It’s all about the birria at this friendly, family-run storefront, where the juicy, red chile-flavored stewed beef in question is offered in a half dozen deliciously different formats — atop French fries, in a bowl with consomé, rice, and beans, mixed with ramen, in a burrito, or in a grilled cheese sandwich built on buttery Texas toast. Every vehicle has its merits, and while the menu does offer other meats (namely, pastor and carne asada), a word to the wise: don’t miss the quesabirria taco or a fat, griddle-blistered pizzadilla, oozing with cheese and, of course, birria.

Using her grandmother’s recipes, chef and owner Elizabeth Hernandez makes the dishes of her native Oaxaca at this charming Sunnyslope restaurant, including the fifteen — or more — sauces for which the restaurant is named. Naturally, mole is a speciality here, and five varieties (green, red, black, yellow, and mole stew) are available with entrees (pork or chicken) or enchiladas. The menu also features cheese empanadas, filled with squash blossoms, epazote, and huitlacoche; memelas (akin to sopes), tlayudas (think tostadas with a generous, crackling base), and an excellent selection of mezcal.

Jose “Pepe” Acosta was famous as a local DJ for 35 years before opening a restaurant with his wife in the early ’80s. The place was an instant hit for offerings including homey Tex-Mex, mole poblano enchiladas, enchilada Suizas, tacos Monterrey (dried Monterrey beef with scrambled eggs, chile, tomatoes, and onions in homemade flour tortillas), and Tacos Siberia (chicken, guacamole and sour cream in corn tortillas). Now it’s run by Pepe’s children, and it still rocks.

Husband and wife team Armando Hernandez and Nadia Holguin (a classically trained chef) bring the meat-centric home cooking of Chihuahua to their small but mighty menu, featuring, among other things, melting beef cheek barbacoa (smoked for more than 12 hours), tender lengua, and crispy fried tripas — all tucked in handmade corn tortillas and doctored up at the salsa bar. Their mini empire (three locations) may have been built on tacos, but puffy flour gorditas, laden with rajas (chiles and cheese) picadillo, or deshebrada roja (shredded red chile beef) make equally satisfying comfort food.

Named for the olive trees that Scottsdale founder Winfield Scott planted back in the day, this atmospheric, old-school Mexican restaurant, owned by the Corral family for 75 years and counting, was saved from the wrecking ball by Barry Goldwater’s secretary, who considered it a Scottsdale landmark — and she was right. The traditional AZ-Mex food offers few surprises, but it’s still tasty and satisfying — particularly the green corn tamales, steak picado, zippy red salsa made with chile de arbol, and the cheese crisp, an Arizona signature fashioned from homemade flour tortillas.

Home-style Michoacán-influenced cooking is the premise at this comfy family-run restaurant housed in a midtown strip mall. Regulars swear by the breakfast menu, which includes chilaquiles and their own chorizo, but there are many standouts, including elote, enchiladas, juicy, crisp-edged carnitas, and cinnamon-dusted horchata.

Vaulted ceilings, shiny tiled floors and corner frescos lend an upscale vibe to this pretty, coral-colored restaurant, offering a range of regional specialties such as chicken tinga, cochinita pibil, Veracruz-style fish, and a dripping-in-juices flat-iron steak, served with green bean-like nopales (cactus) that are worth the splurge. Because the menu is extensive, it’s also possible to eat well for less on ceviche tostadas, burritos, enchiladas, gorditas, and the like, including fantastic tacos al vapor, dipped in red chile and lightly steamed. Don’t miss the budget-friendly happy hour or Taco Tuesday.

Mexican sandwiches — aka tortas — are the raison d’être at this snug mom-and-pop, which offers about 18 different sandwiches, most stacked with fresh avocado, lettuce, tomato, and jalapeño, all tucked into toasted, golden-brown bread. Standouts include the al pastor (pastor-style marinated pork with bacon and onion), the Alambre (asada with bacon, onion, bell pepper and cheese), and the Cubana (pork pierna, breaded steak, ham, and cheese), but brave hearts might opt for the seriously spicy ahogada or the crunchy, fatty colitas de pavo (fried turkey tails). Wash everything down with fresh, foamy aguas frescas.

Located just up the street from Bacanora, tiny Testal is named for the doughball that becomes a tortilla, and, indeed, tortillas are made fresh daily here, to be used as wrappers for messy, open-ended burritos, made the traditional Chihuahuan way. Try these two classics of the state: comforting deshebrada (shredded beef and potatoes) and chicharron (spicy, softened pork rind in salsa verde with pinto beans). Then wash everything down with an agua fresca many diners likely have never run into before — refreshing Iskiate, composed of chia seeds, lime juice, and agave nectar.

Three years in, Chef Rene Andrade’s tiny, bright pink restaurant, an ode to his native Sonora, remains one of Phoenix’s hottest restaurants. Getting a reservation is damned near impossible for a slew of reasons. To name a few, there’s the blackened elote; juicy, spatchcocked chicken; and flame-licked steaks, all cooked over mesquite on a custom-made Santa Maria grill. Small-plate specials might include a radish and cucumber salad (made with local ingredients), aguachile (containing Sonora’s fiery chiltepin pepper), or grilled octopus, which is among the best in town. Taken first or last, a shot of bacanora (Sonora’s agave-based spirit), presented with cinnamon, piloncillo, and smoke, is a showstopper.

Gallo Blanco, Mexican slang for “white guy,” is an apt name for both chef Doug Robson, who grew up near Mexico City, and his Mexican-influenced restaurant, housed in a light-filled, ’20s-era building in the Garfield neighborhood. Robson is justifiably famous for his chunky guacamole, brightened with orange segments, and top-quality tacos (including standout, seasonally changing fish tacos), and tortas — most notably the Naco, layered with carne asada, avocado and fried eggs. But he also turns out preternaturally rich-tasting flapjacks and puts a Mexican spin on Southern shrimp and grits.

Admittedly, this South Phoenix institution, founded by Carolina and Manuel Valenzuela over 50 years ago, looks a little ramshackle, but locals readily forsake decor for the restaurant’s huge, paper-thin flour tortillas — made fresh all day long and often still warm when you buy them. Considered the best in town, they make heavenly wrappers for fat burritos and chimichangas although the place is equally beloved for its no-frills tacos, enchiladas (try the machaca), and tamales.

Chef Roberto Centeno (cousin to Rene Andrade of Bacanora fame) helms the kitchen at this narrow, dimly lit bar and seafood-focused restaurant, where the menu runs to raw and grilled oysters, ceviche, aguachile, shrimp or fish tacos, and whole fried snapper (expensive but worth it). Carnivores can easily make do with skirt steak, $135 ribeye, or an excellent dry-aged burger. Grab a seat at the stunning bar for a frequently changing selection of fanciful cocktails.