Bronx County Courthouse

New Yorker Stephanie Trudeau says the Bronx’s Grand Concourse was once the borough’s Champs-Élysées. Today it remains home to “the largest stock of Art Deco buildings in the world,” and one of her favorite spots to begin an art and architecture tour is the Bronx County Courthouse (851 Grand Concourse at 161st St), Max Hausel and Joseph H. Freedlander’s 20th-century American masterpiece, complemented by Adolph A. Weinman’s stunning sculpture blocks. Skateboarders also flock to the courthouse on weekends, albeit for different reasons—namely zipping along its north side.

Trudeau works at the nearby Bronx Museum of the Arts (1040 Grand Concourse at 165th St; 718-681-6000, bronxmuseum.org). Highlights of the current exhibition “How Soon Is Now?” (see Art) include Michelle Frick’s Avian Intensive Care Unit, an installation entailing spent IV bags, tubing and medical equipment with a soundtrack of respiratory machinery and bird chirps; Vidal Centeno’s chandelier-like Study For Illumina; and Dulce Pinzon’s charcoal-shadowed glam photographs of local Latino artists and divas.

For a snack, museum staffer Moises Rivera heads to National Bakery (1193 Walton Ave at 167th St, 718-537-5105) for Latin American takes on international pastry classics. For more-substantial fare, the ’hood’s best-kept secret is Tulcingo (85 McClellan St at Gerard Ave, 718-538-0077), an unassuming Mexican deli that serves up tasty authentic grub. Over soft tacos bulging with carnitas (pork), one happy customer quips, “This is straight outta Distrito Federal.”