Tacos árabes
Photo: Jícara y Molinillo · CC BY-SA 4.0

History

Lebanese and Syrian migrants reached Puebla in the 1920s and 1930s and brought the vertical spit with them. Tacos Arabes Bagdad on 2 Poniente dates its recipe to 1933, and the first Oriental counter on 16 de Septiembre claims the same year. Both served spit-roast pork wrapped in flatbread rather than a corn tortilla, seasoned with Levantine spices rather than achiote. That idea travelled to Mexico City, swapped the bread for a tortilla and the spices for a red chile marinade, and became the taco al pastor. In Puebla the original is still the default, and Los Camellos in Azcarate took a 2026 Michelin Bib Gourmand for its version.

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Common allergens: Gluten

Make it at home

Yield Serves 4Hands-on 30 minTotal 4 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 800g pork shoulder, sliced 5mm thick
  • 4 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp dried thyme
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 2 tbsp white vinegar
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 8 pan arabe flatbreads or thin pita
  • For the salsa: 4 chipotles in adobo, 2 tomatoes, 1 garlic clove, 1 tbsp vinegar

Method

  1. Mix the garlic, cumin, thyme, oregano, pepper, vinegar, oil and salt and rub it through the pork slices.
  2. Marinate in the fridge for at least three hours, ideally overnight.
  3. Stack the slices tightly, press into a loaf shape and roast at 200C for forty minutes, or grill the slices flat in batches.
  4. Blend the chipotles, tomatoes, garlic and vinegar into a smooth salsa and season.
  5. Rest the meat for ten minutes, then carve it as thin as you can, across the stack.
  6. Warm the flatbreads on a dry pan, fill with the pork, spoon on the salsa and fold once.

Tip from the editors. Do not add pineapple or achiote. That is the al pastor variation from Mexico City, and it turns this into a different taco entirely.

Where to eat tacos árabes

Tacos árabes in Puebla

Tacos Árabes Bagdad ★ 4.4

$ TaqueriaCentro Historico

Tacos Arabes Bagdad has folded spit-roast pork into pan arabe in Puebla since 1933 and has worked the 2 Poniente counter since 1945, one of two claimants.

TryTacos árabes

TipAsk for them con queso, and note the 2 Poniente branch is the original rather than the Mayorazgo or Humboldt ones.

Directions

Tacos Beyrut ★ 4.1

$ TaqueriaCentro HistoricoCash only

Tacos Beyrut opens only in the evening on 5 Poniente in Puebla, carving pork off the vertical spit into warm pan arabe for around 24 pesos a taco.

TryTacos árabes

TipEvenings only, closed Sundays, and the spit tends to be at its best in the first hour after opening at 17:30.

Directions

Tacos Tony ★ 4.0

$ TaqueriaCentro Historico

Tacos Tony has served tacos arabes in Puebla since 1942, from a 3 Poniente counter a block off the Zocalo that fills with families on Sunday afternoons.

OrderTacos arabes with the house salsa, from a spit running since 1942.

TipSaturday and Sunday afternoons bring Puebla families in numbers, so go on a weekday if you want a seat straight away.

Directions

Taquería Los Camellos ★ 4.2

$ TaqueriaAzcarate

Taqueria Los Camellos took a 2026 Michelin Bib Gourmand in Puebla for its tacos arabes and camellos, the cheese-filled version, out in Azcarate.

OrderA camello, which is the taco arabe rebuilt with melted cheese.

TipA 2026 Michelin Bib Gourmand out in Azcarate, closed on Sundays, and cheap enough that two people eat for under 200 pesos.

Directions

Don Pastor ★ 4.1

$ TaqueriaCentro HistoricoUntil 23:30 daily

Don Pastor works two spits on 16 de Septiembre in Puebla, al pastor and arabe, alongside alambres, cemitas and a queso fundido, running until half eleven.

TryTacos al pastor and árabes

TipTwo spits on 16 de Septiembre, al pastor and arabe side by side, running to half eleven, which covers most post-dinner cravings.

Directions

El Taco Poblano ★ 3.6

$ TaqueriaCentro Historico

El Taco Poblano on 9 Oriente in Puebla runs one of the cheapest taco arabe deals in the Centro, two tacos for roughly 30 pesos, all day long.

TryTacos árabes

Directions

Taquería Katy ★ 3.6

$ TaqueriaLos Remedios

Taqueria Katy sells tacos arabes at about 16 pesos each in Barrio de los Remedios, Puebla, which is why the queue starts well before the evening.

TryTacos árabes

Directions

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