Best Sonoran Hot Dog EMILIO’S TACOS & HOT DOGS 13803 North 19th Avenue 602-810-1468 facebook.com/EmiliosPhx Metro Phoenix is filled with roadside stands with colorful tents churning out excellent bacon-wrapped hot dogs. But if you’re looking to sit down at a restaurant and enjoy a Sonoran-style dog, that’s a little harder to find. Enter Emilio’s Tacos & Hotdogs. Located on 19th Avenue in a former Dairy Queen, a small team of servers and cooks work the drive-thru window, fry churros, fold burritos, and top baskets of fries with carne asada, guacamole, cheese, and a rainbow of salsas. Best of all, they roll hot dogs in bacon, top them with savory pinto beans, a smattering of tomatoes, and a heavy- handed drizzle of mustard and mayon- naise, then serve them piping hot. Get messy at one of the wooden tables inside the small, brightly colored restaurant, or sit outside on the covered patio. Whether you’re from Tucson and miss the Sonoran hot dogs available at BKs or El Guerro Canelo, or you’ve tried these messy creations on the streets of Sonora, Emilio’s dogs stand up to the best. Best Elote GALLO BLANCO 928 East Pierce Street 602-327-0880 galloblancocafe.com There’s a difference of opinion in the street-corn-lovers community: Do you like your corn in a cup (which is called esquites), or still on the cob (elote)? Popular central Phoenix eatery Gallo Blanco caters to the cob crowd. Its version of the Mexican snack food is one ear of corn smeared with just the right amount of mayo, then generously dusted with cotija cheese, chile piquin, and smoked paprika. You can slice the kernels off the cob, or dig in face first — hey, that’s what napkins are for. The elote is perfectly roasted, fresh, and crisp, and the ideal start to a great Gallo Blanco lunch or dinner. Best Beans TACO BOY’S 620 East Roosevelt Street 602-675-3962 1015 South Rural Road, Tempe 480-597-5623 aztacoboys.com 176 Taco Boy’s two Valley locations serve some of the best tacos in town, no question. But when we think about meals we’ve had there, the dish that sticks in our mind, that we crave, that we tell others about, is ... the beans. Seriously. Think of the many bland piles of refried beans you’ve eaten in your life, then imagine the opposite of that. Taco Boy’s beans are dark, with a smoky flavor. They’re mostly smooth, with just a tiny bit of texture. They’re incredible fresh or reheated. And they’re the perfect side dish to the main offerings at Taco’s Boy — we particularly love the al pastor and the carne asada. The Phoenix outpost has a few beer options in bottles, but if you head to Tempe to try the beans and their sidekicks, you can pick a beverage from the beer wall, which offers 20 taps of frothy refreshment. Best Guacamole BARRIO CAFÉ 2814 North 16th Street 602-636-0240 barriocafe.com A bit of Googling quickly brings up the recipe for the guacamole at the iconic and oft-celebrated Mexican restaurant Barrio Café. It seems simple enough — avocado, onion, cilantro, jalapeño, lime juice, salt, and pomegranate seeds (and optional tomato) — and yet nothing we whip up in our kitchen tastes the same as the version that comes out of the kitchen at the central Phoenix eatery. That’s fine with us — it gives us an excuse to walk through Barrio Café’s doors yet again. We start with the guac, or maybe the queso fundido, then face the hard question — which of Chef Silvana Salcido Esparza’s excellent dishes do we choose as an entree? (Spoiler: It’s usually her savory, fragrant cochinita pibil.) But while we wait for the main course, we get to feast on the guacamole and chips, each light chip cradling a scoop of chunky green heaven. Best Mexican Sushi SUSHI SONORA 3555 West McDowell Road 602-278-9355 And other Valley locations sushisonoraaz.com If you’re not familiar with the concept of Mexican sushi, it sounds like an oxymoron — or a joke. But it’s neither. While Mexican sushi has lots in common with the conven- tions of traditional Japanese sushi, there are plenty of traits that make it unique. There’s no nigiri or sashimi; the hallmark of Mexican sushi is the deep-fried roll, and the things that go into said rolls can vary wildly from anything you’ve seen before. At local chain Sushi Sonora, that means the Sushi Dog, a roll with sausage, bacon, cream cheese, and avocado, or a traditional Mexican sushi creation, the Cielo, Mar y Tierra (sky, sea, and land) Roll, which includes chicken, beef, shrimp, cream cheese, and avocado. Our favorite is the Potan Roll, which features crab mix on top of salmon, shrimp, and cream cheese, all topped with a zesty sauce. If you’re looking to expand your sushi horizons, Sushi Sonora is the place. BEST OF PHOENIX 2022 | WWW.BESTOFPHOENIX202W.C0M | SEPTEMBER 29, 2022