Call it a cliché thing to say, but there’s no denying that New York City is the melting pot of the country. There are people from 150 different nationalities and 37% of the city’s residents were born in a different country. Wild, huh? The best part of this cultural interchange is that we can find exotic and ethnic food from all over world. One of our favorites? Latin, hands down. This brings us to today’s story…

There’s a huge offering of Latin restaurants in the city, but we want to know which places the Latinos go to. We’re not looking for hipster-approved spots, we’re looking for the real deal… is that too much to ask? Not at all. We did some research and came up with this roundup of restaurants with comida deliciosas. From arepas to pico de gallo, all the way to the dulce de leche dessert flan, here’s a precious list on where to find the best Latin-American food within our five boroughs.

Words by Eliane Awada at Taste the Style

[Photo via @bergdorfs]