Jackson Heights $1 Walking Tour, Part I

Last Sunday I went with three friends on a self guided $1 eating tour of Jackson Heights. It was our first time in Jackson Heights and we are all food enthusiasts. My good friend, Katie, and her boyfriend, John, are also from California so we were excited to see what Mexican food offering Jackson Heights could serve up. We got the idea for the $1 eating tour from an article in a recent TimeOut New York magazine. Our tour began just outside the subway stop with a Chinese bakery that is not worth mentioning as it was nothing compared to the Chinese bakeries of Flushing and Chinatown, Manhattan. The second stop was when the real Jackson Heights eating tour began...We tucked into a Columbian bakery called Mira Cali II Panaderia Y Pasteleria

(76-04 Roosevelt Ave between 76th and 77th Sts, 718-779-7175) and shared two delicious pandebonos. They are slightly sweet Columbian cheese bread made with yucca flour and mild farmer's cheese. We had them warm and they have a slightly thicker crust with a perfectly moist and soft inside. This picture does not do the pandebono justice and I unfortuntately didn't get a picture of the inside of the roll.

Next stop was one of the best of all the $1 eating stops. We had incredible tacos and sopres out of a little easy-to-miss taco truck. The Tacos Mi Mexico Lindo truck (Roosevelt Ave at Gleane Street and Baxter Ave) is becoming somewhat of  an institution, serving up delicious and fresh sopres, tacos and quesadillas. The sopres were thick, soft Mexican corn cakes with a large variation of toppings. We tried the Al Pastor and the Chicken. Then on the counter of the truck, is a ledge with many additional toppings such as pickled jalapenos, fresh cut radishes, cilantro, salsa verde and spicy regular salsa. Here is a picture of the sopre:
                             

And here are the best tacos I've had in New York from the Tacos mi Mexico Lindo truck:

Next up we were headed for a place that a coworker of mine, Will, recommended. When I told him I was going on a dollar eating tour of Jackson Heights, he shared his personal favorite place for empanadas that are only $1.50. As we walked over to Will's fav, El Chivito d'Oro (84-02 37th Ave at 84th Street) we stopped for a $2 bag of freshly cut mangos! I honestly have not tasted mangos so sweet and fresh since Thailand. the atmosphere at El Chivito d'Oro is lively and boisterous. The tables have large baskets of freshly baked bread and trays of delicious looking meats next to large bowls of chopped salads. Needless to say, had we not been on a 'walking tour" this would definitely have been the restaurant to stay a while and eat. We ordered one spinach empanada and one beef empanada. The spinach empanada was definitely my favorite. It had a delicious flaky crust and a lot of filling. A little reminescent of a spanikopita with a Latin flare.