El Pequeno Atoron

«Sketchy location, awesome Mexican food»
Came here after reading Andrew’s review, and was not at all disappointed. I had the azada gordita and a barbacoa taco. The barbacoa taco was easily one of the best I’ve had in town (if not the best). Absolutely succulent meat, perfectly seasoned. The gordita was huge and also delicious. Nice selection of sodas in the fridge in the back, and a decent number of salsas to add yourself (though honestly the food was delicious even without the salsa).
Don’t come here expecting to be «waited on”– it’s basically a counter from which to order, you help yourself to drinks, they bring you the food to a table in the back, and you pay afterwards. Reasonably clean seating area (though far from spotless) with a BIG TV.
Best of all– super-​cheap. I paid $ 6 for both items plus a drink. My dining friend had two tacos and a drink and paid $ 4.50 or so.
I’ll definitely plan to come back.

This is the first Taqueria I discovered in Durham, back in 2005. The quality has not wavered since.
I only ever get Gordita’s:
**I saw her hand-​form the Masa, then fry to order, the gordita shells
**Fresh carne asada was cooked to order
**Perfect layers of lettuce, tomato, queso, crema
**She sliced into a new avacado before putting a slice on each one
It’s a lunch counter in the back of a Mexican grocery — you wouldn’t even notice it if you drove by. It’s not for the novice taqueria enthusiast…