Cielito Lindo Albany

A family kitchen at the lower end of Central Avenue

Cielito Lindo opened at 31 Central Avenue in late 2022 under Rufino Vazquez-Suarez and his family. Its Oaxacan connections appear in dishes such as memelas, tlayudas and mole alongside the taco menu. The restaurant is a short walk from Center Square, with an indoor dining room rather than a mobile counter.

The classic taco selection includes bistec, cecina, pastor, tinga, chorizo, shrimp and birria. Mixed trios offer a way to compare fillings without ordering several complete meals. The house taco section is more elaborate: potato and chorizo take onion, cream and cheese; steak with potato has a similar richer finish; the Mexican-style steak version adds tomato and jalapeño. These preparations differ from the simpler onion-and-cilantro taco.

Tostadas provide a crisp base for steak, cecina, pastor, tinga, chorizo or shrimp. Memelas and quesadillas move toward the comal, while chicken mole gives a sauce-centered main course. Weekend specialties include tamales and soups, with availability dependent on the day. Favorable customer accounts often mention birria and mole, which align with the dishes retained on the merchant’s current menu.

Contact, hours and delivery

The business’s current website publishes 518-506-4224. Older signs and directories retain 518-472-0579; it is included as a separately published restaurant contact, not a delivery-only line. The address remains 31 Central Avenue.

Hours are Monday and Wednesday–Sunday 10 a.m.–8 p.m.; Tuesday is closed. The official site links direct ordering, and the matching DoorDash listing offers pickup and delivery with its own final ordering time. The kitchen’s range allows a practical split between a lighter taco trio and a fuller mole or tlayuda meal. Specify the house preparation when ordering, since the same meat appears in several formats.

Open Cielito Lindo’s direct ordering service.