El Atoradero Bodega

Big news:
El Atoradero is re-​opening in Brooklyn… yay Lina! Thanks Gillian for the info!
This is *not* the same building nor business as the place it shares a street address with, and a name with. It is next door, and it is completely different. This is a bodega, that’s a restaurant. This is run by Lina, that used to be.
This review is for the bodega on the left hand side at this address, which is owned and run by Lina, the Mexican homestyle culinary genius who used to own the restaurant on the right hand side of this address, which is now using her name but is a different restaurant, and should be changing the name soon. Pigs.
If you miss El Atoradero, or if you never got to try it, don’t wait around for it to come back. Visit this bodega on the weekend, meet Lina and get some of her home cooking. Just please don’t go to the place next door which is basically illegally using her name and promising to take the sign down and «shockingly» not getting round to it.
Since she doesn’t have a restaurant at the moment, you can come here and experience her and her food for the time being.
Below is my review of the closed restaurant next door with all the details:
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Update Edit: Thanks to Andrew, I’ve now discovered what happened. The landlord stupidly raised the rent by $ 1200 just because the place was getting popular, so Lina (who runs it) had to shut it down. You can still meet Lina and get some of her food at the bodega next door, which I recommend all of you do because it really is that delicious.
Do not visit the restaurant at this location, though, because it is no longer Lina, it’s someone else just using the same store. Go to the Bodega next door and get food from Lina instead.
Here is an article about El Atoradero. It’ll be great once she gets a place opened up again. Her full name is Denisse Lina Chavez.
This one is about her braving the drug lords on the Mexican highways to go home and find spices. It says she was recently abducted by a cartel.
And this one is about her closing down, and why it happened.
Below is my original review.
I’m absolutely heartbroken to find that this place has closed down. This was one of the best Mexican meals I ever had. I came back here several times and loved every single thing I ever ate here, from the tacos, to the amazing albondigas, to the dreamy homestyle red sauce… they really knew how to cook. It was like being in someone’s kitchen in East LA or in Mexico City (same thing). And she was one of the friendliest women I’ve ever been served by.
I was here what seemed like just a couple of months ago. The lady that ran it was asking me to spread the word and get more customers for her because she wasn’t doing so well. The food was insanely good and insanely cheap. It was perhaps the best meal I ever had in the Bronx, and one of the best Mexican meals I’ve ever had. Consistently, every time I came here.
I can’t tell you how disappointed I am that all of you guys won’t get to try it, and that I can’t come back here anymore. If anyone knows if the woman is opening a place elsewhere, or has any news about El Atoradero, please let me know. It’s a sad day. I can’t even bring myself to make any jokes about it. Yet another one of my favourite family-​owned places closes down.
I am delighted, though, that so many New Yorkers were starting to embrace El Atoradero. I am proud of New York for venturing up to The Bronx in large numbers to try this place and frequent it. I’ve complained before that nobody gives The Bronx love. But this is the most delicious place in The Bronx, and you gave it enough love to make it popular enough for the landlord to double the rent. I heart you NYC. With customers like you guys, who needs my reviews.
Goodbye, El Atoradero.

El Atoradero is a tiny Pueblan grocery that seems to be expanding its territory, if not in size, in the hearts of the neighborhood. The Central American grocery a couple doors down appears to have closed its doors, so the ladies here have added not only some food items to their weekend-​only kitchen, but carry football jerseys, decorative items, and common ingredients people might want for cooking as well.
Unfortunately the kitchen is only open on the weekends, and only for about five hours each day, starting in the morning and continuing through an early lunch. Walk in on a Saturday and be rewarded with the smells of a deep cauldron of carnitas simmering right in front.
There is little room to maneuver, but everyone here is very accommodating so don’t be shy to step up to the grill and ask what is good today. Many things can be cooked fresh everyday that the kitchen is open, but it seems like they have some random specials as well, depending on the day. Make sure to ask.
Wanting to give a try to each of the three homemade salsas on offer, we ordered three picaditas ($ 3 each, below). Often times a picadita is very similar to your common sope, and I figure the difference is really just in size, but here the tortilla is elongated into an oval and even larger than usual. The other difference is a lack of beans, as they let their salsas do the talking.
It seems only natural to order as many items with carnitas as possible here, since they are so obviously the specialty. We topped the tomatillo and salsa verde with it, and used the salsa roja with chorizo. All are excellent, but the tomatillo truly shines for freshness and variety. They make only a small amount daily, so ask to see it and marvel at its complexity.
To show off the Central American side of the menu, we were offered some pupusas ($ 2, below). These were surprisingly good cooked by this Pueblan woman, and could definitely stand up next to some of the city’s best Salvadoran fare. Loroco flowers can only be found in parts of Central America, but they import it here and it is by far the way to go.
You will be offered curtido, the pink fermented cabbage relish, and as always the answer should be yes.
I also asked about the availability of Honduran baleadas, and without hesitation was told that those would be cooked tomorrow, so the place definitely has some lasting power with variety. If you are looking for something specific, call beforehand and ask. She seems amenable to almost anything, and after having tried a couple things, I would trust her with a wide range of dishes.