Spaniard José Andrés made a slew of Mexican friends when he started working in New York kitchens in the early 1990s, and those pals prompted him to take the first of many trips to Mexico in 1995.

“That’s how my love affair with Mexico City began,” he explains. More than two decades later, the chef just opened his first overseas restaurant there, J by José Andrés. J, in the tony ’hood of Polanco, acts as the anchor of the newly rehabbed W Mexico City hotel (from $350).

Andrés has spent 20 years eating his way around the city, so who better to offer an insider’s guide to the best taquerias and yummiest spots?

“I’m like Dory [from “Finding Nemo”] on steroids,” laughs the chef. “I forget, forget, forget.” So we nudged his memory a little during the restaurant’s opening fête.

Carmen Ramirez Degollado — better known as Tita — became the chef at the original El Bajio to replace her husband after he died of cancer.

That was 35 years ago, and by championing simple, rustic cooking she’s built an empire of those cafés across the city.

“I prefer the first [café], which is a little ugly and out by the airport,” notes Andrés.

“They have this dish, a gordita, with corn dough. Inside they put black refried beans and leaves of the avocado, then drop it in hot oil and it puffs…” he says, gesturing like a magician.

“They make it look easy, but technically, it’s very hard.”

Andrés is a rabid Twitter user — @chefjoseandres has almost 400,000 followers — and often uses it to scout new places to sample. For one, he found Sud 777 that way. “I sometimes follow people for a month because I think they’re interesting, or will open up your horizons, and today [the chef and I] exchanged tweets,” Andres says.

“The chef, Edgar Nuñez, is really young but really good — he has a food truck, too.” Sud 777’s sleek, contemporary space is a showcase for his cooking, which takes traditional Mexican ingredients, such as black beans and Cotija cheese, and uses them in unexpected ways.

“He has a good heart, nice and humble,” Andrés says. “You know, people with bad hearts cannot be good cooks.”

Another crowdsourced favorite is his latest obsession, Taqueria La Negra “It’s brand-new and very stylish. I went for lunch today,” he says.

“There’s a big variety of tacos, from the most classic, like taco al pastor, to the one I ate, with a fried egg and refried beans.

You kind of get it all over your fingers when the egg yolk breaks, so don’t wear a white shirt!”

The salsa selection is a standout, too — among the half dozen on offer, he raves about the tomatillo and avocado and another made with the chipotle-like morita pepper.

Onwards to more goodness. The stuffed poblano dish known as chile en nogada is one of Mexico’s nationwide staples, and with good reason: its red, green and white color scheme is a nod to the national flag. The red is pomegranate seeds; The green is chile, and the white is the dish itself, as well as the nogada, a creamy walnut sauce.

Andrés recommends sampling some at chef Ricardo Muñoz’s Azul y Oro. “They put a lot of theater into the way they bring it out to you, on a beautiful tray,” he explains. “It’s Instagram-ready.” So, is it just a dish to eat with your eyes? “Oh no, no, no, it’s very fresh,” Andrés reassures. “When you eat that sauce, it’s unbelievable.”

A Mexico City food tour isn’t complete without some beverages to match. Andrés loves margaritas so much, he put a salt foam-topped one on the menu at J. He’s also a mezcal fan, and makes regular pilgrimages to Los Danzantes to drink it.

The restaurant in the Coyoacán nabe is named after a smoky, vanilla-heavy mezcal brand and is a sister spot to an original in Oaxaca. “It’s in a square — not so touristy, this one — and if you’re sitting at one of the chairs outside, you feel you’re in another world,” he said.

Be daring and pair that snifter of mezcal with some sautéed, buttery escamole(you know them as ants’ eggs).

Beyond mezcal, just know that cocktail culture has arrived in Mexico, albeit with a surfeit of speakeasies. Try a bittersweet gin-and-vermouth Martinez at Jules, the three-year-old bar hidden, La Esquina-style, underneath hipster canteen La Surtidora.

To even find Hanky Panky, you’ll need to book over the phone via the number on its Facebook page.

The effort’s worth it, though, thanks to the stunning cocktails from bartender Berit Jane Soli-Holt.

Otherwise, opt for a classic at Licoria Limantour, the bar credited with kickstarting cocktails in Mexico City when it opened in the East Village-esque Roma in 2011.

Salud!