This week was an absolute cluster, trying to get a spot picked out and on the schedule. Doof #1 (Travis) wanted to hit MoJoe's for .75 cent tacos on Tuesday. Then Doofy said he "forgot" he already had lunch plans, so we moved MoJoe's to next week. Then his lunch plans cancelled anyway. Lame. So, after a lot of back and forth, we decided to take advantage of the decent weather and hit one of the local taco trucks. We settled on El Pollo Dorado in north Wichita.
Unfortunately, it seems that some of the disorganization kinda followed us to lunch. And I gotta admit, when I pulled up I had no idea what to think. My first impression was that this place is probably breaking every food ordinance in the book. This particular truck sits in a parking lot at the corner of 21st St N and Wellington. There are some tables and chairs under a cover and that's it. Nothing fancy by any stretch. But, once the aroma hit? I knew we were in for some tasty tacos. The only problem: actually GETTING the tacos. It's a bit of a cruel joke really. I mean, c'mon you walk up, starving, looking for a tasty taco. Your nose is then blessed with the awesome aroma but the service is........ meh. One problem is that there is a definite language barrier. We tried to ask particulars about the tacos, but we weren't getting any answers that we understood. So, for my order I just made it simple this time: 2 steak tacos, a chicken taco, and an al pastor. This plus my can of pop for the grand total of $6.50.
We waited for what seemed like forever (but was probably actually 15 minutes, maybe slightly more). The line really started to form at noon and it was taking the lady in the truck a little while to get everyone's orders out. One guy in line actually got pissed and hollered something at the lady in the truck before stomping off. Anyway, we did finally get our tacos and they. were. DELICIOUS! All of the tacos were served on soft flour tortillas with onion, cilantro, and lime on the side. They came with a side of sauce that was the perfect combo of spicy habanero and pepper, but not TOO hot. All of the meat was well seasoned and cooked perfectly. Not too dry, not tough. But, after four tacos, I still felt like I had just eaten an appetizer, so I went back and ordered a second identical order. Even then, at a 1.00 to 1.50 a taco, we weren't breaking the bank. But I noticed as I waited for my second plate that some of the regulars who walked up were ordering 10 and 12 tacos at a time. It sounds like a lot, but since you're not getting chips or some other filler ahead of time (and they're semi small tacos to begin with) a man with a healthy appetite is easily eating 8-12 at a sitting.
For our 1st taco truck experience, I'd say it was a pretty mixed and disorganized bag. But the overall experience definitely took a hit due to wait time. Just a couple of hints for those of you who might try this truck: First, bring your own drink. All they had for drinks were cans of Coke and Sprite in a cooler. If you had seen the water in the bottom of that cooler, you might be begging for a tetanus shot. Second, don't come at the prime lunch time. We got there about 1130 and barely beat the lunch crowd. If you're coming at noon, don't be in a hurry. Third, order a healthy number of tacos on your first go round. It may sound obnoxious, but if time is an issue, you won't have time to wait to put in a second order.
My overall ratings on the 5 Taco Scale are below.
Food Quality - 4.5 Tacos
Price - $-$$
Value - 4.0 Tacos
Cleanliness - 1.5 Tacos
Service - 1.5 Tacos
Overall experience - this one's tough. I don't normally do this, but I'm breaking this up in two:
Food - 4.5 Tacos
Everything else - 1.5 Tacos
Likelihood to return - 2.5 Tacos
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