As usual I'm first to arrive - Chris & Shon are late. So I took my time to review the menu and ask some questions. El Ricardo's is a small joint where Church's chicken used to be. The interior is an improvement as it actually looks like the upkeep is better than when it was Church's. I'm going to lump this into the fast food category (albeit authentic) since you order at a counter, the food is prepared relatively quickly, and they call your number to pick up your order. They have a variety of a la carte tacos to select from and they are all $2/ea or more. I decided on the Carne Asada, Adobada (pork), Barbacoa, and a chicken taco.
My order was prepared fairly quickly and by the time Chris arrived I had already bitten into my first taco - the chicken taco. It was a regular corn shell with chicken, lettuce, and cheese. If it sounds underwhelming, it was. It wasn't bad - the chicken was tender but not much flavor. In fact I'd call it slightly more tender than many of the chicken tacos we've had. But even with hot sauce on it, it lacked much flavor or really anything worth mentioning.
The carne asada taco was next and it was nothing beyond "just ok". The meat was chewy in places - enough that I had to dispose of some that I couldn't chew. It wasn't as bland as the bland asada tacos I've had elsewhere, but nothing close to as good as we've had either. Nothing memorable other than being chewy.
The barbacoa had very high standards to get to because we had some amazing ones at Los Pinos. This one fell way short. The meat was tender and it actually had an ok flavor (better than the asada), but nothing great and nothing I'd rush back for.
The adobada pork taco was last and it was probably the best of the 4 that I had. The meat had a decent flavor and would be one that I'd order again if I returned. It wasn't anything worth raving about, but it was a solid middle-of-the-road taco.
Overall, the price you pay for tacos here isn't worth it. My bill was $8.80 with tax for 4 tacos and no drink. Honestly, I'd rather hit some other fast food joint. The tacos are small, mediocre, and I left thinking about an after lunch snack... The place was clean, the staff was friendly, and the service was quick. But beyond that, I don't really see a reason to go back (and I doubt I will). Nothing memorable at all with this stop and for the price you have better options.
Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:
| Food Taste: |  |
| Value: |  |
| Cleanliness: | |
| Service: | |
| Overall: | |
| Likelihood to return: | |
No comments:
Post a Comment