Nixta Taqueria
EatEast Austin#17 of 50

Nixta Taqueria

Austin, Texas

Photo: Nixta Taqueria

A tiny taqueria doing things with heirloom corn that would make your abuela proud and a little jealous. Chef Edgar Rico nixtamalizes rare corn varieties and turns them into tortillas so good they could stand alone. The duck carnitas taco might be the single best bite in Austin under ten dollars.

Insider tip

The duck carnitas taco with mole amarillo. It sells out — go early or go hungry.

Get Directions
See all 50 picks in Austin

More in Austin

You might also like

Houndstooth Coffee
CoffeeWest Campus

Houndstooth Coffee

Skip the line at whatever everyone's posting about this week. Houndstooth has been quietly doing single-origin pour-overs better than anyone in the city for over a decade. The West Campus location has this perfect mid-morning light that makes you want to stay for a second cup.

Uchi
EatSouth Lamar

Uchi

Tyson Cole's flagship is still the best meal in Austin, full stop. This isn't a sushi restaurant — it's a Japanese farmhouse that happens to serve the most inventive raw fish in the Southwest. The omakase is worth every dollar, but honestly the à la carte hot tastings are where the kitchen really shows off.

Hotel Saint Cecilia
StaySouth Congress

Hotel Saint Cecilia

Named after the patron saint of music and poetry, and it earns both. This is a 14-room estate hidden behind a wall of bamboo on South Congress. No lobby, no check-in desk, no corporate anything. Just a pool, a record collection, and the distinct feeling that you're staying at a very cool friend's house.

Eat picks elsewhere

More eat we love

EatLittle Havana · Miami, Florida

Versailles

The cathedral of Cuban-American cuisine. Versailles has been the political, social, and culinary heart of Miami's exile community since 1971. The food is comfort in its purest form — ropa vieja, vaca frita, platanos maduros — and the ventanita window for cafecito is a daily ritual for half the city. Skip the trendy spots. This is Miami's soul on a plate.

EatDivision · Portland, Oregon

Le Pigeon

Gabriel Rucker's flagship remains one of the most exciting restaurants on the West Coast. The menu reads like a dare — foie gras profiteroles, beef cheek bourguignon, a burger that costs more than it should and is worth every cent. The room is tiny, the counter seats face the open kitchen, and every plate arrives looking like controlled chaos. This is Portland fine dining at its most unruly and brilliant.