REVIEW: TAQUERIA TREN MAYA, Green Island
Taqueria Tren Maya
23D Lower Hudson Ave, Green Island taqueriatrenmaya.com | Facebook
We like it for: Ideal lunch, take out, super casual dine in.
Must try: Banana-leaf wrapped tamale filled with beef or chicken; soft chilaquiles with salsa roja, crema, cheese and a thin slab of beef skirt steak; mole chicken with rice and beans; and any mixed taco trio from arabe (beef rib) to canasta (potatoes and sausage) or lamb barbacoa topped with cilantro and onions. Grab the squeeze bottles of green and red salsa for added heat.
The Vibe: Vibrant, family-run small taqueria with efforts to create a vibrant, welcoming space.
Sound: Salsa and Mexican radio
Style: Unassuming strip mall taqueria with vibrant colors and sounds of Mexico
Taqueria Tren Maya is tiny, unassuming spot in a Green Island strip mall just behind a shooting range (no joke), but its vibrant space is home to a surprisingly broad menu from breakfast chilaquiles to birria tacos which makes sense since it’s open every day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Its name comes from the Tren Maya (Mayan Train), a nearly finished intercity mega rail project in the Yucatan Peninsula which started in 2020 to redistribute the influx of coastal tourists to inland areas and Mayan sites via train. The small taqueria is decorated in bright colors with cascading faux flowers and strung flags for a warm welcome. Sit at a table or booth with a checkered cloth and si[ a cerveza while you wait or a tamarindo and horchata from the counter machines. Walk-ins are mainly South Americans ordering quickly in Spanish, drivers picking up DoorDash and Grubhub orders, or a gaggle of high schoolers sharing mango smoothies and tacos.
Oaxaquen owner, Anatolia de Jesus Cornelio, also owns Taqueria Central on Central Avenue in Albany and Al Punto Picante in Rensselaer. Al Punto Picante location specializes in hearty Mexican soups like beef tripe menudo and chicken or pork pozole; Taqueria Central emphasizes tacos arabe and carne asada, while Taqueria Tren Maya highlights tacos de cachete (beef cheek) and long blade-shaped machetes filled with meats or cheese, but from by the broad menu it appears to all be available here.
Parking: Strip mall parking
Nearby: 1. Sea Smoke Grill (Troy) 2. Quechua Peruvian (Watervliet) 3. Ryan’s Wake (Troy) 4. O! Corn Arepas (Troy) 5. Lime Leaf (Troy)
