Americanized – like La Salsita. There are locations throughout Phoenix, Glendale, and Mesa, but the most colorful is in a rough part of town on Van Buren and 23rd Streets, where there’s a nightly mix of cops and, well, people who would rather be far away from cops. So what makes it so popular? The central Phoenix party crowd loves that it’s open 24 hours serving dirt cheap street tacos in varieties like tripe and tongue, big burritos filled with juicy carne asada, a great (albeit probably dirty) salsa bar, and a selection of pastries and desserts. You also can’t go wrong with a cup of horchata ladled from a big plastic jug.