{"id":19936,"date":"2011-11-20T15:35:19","date_gmt":"2011-11-20T20:35:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/?p=19936"},"modified":"2011-11-20T15:54:59","modified_gmt":"2011-11-20T20:54:59","slug":"real-azteca-serves-up-the-real-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/2011\/11\/20\/19936-real-azteca-serves-up-the-real-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"Real Azteca serves up the real deal"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div id=\"attachment_19944\" style=\"width: 563px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/2011\/11\/azteca5.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-19944\" class=\"size-large wp-image-19944   \" title=\"azteca5\" src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/2011\/11\/azteca5-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"553\" height=\"411\" srcset=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/2011\/11\/azteca5.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/2011\/11\/azteca5-300x223.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 553px) 100vw, 553px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-19944\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Fresh corn tortillas are made to order at Real Azteca, an authentic Mexican taqueria in Hunts Point. BIANCA CONSUNJI\/The Bronx Ink<\/p><\/div>\n<div\n\tclass=\"ngg-galleryoverview\"\n\tid=\"ngg-gallery-670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938-1\">\n\n    \t\t<!-- Thumbnails -->\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-0\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\" >\n\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca1.jpg\"\n               title=\"\"\n               data-src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca1.jpg\"\n               data-thumbnail=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca1.jpg\"\n               data-image-id=\"1799\"\n               data-title=\"azteca1\"\n               data-description=\"\"\n               data-image-slug=\"azteca1\"\n               class=\"shutterset_670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938\">\n                <img\n                    title=\"azteca1\"\n                    alt=\"azteca1\"\n                    src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca1.jpg\"\n                    width=\"120\"\n                    height=\"90\"\n                    style=\"max-width:100%;\"\n                \/>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-1\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\" >\n\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca2.jpg\"\n               title=\"\"\n               data-src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca2.jpg\"\n               data-thumbnail=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca2.jpg\"\n               data-image-id=\"1800\"\n               data-title=\"azteca2\"\n               data-description=\"\"\n               data-image-slug=\"azteca2\"\n               class=\"shutterset_670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938\">\n                <img\n                    title=\"azteca2\"\n                    alt=\"azteca2\"\n                    src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca2.jpg\"\n                    width=\"120\"\n                    height=\"90\"\n                    style=\"max-width:100%;\"\n                \/>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-2\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\" >\n\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca3.jpg\"\n               title=\"\"\n               data-src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca3.jpg\"\n               data-thumbnail=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca3.jpg\"\n               data-image-id=\"1804\"\n               data-title=\"azteca3\"\n               data-description=\"\"\n               data-image-slug=\"azteca3\"\n               class=\"shutterset_670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938\">\n                <img\n                    title=\"azteca3\"\n                    alt=\"azteca3\"\n                    src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca3.jpg\"\n                    width=\"120\"\n                    height=\"90\"\n                    style=\"max-width:100%;\"\n                \/>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-3\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\" style=\"display: none;\">\n\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca7.jpg\"\n               title=\"\"\n               data-src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca7.jpg\"\n               data-thumbnail=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca7.jpg\"\n               data-image-id=\"1803\"\n               data-title=\"azteca7\"\n               data-description=\"\"\n               data-image-slug=\"azteca7\"\n               class=\"shutterset_670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938\">\n                <img\n                    title=\"azteca7\"\n                    alt=\"azteca7\"\n                    src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca7.jpg\"\n                    width=\"120\"\n                    height=\"90\"\n                    style=\"max-width:100%;\"\n                \/>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-4\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\" style=\"display: none;\">\n\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca6.jpg\"\n               title=\"\"\n               data-src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca6.jpg\"\n               data-thumbnail=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca6.jpg\"\n               data-image-id=\"1802\"\n               data-title=\"azteca6\"\n               data-description=\"\"\n               data-image-slug=\"azteca6\"\n               class=\"shutterset_670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938\">\n                <img\n                    title=\"azteca6\"\n                    alt=\"azteca6\"\n                    src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca6.jpg\"\n                    width=\"120\"\n                    height=\"90\"\n                    style=\"max-width:100%;\"\n                \/>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-5\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\" style=\"display: none;\">\n\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca5.jpg\"\n               title=\"\"\n               data-src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca5.jpg\"\n               data-thumbnail=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca5.jpg\"\n               data-image-id=\"1801\"\n               data-title=\"azteca5\"\n               data-description=\"\"\n               data-image-slug=\"azteca5\"\n               class=\"shutterset_670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938\">\n                <img\n                    title=\"azteca5\"\n                    alt=\"azteca5\"\n                    src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca5.jpg\"\n                    width=\"120\"\n                    height=\"90\"\n                    style=\"max-width:100%;\"\n                \/>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n        \n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"ngg-image-6\" class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail-box\" style=\"display: none;\">\n\t\t\t\t        <div class=\"ngg-gallery-thumbnail\">\n            <a href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca4.jpg\"\n               title=\"\"\n               data-src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/azteca4.jpg\"\n               data-thumbnail=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca4.jpg\"\n               data-image-id=\"1805\"\n               data-title=\"azteca4\"\n               data-description=\"\"\n               data-image-slug=\"azteca4\"\n               class=\"shutterset_670f6096130203f9bf6565910231c938\">\n                <img\n                    title=\"azteca4\"\n                    alt=\"azteca4\"\n                    src=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/3\/files\/real-azteca\/thumbs\/thumbs_azteca4.jpg\"\n                    width=\"120\"\n                    height=\"90\"\n                    style=\"max-width:100%;\"\n                \/>\n            <\/a>\n        <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n        \n\t\t\n\t\t<!-- Pagination -->\n\t<div class='ngg-navigation'><span class=\"current\">1<\/span><a class=\"page-numbers\" data-pageid=\"2\" href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/2011\/11\/20\/19936-real-azteca-serves-up-the-real-deal\/nggallery\/page\/2\">2<\/a><a class=\"page-numbers\" data-pageid=\"3\" href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/2011\/11\/20\/19936-real-azteca-serves-up-the-real-deal\/nggallery\/page\/3\">3<\/a><a class=\"next\" data-pageid=\"2\" id=\"ngg-next-2\" href=\"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/2011\/11\/20\/19936-real-azteca-serves-up-the-real-deal\/nggallery\/page\/2\">&#9658;<\/a><\/div>\t<\/div>\n\n<p>It was 3 p.m., that awkward hour between lunch and dinner when most restaurants slow down. Even the Bronx\u2019s best-known pizzerias on Arthur Avenue had emptied out. But halfway across the borough on the same Saturday afternoon, the cramped but cozy Real Azteca was bustling. The counter seating was full, and a steady stream of customers arrived for takeout.<\/p>\n<p>Behind the counter, four cooks prepared a wide variety of traditional Michoac\u00e1n dishes in full view of the customers. The dishes are nothing like the Tex-Mex burritos that generally pass for \u201cMexican food\u201d in the U.S. Real Azteca offers <em>huitlacoche <\/em>quesadillas with a rich, ground mushroom-and-corn filling, soft goat-meat tacos, seafood soup with fresh cilantro, and steak with prickly-pear cactus and homemade guacamole.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>And the neighborhood seems to appreciate it. \u201cWe\u2019re always busy,\u201d said cook Patricia Valle. \u201cThank the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Real Azteca is family-run. Valle\u2019s brother-in-law Francisco Ortega opened this restaurant 15 years ago, and Valle and her sister Graciela Ortega cook. The family are Tarasco Indians, and pride themselves on serving authentic cuisine from their native Michoac\u00e1n, a state on the southwest coast of Mexico.<\/p>\n<p>Quesadillas are their signature dish. A young cook scoops a handful of dough from a giant tub and places it in a press brought specially from Mexico.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can\u2019t buy a press like this here,\u201d said Francisco Ortega, whose brother has opened a second restaurant near St. Barnabas Hospital. \u201cIt\u2019s not hard to make tortillas, but I haven\u2019t seen other restaurants doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ortega prides himself on fresh ingredients. The cooks grind jalape\u00f1os and other chilies to make their own salsas and press hundreds of tortillas each day.<\/p>\n<p>The extra care makes all the difference, said Valle, who made her living as a cook back home as well. When three other Mexican restaurants opened nearby, all three closed within a year. None of them used fresh ingredients, Valle said, adding with a grimace that she suspects they heated dishes in a microwave.<\/p>\n<p>Seated at a table, Ricardo Garcia from Guatemala is one of the restaurant\u2019s repeat visitors. \u201cThe quesadillas are best,\u201d Garcia said. \u201cI come all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Around 4:30 p.m., there was a short lull. A police officer dropped by to pick up an order for the 41<sup>st<\/sup> Precinct. Graciela Ortega and then Valle each took turns sitting down to a quick meal at the counter. A tired Valle smiled and pointed to her bowl. \u201cThis is the first chance I\u2019ve had all day to eat something,\u201d she said with a hint of satisfaction. \u201cIt\u2019s been so busy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Real Azteca, 1013 E. 163rd Street, 718-860-1566<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>By subway: Hunts Point Avenue on the No. 6 train. \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<div><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/div>\n<iframe src=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/like.php?href=http%3A%2F%2Fbronxink.org%2F2011%2F11%2F20%2F19936-real-azteca-serves-up-the-real-deal%2F&amp;layout=standard&amp;show_faces=true&amp;width=450&amp;action=like&amp;colorscheme=light&amp;height=80\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:80px;\" allowTransparency=\"true\"><\/iframe>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Real Azteca on 163rd offers Michoac\u00e1n fare like huitlacoche quesadillas and soft goat-meat tacos.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":459,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[661,662,23,276,1961],"tags":[7593,972,346],"class_list":["post-19936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bronx-life","category-bronx-neighborhoods","category-featured","category-food","category-southern-bronx","tag-ethnic-cuisine","tag-hunts-point","tag-mexico"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19936"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/459"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19936"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19936\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19936"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19936"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/bronxink.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19936"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}