Ordering at the stall without holding up the queue
At a busy stand, order in the local rhythm: say how many pieces you want, then name the filling. In Mexico City, a tacos al pastor stand on Calle de Colima in Roma Norte or along Avenida Insurgentes fills up from about 8pm, so arriving at 7pm means a shorter wait and meat straight off the trompo. Prices are usually posted on a board, and a single taco costs a modest amount in pesos, so most people order three or four. Specify what you want clearly: sin cebolla for no onion, con todo for everything, and para llevar if you want it wrapped to take away.
In Tijuana, the food truck clusters around Avenida Revolución and the Mercado Municipal operate earlier, and many taquerías there open for lunch and close by late afternoon. Ask for your order by the piece rather than by the plate, because a torta or a quesadilla at one stall can be twice the size of the same item two doors down. Stand to one side after paying, watch how the cook assembles the order, and take your food when it is handed over rather than reaching across the counter. Cash in small notes speeds everything up, and many stalls accept cards now, but not all.
Tipping at street stalls and market counters
At a sit-down restaurant, 10 to 15 percent is the norm, often left in cash even when you pay by card. Street stalls are different. A tip is not expected at a taquería where you stand and eat, but rounding up, or leaving the coins from your change, is a friendly gesture when you have been served at a table or a plastic chair. Some stalls put a small jar or tin on the counter; dropping in a few pesos is entirely optional. Do not tip before you are served, as it reads as impatient rather than generous.
The clearest rule is to tip on service, not on the size of the bill. If someone brings your food to a table at a market like Mercado de Coyoacán or the Mercado Hidalgo in Tijuana, 10 percent is appropriate. If you are standing at a counter, pay the stated amount and keep your change. Vendors appreciate exact change more than a large note, and asking for change mid-queue can slow the line. Keep a pocket of coins for small purchases and for the occasional washroom attendant, who may expect a few pesos.
What a portion actually looks like
Mexican street food is usually eaten in small units, not as one large plate. A taco is two or three bites; a quesadilla from a street griddle is a folded tortilla, not a plate-sized one; an order of tlacoyos or sopes is often two or three pieces. At a market fonda, a comida corrida comes as soup, rice, a main and a drink, and is a full meal for one hungry person rather than a snack. Order two or three items first, then go back for more. This is normal, and vendors expect it.
Portion size varies most in Tijuana, where the border-city taquerías serve larger, meat-heavy tacos and the craft beer bars around Pasaje Rodríguez pair them with bigger plates. In Mexico City, the flautas and tamales sold near Metro stations in the morning are small and cheap, so buy four rather than one. A good rule is to order one item per person per round and add a second round only if you are still hungry. Skip the giant plastic cups of fruit juice sold near markets, as they are hard to carry and rarely worth the volume.
Practical pacing for a day of eating
Street food is best spread across the day. In Mexico City, breakfast means tamales and atole from a stand near your hotel, lunch is a market comida corrida around 2pm, and dinner is tacos from about 7pm. The city is at its most comfortable for walking between stalls from November to April, when the rains ease. In Tijuana, the best months are also the dry ones, March to June and September to November, when the walk from Avenida Revolución to the food trucks near the cultural centre is pleasant rather than hot.
Book a hotel within walking distance of the food streets rather than planning long taxi rides after dark. In Mexico City, staying in Roma Norte or Condesa puts you near Colima, Álvaro Obregón and the Mercado Medellín, so you can eat and walk back. In Tijuana, a hotel near Avenida Revolución or Zona Río is central. If you want the market experience, ask for a room away from the street side, since market mornings start early and loading begins before dawn.