Author Archives: Taco Trail Jose

by | August 4, 2012 · 3:34 pm

El Padrino Ordered to Vacate, Hopes to Remain in Bishop Arts

If you’ve developed a taste for the tacos at El Padrino Mexican Grill’s satellite stand, you should know they’ve fallen victim to development. In my Friday, Aug. 3, Dallas Voice profile of restaurant designer and Taco Republic owner Ron Guest, I reported that spot in the Bishop Arts District had received a three-month order to vacate the premises. It’s due to become part of Oak Cliff Mercantile, a  dual concept from Sarah Lombardi, daughter of restaurateur Alberto Lombardi. The new tenant will use the eponymous building as its nucleus. The kiosk will anchor a beer garden.

“No one saw this coming,” says Juan Contreras, managing partner of El Padrino’s stand and the 22-year-old full-service original on Jefferson Boulevard—which is not closing. However, Contreras adds, it makes sense. The lease was altered to a month-to-month agreement 10 years ago. Now, it’s a matter of finding another Bishop Arts space. Continue reading →

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Filed under Bishop Arts District, Dallas, News, Oak Cliff

by | July 31, 2012 · 2:03 pm

Taquería La Providencia

Just off the Jefferson Boulevard taco corridor on Madison Avenue is Taquería La Providencia, a restaurant decorated with baubles, athletic trophies and Mexican folk art. It’s easily missed, but once inside customers find a mixed bag of tacos seasoned with sonorous telenovelas.

Unlike Mexican soap operas, La Providencia offers a surprising twist. Continue reading →

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by | July 26, 2012 · 8:48 am

Revolver Taco Lounge

Not all great taquerías are hovels found in neglected districts. Some shine white and clean in developing enclaves. Case in point: Revolver Taco Lounge, a contemporary Mexican restaurant awash in white with orange accents along West Seventh Street in Fort Worth.

Opened for more than a year, Revolver offers Mexican standards humble in presentation. Here, the Rojas family offers pipian, a green mole with pumpkin seeds, blankets duck breast. A lobster taco is laced with chipotle butter sauce. In the mood for huitlacoche? Revolver’s got it.

The eatery’s tacos come wrapped in house-made tortillas produced from nixtamal (i.e., the hard way) in a kitchen staffed by—stereotypically enough—smock-wearing elderly women, among them owner Gino Rojas’ mother and aunt. Continue reading →

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Filed under DFW, Fort Worth, one of the freaking best, Reviews, Taco Tours, Texas

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by | July 24, 2012 · 11:55 am

Yucatan Taco Stand Tequila Bar & Grill

A stop on the Fort Worth taco tour a friend and I took ahead of my trip to San Diego, Yucatan Taco Stand Tequila Bar & Grill offers an alternative to Fuzzy’s Taco Shop. However, Fuzzy’s and Yucatan share more in common than what distinguishes them.

Both were founded in Cowtown, both were created by Paul Willis and both use a dubious geographical conceit. Both hedge their bets on seafood tacos. Yet, Fuzzy’s is the one that has reeled in success, crossing beyond the Texas border. Yucatan once boasted area three outposts. The Fort Worth location, the first, is the only one remaining in North Texas. Another Yucatan can be found outside Houston, in The Woodlands.

After placing our order at the front counter (something else Yucatan shares with Fuzzy’s), my companion and I sat at a window booth, watching as employees from the nearby hospital gorged on large nacho platters, loaded, edible Popocatepetls similar to the dish at Fuzzy’s. Continue reading →

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by | July 19, 2012 · 4:57 pm

Cesar’s Tacos y Gorditas

There are some taquerías I decide to leave unreviewed, even if I frequent them. It’s not because I’d prefer to keep them a secret. Rather, it’s because I frequent them out of convenience, I don’t think I have much to add to the discussion, I’m saving them for a list/some other project or they’re so terrible I can’t stomach typing such vitriol.

Case in point: Cesar’s Tacos. It’s not that the Davis Street restaurant is bad. I patronize the joint regularly, especially when my in-laws visit. As a local chain, Cesar’s Tacos would be an ideal subject of a larger story. There comes a moment, though, when your original plan is scuttled and things head south. Continue reading →

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by | July 17, 2012 · 12:18 pm

So-Cal Tacos

Operating out of Tarrant County, Scott Wooley’s So-Cal Tacos is a red rig affixed with a surfboard. Like its Dallas counterpart, Rock and Roll Tacos, it’s hard to miss. So-Cal Tacos is also the truck that initiated my quest for primo fish tacos, leading to notable selections across Dallas-Fort Worth and San Diego (more on that in the future).

The San Diego Classic, the signature dish, resembles a Gorton’s fish fillet of childhood but offers bright, acidic licks and a pleasant crunch imparted by panko breading and zippy garnishes of slaw and aioli. The breading is a departure from the standard fish taco enclosed in beer-batter. However, it works. And in three words: I dig it. Continue reading →

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by | July 15, 2012 · 3:15 pm

Taco Party, Dallas’ Newest Food Truck

Last weekend’s Taste of Dallas is more than a food expo. It’s a testing ground for nascent culinary ventures, like Taco Party, the city’s newest food truck. Taco Party is so new, the rig doesn’t yet have a branded wrap. Instead, posters covered parts of the truck, formerly of Dos Paisano’s Salvadoran-Mexican operation, during what was Taco Party’s public service debut.

Part of the annual event’s Taste Curbside, a new component featuring Dallas’ hottest edible trend, Taco Party is owned and operated by cousins Rafael Rico and Eduardo Ramirez. It’s Dallas’ first Mexico City-style gourmet taco truck.

While Rico and Ramirez, Mexico City natives, were busy dishing out Taco Party’s fare, Lourdes Palomares, Rico’s wife, took some time to answer my questions regarding the lonchero (taco truck). Continue reading →

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by | July 12, 2012 · 9:54 pm

Doña Lencha Restaurant and Taquería #1

On my way to the airport for a San Diego-bound flight—and unsure about what gastronomic pitfalls or crescendos awaited me in SoCal—I stopped for tacos at one of two Doña Lencha restaurants in Irving.

The Story Road location anchors one corner of a strip mall with a large dining room, but I wasn’t there for a sit-down meal. So, I got tacos needed to gird me through my ride on Spirit Airlines as a to-go order.

To that end, I selected four gratifying tacos. So gratifying that the bizarre ending to my time there won’t deter me from returning. Inconspicuously. Continue reading →

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by | July 10, 2012 · 12:32 pm

La Salsa Fresh Mexican Grill (San Diego)

I had originally wanted to post a review of one of the fish taco shacks I patronized during my week in San Diego. However, as impressive and disastrous as the local specialties were, what became apparent while I was in SoCal for my best friend’s wedding was my how formidable is my love of Tex-Mex, especially when it comes to queso and breakfast tacos. My craving for the former was particularly shocking. I’ve not experienced those feelings until visiting San Diego. Not new to me was the gloomy nebula produced by a dearth of breakfast tacos.

So, one morning, the groom and I conducted an Internet search for the Tex-Mex beauty. The one result we found had so many negative reviews, my buddy immediately nixed the possibility of eating there. Another opportunity didn’t present itself until after the wedding and my responsibilities as the best man had ended. It came on the day of my departure for Dallas at the San Diego International Airport. Continue reading →

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by | July 5, 2012 · 8:00 am

Five Restaurants That Should Serve Tacos on a Regular Basis

I sustain myself on more than tacos. However, when dining at a non-taquería, I occasionally desire to see a taco option. Below are six establishments I wish would serve tacos.

Cane Rosso
My favorite Dallas pizzeria put tacos on the menu once. Jay, wouldn’t you’d rather eat tacos from your own kitchen than from Taco Joint? Continue reading →

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