Fodor's Expert Review South Philly Barbacoa

Cristina Martinez and Benjamin Miller specialize in barbacoa, the succulent, slow-cooked lamb of Martinez’s Mexican homeland. The couple and their staff chop the meat with cleavers and pile it on fluffy corn tortillas, which you top at the salsa station with strips of cactus paddle rajas, onion-laced pickled jalapeno escabeche, chopped cilantro, and fresh lime. Pancita tacos and a flavorful consommé soup made from the lamb’s drippings are must-orders, too. Go early, as they usually sell out at this four-day-a-week operation.