Al Pastor Tacos in NYC: What Al Pastor Is, Where It Came From and How to Eat It

Walk past a good taquería at night and you can spot al pastor from the sidewalk: a red cone of pork turning next to a flame, and someone shaving slices straight onto small tortillas. It's one of the best-known tacos in Mexico and it's all over New York now, but plenty of people order it without knowing what the words mean or why there's pineapple on it.

What is al pastor?

Larousse Cocina, Mexico's big food dictionary, defines tacos al pastor as corn tortillas filled with pork seasoned in a sauce of spices and dried chiles. The meat goes on a spit and turns as it cooks. Thin slices of the browned outside land on the tortilla, with small pieces of roasted pineapple, chopped cilantro and onion, plus chile de árbol salsa and sometimes lime.

The marinade changes from cook to cook. Achiote gives it that deep red, and guajillo chile, garlic, cumin, clove, bay leaf and vinegar are all common. Achiote is a seed used for both seasoning and color, usually sold as a paste, and its Nahuatl name means red dye.

What does al pastor mean?

Pastor is Spanish for shepherd, so al pastor is shepherd style. The phrase is older than the taco: asado al pastor was a country term in Mexico for roasting meat on a spit over an open fire, and Larousse even uses pastor as a word for the spit itself. So the name describes the cooking. It doesn't mean there's lamb in your taco.

You may see it under other names too. Larousse says Monterrey calls them tacos de trompo, and in parts of northern and coastal Mexico you'll also hear adobada.

How did shawarma become a Mexican taco?

The usual account starts with Lebanese immigrants, who brought vertical spit-roasting to Mexico, the method behind shawarma. In Puebla it was sold as tacos árabes. Historian Jeffrey Pilcher calls the taco al pastor an adaptation of that Middle Eastern dish. Over time lamb gave way to pork, flatbread gave way to the corn tortilla, and the meat picked up a Mexican adobo of chiles and achiote.

Dates differ from source to source, and more than one Mexico City taquería claims the modern version, so we'll leave the timeline rough. What you can still do is taste the branches of the family:

What is a trompo?

Trompo means spinning top, which is what the stack looks like. Cooks press thin slices of marinated pork onto a vertical spit until they have a cone, often with a pineapple on top and the fire alongside. As the outside browns, the taquero shaves it off and the next layer starts to brown. Every slice ends up with crisp edges and a soft middle.

Not every kitchen has one. Plenty cook the same kind of marinated pork on a griddle or a grill. The flavor is close and the texture is different, with fewer of those thin, charred edges. Both get called al pastor in New York, so if a trompo matters to you, ask before you order.

Why is there pineapple on al pastor?

Nobody has documented who put it there first. Some accounts note that the Lebanese original had none, which suggests it was added in Mexico. Larousse lists small pieces of roasted pineapple as part of the taco, and many recipes put pineapple in the marinade too.

It earns its place for a simple reason: the pork is rich, and pineapple is sweet and sharp. It's also the part people argue about. If you think fruit has no business on a taco, try one bite with it before you decide.

What does it taste like, and is it spicy?

Pork first, then sweet, tangy and a little smoky, with warm spice behind it. The dried chiles are there for color and depth more than for burn, so most al pastor is mild to medium. The real heat comes from the salsa you add. At the stands that's traditionally chile de árbol, and that one can bite.

How do you eat tacos al pastor?

1. Order more than one. Street tacos are small, so you order several. Ours come in threes.
2. Eat them right away. The pork is at its best straight off the heat, and corn tortillas stiffen as they cool.
3. Lime first. A squeeze cuts the fat and wakes up the pineapple.
4. Taste before you add salsa. Try a bite on its own, then add a little at a time.
5. Get some pineapple in each bite. If it's all sitting on one side, move it around.
6. Fold it and lean in. Pinch the tortilla into a U and tilt your head instead of the taco. It drips.

What's the al pastor like at Cantina Rooftop?

It's on both our dinner and weekend brunch menus, at $21 for an order of three. Here it is as it reads on our menu, checked November 2026:

Every taco order comes on corn tortillas with creamy zucchini sauce, chile de árbol sauce, onion, cilantro and lime; flour tortillas are $2 more. The menu doesn't mark it as spicy. It also doesn't say how the pork is cooked, so if you're looking for a trompo, ask us when you book.

At dinner, you can also add al pastor for $6 to either of these:

Want more heat, or more pineapple? These are the house salsas: Habanero-pineapple 🌶🌶🌶 · Salsa de árbol 🌶🌶 · Tamarindo morita 🌶 · Salsa verde 🌶. The habanero-pineapple is the obvious match, and the hottest of the four.

Our picks to drink with it are more pineapple, with or without alcohol:

If you'd rather see the rest first, there's our full taco list, the margaritas and a chart of 16 types of tacos. On Tuesdays, Taco Tuesday is unlimited tacos for $25 per person for 90 minutes, 5 to 11pm, last reservation 10pm, by reservation. Ask us when you book which tacos are on the list.

When can you order it, and how do you find us?

Dinner is Tuesday to Sunday from 5pm, with the last reservation at 10pm Tuesday to Saturday and 9pm on Sunday. Brunch is Saturday and Sunday from 12 to 4pm, with the last reservation at 3:30pm. We're closed on Mondays. There's a live DJ every night we're open, under a retractable glass roof that stays closed and heated when it's cold.

Cantina Rooftop is at 605 W 48th Street, between 11th and 12th Avenue in Hell's Kitchen, about a 12-minute walk from the C/E subway at 50th Street. Tables for 2 to 8 book online; walk-ins are welcome, but we recommend booking.