A Taste of the Barrio - A Food Tour of Mazatlan's Culinary Backstreets
- Dara
- 4 days ago
- 13 min read
Updated: 9 hours ago
If you’re looking to take your taste buds on an adventure through Mazatlán, look no further than Flavor Teller’s Barrio Bites tour. My partner and I booked this half-day tour while in town for the day during our Mexican Riviera cruise, and we were utterly unprepared for how incredible this was going to be - we truly had some of the best Mexican food of our lives, and at places we absolutely never would have found on our own. I’ll go through all the details of the tour, so you know what to bring, what to expect, and most importantly, what you’re going to eat!
Where is Mazatlán?
Welcome to the shrimp capital of Latin America - cue Bubba’s shrimp speech from Forrest Gump! Also known as the "Pearl of the Pacific," Mazatlán is on Mexico’s west coast in the state of Sinaloa. Sitting right on the Pacific, Mazatlán is famed for its vibrant culture, rich history, natural beauty, and, most importantly for today’s excursion, its FOOD.
What is Barrio Bites? An Off the Beaten Track Journey Through Mazatlán’s Street Food Scene!
Barrio Bites is all about taking a break from the cruise ship or beach resort tourist bubble and embracing Mazatlán like a local. You’ll join your guide and a small group of other like-minded travelers (max 10 people) on a guided food tour through Mazatlán’s oldest neighborhood, the Centro Historico, a traditionally working class area filled with vibrancy and served with a delightful dash of chaos. You’ll ride in a traditional Mazatlán Auriga taxi, a bright red open-air pickup truck with bench seating in the truck bed. As you bounce through the old city streets, you’ll feel like part of the town’s beating heart, instead of just observing it all through a tinted tourist bus window.
Barrio Bites is all about what Flavor Teller calls the “culinary backstreets”. No tourist restaurants, chains, or fancy establishments on this itinerary. You’ll eat at small, family-run places where you’ll often be greeted and served by the proprietors themselves. You’ll taste and learn about authentic local flavors, while your guide reveals how the food relates to Mexican culture and history. You’ll go home with a full belly and a full heart.
Barrio Bites Tour Information
The Logistics
Cost: Adults (ages 9 and up) are $72, Kids ages 2 - 8 are $50
Note these are the prices as of January 2026 when booking through Flavor Teller - 3rd party sites may be more expensive. We overpaid by booking through a 3rd party site, so don’t make that same mistake!
Duration: 3 - 4 hours, from 10 am - 1 to 2 pm. Assume 4 hours.
Meeting Location: Plazuela Machado in the Centro Historico. The Plazuela is a lovely public park, one of the oldest in the city. Try to get there a bit early to perhaps catch a performance of the traditional Mexican Aztec dancers! They were gone by the time we got back to the Plazuela at the end of the tour.
Guides
Guides are all bi-lingual with excellent English. Our guide was a Mazatlán native who was friendly, passionate about food, and really cultivated a wonderful group dynamic for us.
What to Bring
Your appetite. Skip breakfast this day, trust me. As for hydration, they provide a small water bottle, but always best to bring your own in case it is very hot, or if you accidentally leave their bottle behind, like I did at the very first vendor. You can wear whatever you want, there’s not much walking on this tour (though there is a fair bit of standing), you’ll mostly be at the vendors or on the Auriga riding around. If you want to leave tips for anyone, having Mexican pesos on hand is also a good idea. Also good to have the cash in case you want to buy any extra food that isn’t included with the tour - snacks for later after you’ve digested!
Restrooms
They will be few and far between on the tour, which shouldn’t be a surprise, as you’re riding around in a pickup truck eating street food. The restaurant at the end has nice facilities, but the first few stops don’t really have any options. Your guide will show you to a clean restroom near the tour meeting point before you board your Auriga, so be sure to go then.
The Vendors
They are all vetted by Flavor Teller, so you can expect clean, well-prepared food without worry, along with friendly service and genuinely warm welcomes.
Spice Level
You’ll be eating Mexican food cooked for Mexicans, so expect flavors that pop! Your mouth will be awake and alert. That said, don’t worry too much about spice level. All the vendors that the tour visits have their spicy salsas on the side, so you can indulge in as much or as little (or like me, none…) as you’d like. I personally can’t handle a lot of spice in my food. I’ve been trying to train my palate and have gotten better over the years, but these salsas would have destroyed me. Even my partner, who is part Mexican and enjoys heat in his food, couldn’t handle the spiciest ones.
Barrio Bites as a Cruise Shore Excursion?
Short on time in Mazatlán? Thankfully, Flavor Teller caters to the cruise passenger who is only in town for a few hours during the day (like we were). The tour fits well for cruise docking times, though of course check your ship’s schedule to be sure. The meeting point for the tour is a 5-10 minute taxi or uber ride from the cruise terminal, although if you get off the ship early enough in the morning you can just walk, it’s safe and pretty straightforward.
We took an uber to the Plazuela Machado in the morning, and then walked back to the ship at the end of the tour. This district of Mazatlán is a nice area to stroll around, I would recommend going for a walk on your own after the tour. You will want to walk off all that food anyway! We booked Barrio Bites through the shore excursions aggregator site shoreexcursionsgroup.com, but as mentioned above, I would strongly recommend booking directly through Flavor Teller, as it’s much less expensive. We never would have found this tour without the aggregator site (and in fact the tour description on the aggregator site doesn’t mention Flavor Teller by name, which I’m sure is intentional), but now you can learn from our mistake and save yourself some money by going straight to Flavor Teller to book your Mazatlan food tour!
Ok, let’s get down to business - the FOOD
Barrio Bites Food Stops - Let's Eat!
El Veneno
Our first stop of the day was El Veneno, a popular street taco spot known for their homemade seasoned food. “Veneno” means “poison” or “venom” in English, so you know you’re starting your day off with a bang.
They’re famous for their weathered fish tacos, but I had the chicharrón - fried pork belly. Ordinarily I’m not a pork eater and wasn’t sure how much I’d like this, but this was literally the BEST TACO OF MY LIFE. I will dream about this taco until the day I can return to Mazatlán. The open faced taco itself was just the right level of spice for me, where the intense flavors popped in my mouth, but I could still handle and enjoy the heat.
The side salsas were popular with some of the others on the tour - I heard they were delicious, but the spice level with these is no joke.
Besides the tacos, the best part of this first stop was the man behind the magic - El Veneno himself. He didn’t speak English, but this guy didn’t need to. Our guide did translate for us, but his charm, jokes, and enthusiasm was enough to break through the language barrier.
By the time you’re done eating you kind of wish you could just hangout here, spending the day making tacos and shooting the breeze with El Veneno. You can read more about him in this article from the Mazatlán post. Funny guy, fabulous tacos.
Find El Veneno Online: El Veneno Facebook Page
El Veneno Address: Av Gutiérrez Nájera, Centro, 82000 Mazatlán, Sin., Mexico
On the Map: El Veneno Google Maps
Taquería La Mexicana
Our second stop was Taquería La Mexicana, another iconic Mazatlán street vendor serving traditional food. With a long history dating back 65 years, this beloved family-run spot is famous for authentic caguamanta and stew tacos - true classic Mazatlán seafood cuisine.
We all had the caguamanta stew, served with salsas, garnishes, and warm tortillas on the side. The etymology of the word “caguamanta” refers to it’s original ingredients. While you may have guessed that “manta” refers to the manta ray, you may be surprised that “caguama” is actually loggerhead sea turtle!
Eating sea turtles is now prohibited, so modern caguamanta stew is made from tuna and ray instead. It’s a hearty tomato-based stew, featuring rich broth, a touch of heat, and beautiful local spices.
You can add extra spice and garnishes as well with the side accompaniments. The caguamanta was delicious, and definitely a new flavor combination for my palate.
I walked away really happy, having had experienced new flavors and a second truly authentic Mazatlán cuisine experience that we just never would otherwise. While only the caguamanta stew is included with the tour, this spot is also well known for their tacos suaves, featuring fillings such as potato, frijol, chicharrón, and marlin. You can absolutely try these tacos as well, but it would be at your own cost - so don’t forget to have those pesos on hand!
Taquería La Mexicana Address: 82000, 16 de septiembre esquina con Guillermo nelson, Centro, Mazatlán, Sin., Mexico
On the Map: Taquería La Mexicana Google Maps
Tortillería Zaragoza
Tortillería Zaragoza was more of a tasting and educational experience than the first two stops, which was kind of nice as the break gives your stomach a little bit of time to digest. The 50 year old Tortillería Zaragoza is one of the few tortillerias in Mazatlán that still makes tortillas the traditional, original way - that is, made from fresh ground corn.
Other tortillerias use corn meal to make their tortillas, as it is both faster and cheaper. However, the proprietor here has decided to continue this centuries-old tradition of making tortillas from the corn grains, a process called nixtamalización. The front of Tortillería Zaragoza is the shop portion, where you can purchase the freshly made tortillas, and the back of the space is where the magic happens.
Our guide gave us a brief history of the tortilla and the shop itself while we stood outside, and then she took us to the back to see the different machinery and explain the process in detail. We saw how the corn kernels are boiled in limewater, then the grains are ground into masa dough.
The masa dough is then pressed flat into small patties and cooked. Obviously we got to try the tortillas as well, and let me tell you, they will spoil you for life. You may start turning your nose up at those corn meal tortillas!
Tortillería Zaragoza Address: Belisario Domínguez 2401, Centro, 82000 Mazatlán, Sin., Mexico
On The Map: Tortillería Zaragoza Google Maps
Pescadería del Mar
As any proper beach city does, Mazatlán has a long coastal pathway with beautiful ocean views that is home to a lively scene of shops, restaurants, and vendors. It is here, on the Malecón de Mazatlán, that you’ll find our 4th stop, Pescadería del Mar.
It’s a small storefront fish shop that specializes in smoking fish and selling it to local seafood restaurants. Mazatlán is a seafood mecca, so it was wonderful to check out a small local market and see all the fish, fresh from being caught in local waters.
Obviously the vast majority of the fish here is raw, but we did get to try a couple of things. The first was a bit of smoked marlin. I’ve never had marlin, and in general I do not enjoy smoky flavors, but I gave it a shot. Wasn't really to my taste, but the second item we tried, a smoked marlin pâté, knocked my socks off. Served on top of a tostada, this stuff was delicious. I could've eaten the whole container, and my partner still occasionally waxes poetic about the smoked marlin dip from the fish shop!
Find Pescadería del Mar Online: Pescadería del Mar Facebook Page
Pescadería del Mar Address: P.º Claussen 97-C, Centro, 82000 Mazatlán, Sin., Mexico
On The Map: Pescadería del Mar Google Maps
Las Changueras Expendio De Mariscos
The next stop was a large outdoor seafood market, Las Changueras Expendio De Mariscos. It was cool to see the hustle and bustle of a local fish market in action, and while there is a wide variety of fish on sale here, such as red snapper, spiny lobster, oysters, and clams, it is shrimp who is truly king at Las Changueras Expendio De Mariscos.
After all, you’re in the shrimp capital of Latin America! Our guide gave us a general overview of the market and showed us the differences between the various farmed and wild shrimps on offer.
If you’re staying in Mazatlán and have accommodation with a kitchen, this would be a great spot to come get fresh local seafood at very reasonable prices, particularly shrimp. Even if you don’t have a kitchen, they’ve still got you covered! The restaurant across the street from the market, El Ancla de Oro, will cook your market fish for only a few pesos, and can hook you up with a cold beer or soda while your catch of the day is prepared.
If you are planning on shopping at Las Changueras Expendio De Mariscos in your spare time, there are a few things to keep in mind. Make sure you have plenty of pesos, and a language translator app might be useful if your Spanish isn’t strong - you’re buying directly from local fisherman, and English may not be widely understood. Our group was here in the late morning, but the best fish selections will be when the market opens, around 7 am. You can try to haggle on prices, and if you’re bringing your fish home to cook, you can ask the vendors to clean the fish for a small additional charge.
We didn’t have any of the fish here cooked for us, but we did have our next snack directly across the street, next to El Ancla de Oro.
There are a couple of shops that sell packaged camarón seco - dried shrimp. We all tried a piece, you just bite right on in, shell and all! These were really good, I’d love them as a great on-the-go protein snack!
Las Changueras Expendio De Mariscos Address: Aquiles Serdán 2307, Centro, 82000 Mazatlán, Sin., Mexico
On The Map: Las Changueras Expendio De Mariscos Google Maps
Cenaduria Chayito
At this point it had been a while since we’d had a small meal. The last 3 stops had been snacks, which turns out to be excellent planning on Flavor Teller’s part because stop 6 at Cenaduria Chayito refills that belly and then some.
This was a full sit-down restaurant experience (and the best restroom opportunity of the tour) for lunch at a small, family-run restaurant. Our guide gave us the history of the place and the family who runs it, before the piles of food started to arrive. Lunch is served family style, so you can try a bit of everything on offer.
Cenaduria Chayito is known for machaca a la Mexicana and chilorio with flour tortillas. Machaca a la Mexicana is a traditional northern Mexican dish made with shredded dried beef (carne seca), scrambled eggs, onion, tomatoes, and chili peppers. Accompaniments are often flour tortillas, beans, and avocado. The "a la Mexicana" style refers directly to the colors of the food. The mixture of roma tomatoes, white onions, and jalapeño or Serrano peppers forms a red, white and green mix - the same colors as the Mexican flag! The dish is savory and salty, as it is a dried meat base. I did use some of the salsas here to spice the machaca a la Mexicana up (a little bit), and was quite proud of myself! Perhaps my tolerance grew by a few degrees as the day went by...?
Chilorio is a slow-cooked shredded pork dish, and originates from here in Mazatlán’s home state of Sinaloa. The dish is rich and savory, combining the fatty pork (usually shoulder or butt) with a tangy red chili sauce and seasoned with cumin, oregano, white vinegar, and garlic. The result is moderately spicy, but won’t burn out your palate. Traditional accompaniments are refried beans, onions, cilantro, and avocado, along with warm flour tortillas.
Both the machaca a la Mexicana and the chilorio were delicious. I ate and ate until I thought my stomach would pop at the seams. I guess that’s another piece of advice for the Barrio Bites Tour - wear loose fitting clothing!
Find Cenaduria Chayito Online: Cenaduria Chayito Facebook Page
Cenaduria Chayito Address: Teniente José Azueta #2407, Centro, 82000 Mazatlán, Sin., Mexico
On The Map: Cenaduria Chayito Google Maps
Cervecería Tres Islas
Our last stop was a bit different, as we left food behind (which was fine, I had nowhere else to put it at that point) and headed to a brewery. Mazatlán is a beer town - local German immigrants created the first beer factory, Pacifico, back in 1900. Cervecería Tres Islas is a microbrewery that produces a variety of different beers: Saison, IPA, and Porter.
We got an opportunity to try two varieties. This was a hugely popular spot with our group, and there were even a couple of people on the tour that chose to stay behind here and keep on tasting!
As for me, I am not a beer drinker. Truthfully, I hate it. That said, when I am traveling, especially on any kind of food or beverage based excursion, I am going to try everything that’s presented! I used to think I hated hot coffee until I tried some on a tour in Thailand ten years ago and fell in love with Thai coffee. To think I almost just said no thank you! So the very simple lesson here is always try new things. Ok, short TED talk over. In any case, I tried a couple of varieties, and I did not care for them, but if you like beer then I think it’s a pretty safe assumption you’ll have a great time here. They don’t serve food or any other types of wine, cider, or drinks, but you can bring in food from the restaurant next door.
Find Cervecería Tres Islas Online: Cervecería Tres Islas Facebook Page
Cervecería Tres Islas Address: Av. Miguel Alemán 923, Centro, 82000 Mazatlán, Sin., Mexico
On The Map: Cervecería Tres Islas Google Maps
Still Want More Food in Mazatlan?
If you're still hungry after your food tour of the barrio, Flavor Teller has you covered. They have several other food tours to choose from, and the next time I'm in Mazatlán I will give one a try. Great company, great guide, great food, unforgettable day!
YouTube video of Barrio Bites coming soon - stay tuned!
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