New Brunswick’s taco choices stretch from the family kitchens around French and Handy streets to the student traffic of Easton Avenue. The useful distinction is what goes into the tortilla, and what else a kitchen can do when the table wants a fuller meal. Oaxaca, goat birria and fried avocado lead to three very different lunches.
This route brings together Costa Chica, Cinco de Mayo and Tacoria. The first two have family histories reaching back more than two decades. The third offers a counter-service format with vegetables treated as main fillings. They are selected for those specific strengths, rather than ranked as interchangeable stops.
Costa Chica: leave space for the Oaxacan kitchen
At 314 Handy Street, Félix and Estela Rojas have kept their native Oaxaca present since opening in 1999. Tlayudas and Oaxacan pozole join the taco list; chicken with mole, a molcajete or the family’s Plato Marimba allow a larger meal.
Soft tacos work for a quick order. Crisp beef tacos, with cabbage, tomato, cheese and cream, have a different construction. Tortas and carne asada burritos are prominent takeout choices. Breakfast eggs, shrimp fajitas and seafood give a mixed family group more options without leaving the same dining room. Delivery service windows are shorter than the restaurant’s late hours.
Cinco de Mayo: the taco placero is a meal in itself
At 206 French Street, Fernando Luna and Guillermina Mozo’s restaurant has operated since 2001. A placero brings rice, fries, boiled egg and grilled jalapeño onto a handmade tortilla with the chosen meat. Goat birria, pastor with cactus and choriqueso make the taco list more than a choice between steak and chicken.
The Oaxaqueño burrito includes mole and cheese; huaraches and picaditas continue the corn preparations. Tripa, carnitas and chicken mole recur in favorable customer accounts. Own parking and daily service until 8:45 p.m. support a practical dinner pickup.
Tacoria: build a mixed table on Easton Avenue
At 56A Easton, golden avocado and charred Brussels sprouts offer texture and seasoning rather than a token vegetable substitution. Rajas combine poblano and roasted corn. Specifically vegan builds sit beside grilled chicken, tinga, steak, chorizo and pastor.
Choose tacos for a small comparison, a Mission burrito for a full wrapped meal or a box for rice and beans without the flour tortilla. A full nacho order is designed for sharing. The patio gives the New Brunswick branch another use on a suitable day, while online ordering serves a shorter lunch break.
Choose the regional dish at Costa Chica, the more elaborate taco at Cinco de Mayo or a mixed meat-and-vegetable table at Tacoria.
Options to compare
These options relate to the question. Read each profile and check current details before deciding.
Félix and Estela Rojas’s Oaxacan family kitchen, established in 1999, with tlayudas, pozole and a broad taco and antojito menu.
Félix and Estela Rojas’s Oaxacan family kitchen, established in 1999, with tlayudas, pozole and a broad taco and antojito menu.
Fernando Luna and Guillermina Mozo’s Oaxacan restaurant, with goat birria tacos, tacos placeros, mole burritos and handmade corn dishes.
Fernando Luna and Guillermina Mozo’s Oaxacan restaurant, with goat birria tacos, tacos placeros, mole burritos and handmade corn dishes.
Easton Avenue’s counter-service taco kitchen and patio, with golden avocado, charred Brussels sprouts, rajas and meat fillings.
Easton Avenue’s counter-service taco kitchen and patio, with golden avocado, charred Brussels sprouts, rajas and meat fillings.
Sources & references
Sources for the information and reporting discussed in this guide.
- Costa Chica: owners and neighborhood history / Costa Chica: propietarios e historia del barrio ↗ Primary source frenchstreetnj.com · Accessed November 5, 2026
- Costa Chica: merchant menu / Costa Chica: carta del comercio ↗ Primary source www.grubhub.com · Accessed November 5, 2026
- Cinco de Mayo: family history / Cinco de Mayo: historia familiar ↗ Primary source www.frenchstreetnj.com · Accessed November 5, 2026
- Cinco de Mayo: current ordering menu / Cinco de Mayo: carta de pedidos ↗ Primary source cincodemayonj.com · Accessed November 5, 2026
- Tacoria: New Brunswick location / Tacoria: sede de New Brunswick ↗ Primary source tacoria.com · Accessed November 5, 2026
- Tacoria: live menu and location selector / Tacoria: carta y selector de sedes ↗ Primary source order.thanx.com · Accessed November 5, 2026
- Cinco de Mayo: customer experiences / Cinco de Mayo: experiencias de clientes ↗ Secondary source www.restaurantji.com · Accessed November 5, 2026