Southern Blvd

➜ Many residents tout La Esquina (1282 Southern Blvd at Freeman St, Bronx; 718-991-5090). Unlike the too-cool LES hangout with the same name, this unrelated eatery gets by on simple plastic-tablecloth decor, earnest Puerto Rican fare and the sweetest counter attendants in the city. Longtime local Nelson enjoys “rice and beans and a lot of good chicken.”

➜ Don, who moved here from Puerto Rico in 1960, says the best shopping is in the discount emporiums along Southern Boulevard (from Westchester Ave to E 163rd St). “You just walk into different stores and see what they have,” he says. Among the cut-rate finds are i ♥ bx shirts ($5), 2GB iPod knockoffs ($25), nameplate necklaces ($60) and classic Adidas clamshell sneaks ($45).

➜ Eae J. Mitchell Park is a serene, tiled square tucked into a corner of Longfellow Avenue and East 174th Street. Its stone tables are marked with grids for chess, and on one side of the park is a raised stag. “Come early,” local resident Jackie advises, as that’s when temperatures are more pleasant and the park is free of unsavory characters who sometimes gather after dark.

NEXT STOP: EV to 23rd St–Ely Ave