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\n The menu in NYC will match the CDMX original\u2019s.
\n Photo: Luis Antonio Rojas\/The New York Times\/Redux\n <\/p>\n
Even people who aren\u2019t familiar with Mexico City\u2019s food scene likely know about El Califa de Le\u00f3n<\/a>, owing to the 60-year-old institution\u2019s reputation as the first taqueria to be awarded a Michelin star<\/a>. After receiving the honor in 2024, it became clear to third-generation owner Jos\u00e9 Andr\u00e9s Hern\u00e1ndez Elizalde and his father, Mario Hern\u00e1ndez, that it was time to think about opening outside of its hometown. But where to go? That year, the restaurant partnered with Tacombi<\/a> on a ten-week pop-up tour to New York, Chicago, Miami, and Washington, D.C., that sold over 180,000 tacos nationwide; New York was \u201ceasily\u201d the most enthusiastic market and inadvertently won the bid to house the taqueria\u2019s expansion.<\/p>\n Instead of tapping hospitality behemoths or venture-capital firms to fund and oversee the expansion, they turned to family and friends, who in turn furnished the bulk of the financial backing needed for the expansion. \u201cThis has been a family business forever,\u201d Hern\u00e1ndez Elizalde says. It\u2019s why his partner leading the growth is Rodrigo Rivera, who built a successful career in tourism, airlines, and restaurant tech in Toronto and, more crucially, has been best friends with Hern\u00e1ndez Elizalde since the 11th grade.<\/p>\n The restaurant is planning to open its new Flatiron location at the end of August. Despite the new location, the approach is the same as it\u2019s ever been: the same concise menu of tacos (prime rib eye, tenderloin, pork chop, and New York strip), placed in tortillas made with masa from Bushwick\u2019s Sobre Masa<\/a> and designed to be doused in homemade rojo or verde salsa. \u201cWe\u2019re not adapting the taco to the U.S. market \u2014\u00a0we\u2019re bringing the real thing,\u201d Hern\u00e1ndez Elizalde says. \u201cNew Yorkers and Americans have gotten used to a taco that\u2019s been adapted to them, but every time they go out in Mexico, they\u2019re like, Why did all those tacos taste that good down there?\u201d<\/p>\n There are some new additions, including the use of USDA Prime-graded beef in the tenderloin taco, a vegetarian option made with roasted poblano peppers and huitlacoche, and an alluring \u201cMARGARITA\u201d sign that looms above a bar to signal a robust selection of mezcal, tequila, and beer. The interior also feels befitting of a second chapter. While the original taco stand is less than 100 square feet, the Flatiron location seats up to 60 and includes a table-service section, a seated taco counter, and standing room for those who want a dining experience most similar to what they\u2019d find in Mexico City. The family partnered with friends at CDMX-based interior firm MERO MX<\/a>, which outfitted the space with glossy, blood-red subway tiles as well as accordion-style doors at the entrance and an open-air grill that gives customers a plancha-to-plate view of their orders.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re here to set the standard, not only for the best tacos in New York, but in the U.S.,\u201d says Hern\u00e1ndez Elizalde, who will relocate his family to New York City early next year to oversee the taqueria\u2019s continued American expansion, which he hopes will include at least several more locations year. \u201cNew Yorkers will have exactly the same taco as we prepare in Mexico,\u201d he says, \u201cbut I like to think it\u2019s going to be a little bit better because of the quality of the meat we can serve here.\u201d<\/p>\n EAT LIKE THE EXPERTS.<\/p>\n Sign up for the Grub Street newsletter.<\/p>\n Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice<\/p>\n