Submitted by michrubio t3_yeg6rl in WorcesterMA
I’m moving to Worcester soon. I’m looking for realtors that deal with rental properties in central Massachusetts and would love some help with that. If anyone knows someone or has contacts, I would really appreciate it. . . . . Also, I am Mexican and would also love some recommendations on Mexican restaurants, and or groceries. Currently live near the border so sad about leaving that behind. Thank you!
Thank you! I’ve never had puerto rican food before so I am excited to try it.
As a non-Latino, I agree, Mexican food is disappointing here. Do you cook :)
Cali-ritos is super authentic. Great birria.
So sick of the birria everywhere, I just want house-made tortillas and al pastor on a spit
Oh then get that there instead
[deleted]
Wait, do they have pastor on a spit?
Yes
Well fuck, thank you
please, al pastor on a spit! Pinapple slices on top, and spread around inside....
That is what I'm talking about!
Have you not followed the posts on how amazing Holden is /s
Can't tell if you're being serious or not :)
(I live in Holden)
The “/s” indicates sarcasm
Totally thought that was a typo. Thanks for educating me :) I need to hang out here more often.
I have not!! Just joined the sub hahah but I’ll check it out thank you!
/s = sarcasm
Thought that one was the serious one 😭😭
I saw that post. What’s the running gag about Holden?
They have a Mexicali thus the best Mexican food obviously.....
A number of recent posts about moving to the area that seemed like they could have been from the Holden Chamber of Commerce or similar they were so positive. Even said it was cheap. They appear to have since been removed.
Cali-Ritos on Belmont has the best burritos in the city IMO. I know it’s not like sit down Mexican but if you’re feeling like take out one night, I promise you won’t be disappointed! Hugeee portions too. Welcome to Worcester man, enjoy!
Kayla Gibney at LaMacchia Realty and Seven Hills Properties.
As far as Mexican food, if you like the Caribbean coast, you’ll love it. There are a lot of grocery stores that cater to the Caribbean & Central America. If you’re thinking northern, central or Pacific Mexico, well, treasure the time you have & your trips home! I have yet to find a mole, tamale, or verde sauce that beats or meets the SW.
Ahh my heart just broke, but that’s okay thank you! I’ll have to check out those groceries though. I know there’s some overlap so maybe I’ll find some things! Thank you for the realtor recommendations.
Avoid Quality Apartments (chandler st)
El Patron, Sol of Mexico, Taqueria Del Pueblo, Main Taco (main taco is severely underrated. best fish tacos EVER)
Do you play futbol? Strong community here in Worcester and a great way to make friends. I’m white but most of my teammates are Spanish and i’ve met so many amazing people through the ⚽️ community.
I do not (any chance was lost after I shattered my ankle a few months ago) BUT my fiancé does. I’ll let him know, thank you!
Mexican food options are slowly improving here as more mexican people move here i think. I see reviews for Gala Foods on main St. say there are Mexican products. I haven't checked. You may have to make grocery store trips to other cities in the area and cook your own Mexican favorites to eat the really good stuff. But I'm guessing some of the recommendations you're getting here will help alleviate some cravings.
You may know by now, but lots of people here often call anything and anyone that is Latino or from spanish-speaking origins, Spanish. Some may call you Spanish and also not realize how different Mexican culture and food is from latin-carribean culture and food.
Casa vallarta and Cancuns in north grafton. My ex and her family were all from Mexico and those were their and my favorites. Lopez market in Marlborough has mangonada and other great drinks and desserts.
The Hispanic population is pretty large so most supermarkets have a decent section towards groceries.
If you have questions about any specifics lmk I can prolly remember more places
I’m mexican and lived in Worcester for about a year and the only Mexican food that I actually enjoyed in the area was Pepe’s Taqueria. For groceries I would have to drive into Boston for Mexican chorizo, Pan dulce, or queso fresco.
Gracias!! En qué lugares de Boston ibas sobretodo para queso fresco y pan dulce?
De nada! Sorry my Spanish isn’t as good as I’d like it to be haha. There’s some good Mexican markets in East Boston( which has probably the biggest concentration of Mexicans in Mass) or in Chelsea which is very Central American but I’ve found some Mexican markets there as well.
I used Martha Convers at Lamacchia to buy my house, I believe she does rentals as well. If not someone else at Lamacchia does. She and several others there are also bilingual Spanish/English speakers if you'd find that helpful.
Thank you so much!! I’ll check them out.
Not sure about what places to go with but DO NOT go to a NorthEast Properties location. They sing a good song but have a terrible history of tenant and employee abuse.
As for Mexican…New England isn’t known for it. I’m originally from here and hardly ever had any until I moved to Nuevo, CA and had the opportunity to have truly authentic Mexican food. The closest thing we’ve had to that (out here) is Mexicali Cantina Grill, in Spencer. It’s not going to stack up to what you’re used to but my wife (a native Californian) chooses to go there when she wants some Mexican.
Welcome to a wonderful place. Enjoy the trees, hunker down for the winter, and get ready to wave to strangers because everyone is now your friend (people here will start talking to you in line - it’s a sense of community, not that they want anything from you - I love it and desperately missed it). That was something my wife had to get used to but now she appreciates.
Happy hunting!
Where do you live where stangers will start talking to you in lines? This is not New England vibes. Don't give a new person a false sense of the culture around here. People will not be waving to him at the big box stores.
For newbies u/michrubio, this is how it goes:
New England/MA people will seem standoff-ish at first. This is because we don't deal with fake friendliness. We're typically very tempered in our interactions with people we don't know. We are respectful of your time out in the world getting shit done, as we are getting shit done ourselves and don't want to dilly-dally. Doing errands is a focused endevor. If you wave to us we're going to be confused and think you are waving to someone you know. But if we're friendly, we mean it. We're not disingenuous and we follow through. If we say we'll show up to help you clear your side walk from snow, we will show up. We may seem prickly at first but that's just until we get to know you. (Like don't be upset your new neighbors aren't knocking on your door with the welcome wagon... that's not what we do...but it doesn't mean the neighbors won't eventually become friendly...) The attitude around the region is that we don't fake any false sense of familiarity with people. If it's not authentic, we're not going to bother you. But it just means that when we are friendly and warm, it's absolutely authentic and we are not blowing wind up your skirt.
There is a saying of the differences between someone from CA and someone from MA: "people in California are nice, but not kind...while people in Massachusetts are not nice, but are kind".
I’m going to second this - I grew up in New England, but have lived outside of it for education over the years and I feel the same way. New Englanders aren’t overtly rude, we’re polite (maybe cordial would be a better word), but we’re not about to get into your business if we don’t know you. I read a really great piece once in the Boston Globe by someone who’d moved to Boston from the South. She had a bad breakup and was ugly crying on the T (local train) on the way home. People obviously noticed, but no one asked her what was wrong. Initially she was very put off by this, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized that it was exactly what she needed in that moment: her privacy. That’s what we respect in New England - each other’s privacy.
I have been to Mass before and people have been nice so far, fiancés family is from there so I am kinda hopeful. Not the biggest fan of California, visited a few times and found people were kind of rude. I am in Texas (not the racist Texas lol) but it’s what I have gotten used to.
"we are respectful of your time out getting shit done" is Masshole for "I will block two full lanes of traffic as I try to make a left turn onto a busy road at rush hour because my time is more important than hundreds of other people's time."
That ‘nice’ vs ‘kind’ bit is the perfect description. I was born and raised in Waltham, lived there and Lowell till I was 30 and then moved to Cali for 10 years. Moved back here in 2020. Truth be told, the sense of community here is VASTLY superior to anything I experienced in Southern California.
People do wave (or nod) to each other. We acknowledge one another’s existence. People will pull over and give you the right of way when the street isn’t wide enough for two cars. We wave (not obnoxiously, just pop a hand up from the steering wheel) at each other in acknowledgment. That just doesn’t happen in SoCal.
I’ve had several conversations in the grocery store line. Nothing immense but someone might see something I’m buying and make a comment, with a smile. That doesn’t happen in SoCal.
I just had a buddy of mine come out from Cali. He was dumbstruck because we will give people the right-of-way, when driving (sometimes people do it unsafely or when it’s not appropriate) but I explained it’s like us holding the door open for someone.
True, we’re not in each others faces. We will absolutely respect people’s privacy but overall we treat each other with respect and acknowledge one another’s existence. There are definitely people that are on the other end of the spectrum but overall we have a strong sense of community.
When I first moved back people asked me why. It wasn’t till I moved away that I truly realized how amazing it is out here. That’s not to say SoCal is the dumps, it’s not. There are a lot of great things there but here is someplace special. The sense of community is outstanding and the nature is phenomenal (winters can suck but I wouldn’t trade them again). Maybe my love for New England blinds me to some things but god damn if this isn’t an awesome place.
As someone who moved to New England a few years ago…MA people are nowhere near kind. Think a better word would be ignorant
We’re not ignorant enough to waste our time being kind to someone who thinks we’re ignorant.
Ignorant? Interesting. Where exactly did you move from?
Maybe they're not kind to you because you're an asshole
Thank you for letting me know!! NorthEast properties have constantly popped up and I was actually going to call tomorrow. Will not be doing that anymore. My fiancé’s family loves Mexicali so I’m sure I’ll get to try it out. Born and raised in Mexico and that sense of community is one of the pillars of my heritage, I’m sure I will find comfort in it!
The City came in and condemned our apartment. We weren’t the only people that kind of thing has happened to. If you’re interested you can look up “NorthEast Properties MassLive”. MassLive is a news outlet.
It might take a little warm up time but most people are welcoming. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it out here. The amount of trees we have is staggering, especially if you compare it to Southern California. I’m not sure how Mexico is but I imagine it’s similar to Cali.
Keep us updated if you find some good Mexican. My wife is always on the lookout.
lol what
Not sure what part of the border you are coming from--I lived in San Diego for a long time and the Mexican food here is mostly disappointing but there are some decent options. El Patron and Pepe's are the only places in town that do a proper Cali burrito and it is surprisingly close. Shape is wrong and the tortilla isn't perfect but the ingredients are spot on. They are willing to do SD-style burritos in general (i.e. no rice and beans) you just have to ask; I have yet to try that though. They're also my go-to spots for tacos--good meats, proper toppings if you want (i.e. just cilantro/onions/maybe guac) and decent roja and verde sauces, but the tortillas aren't great. There aren't really good tortillas anywhere in the city.
Birria is a huge thing here and, much like New England IPAs, has completely overtaken the market.
Thank you, I’ll check them out! I’m from the Texas border, gotta say not used to paying 4 dollars per taco 🥲 We get 5 for 8.99 with charro beans and a smoked potato. I’ve gotten some reviews about tortillas not being great so I’ll bring my tortillera.
Yeah the prices can be pretty insane here. Pepe's isn't TOO bad, tacos are $2.75-$3.00, and 3 will fill you up. El Patron is same owners but near the new-ish ball park so have probably inflated their prices to reflect that. I see lengua tacos for $5 there now, lol. Not happening.
If you go to Rhode Island for anything, I've found that I generally prefer Mexican food there as opposed to Worcester. It's not going to stack up to what you can get back home, but it's worth a try. My favorites are Tallulah's Taqueria in Providence (which is kind of a college hipster vibe, but it's good) and Tacos Don Nacho in Woonsocket (which is a small wooden building with a few picnic tables next to a gas station).
If you find a grocery that sells a good variety of Mexican food products let me know, I'm going to making some stops myself based on this thread! As noted elsewhere, there's a lot of access to Latin Caribbean food products but not so many Mexican food items.
Andrew Freed is a great realtor for Worcester investment properties. Tell him Wendell sent you, I work with him a lot as the lender.
Best places for Mexican food would be EL Patron 192 Harding St, Worcester, MA 01604 or Pepe’s Taqueria 645 Chandler St, Worcester, MA 01602 both are great Mexican restaurants
I'm pretty sure both are owned by the same person. We do Pepe's takeout almost every Thursday. Fantastic food.
They both look pretty good, thank you!
El Patron is not it...
I used Chris Collette with Compass. He was great for my wife and I when we were looking in the area.
Thank you! I’ll try to get in touch with them.
First, learn how to pronounce it correctly. It’s Wiss-tah!
Fiancé is from there, have gotten reprimanded enough about the pronunciation. Finally got it down!
Learn to say Wohstah
Steve Minor at Remax, offices above free play arcade
This is one of the most expensive places in the country to live with one of the lamest job market around. You should try to find a more welcoming area if possible. Landlords around here are scum and the people are rude.
It’s honestly one of the best places for my field. The other place is california which is a lot more expensive. Currently in Texas where starting salary for my field w/degree is 11 dollars :( Got a really good job in Mass already so I am excited.
Biotech by any chance?
Yep!
Same! I’m a 2022 grad, moved from CT this summer to have more job options up here. I know a few people who commute to Boston, but there’s plenty of job opps close to/in Worcester as well. The cost of living here isn’t anywhere near Boston’s, so there’s far more diversity here as far as wealth/culture go. In my area there’s an Asian market and at least two Mexican markets, it’s not the nicest part of Worcester but if you’re looking for authentic food and groceries + cheaper rent I’d recommend it. I can also give you my landlord’s info via pm if you’re interested, they own a handful of buildings throughout the city. Prices are pretty fair and any problems are resolved within a day or two, pets allowed with no additional rent if you have them. I’d also figure out Worcester’s trash pickup system before you move because it’s a little unusual
I would appreciate it, I’ll pm you!
Arcane_Truth t1_itzffhh wrote
As a fellow latino, just be prepared to be disappointed in most of the Mexican food here. There are only a few places that do legit tacos (taco caliente is my go to because it's close to me) but most Mexican places are Americanized Mexican or Mexicali restaurants.
That said, there is a huge caribbena population here so finding good Dominican and Puerto Rican food is easy.