Travis - Taco Tour stop #41 - Alondra's Tacos - 1580 W 21st St

This week was a little bit of a mess... We have been wanting to go to Paleteria La Reyna but we discovered a few weeks back that they are closed on Wednesdays (our normal tour day). So since we didn't make it out until Friday, we thought it was a perfect opportunity.  However, after arriving, we were smacked with the news that they were closed for the holidays and wouldn't reopen until next year.  Sooooo, we decided to try Mr Taco (a few blocks away), but they only have outdoor seating and are cash only, so we decided to try Alondra's Tacos - who happens to be cash only also... Jeez.

tl;dr: We went to Alondra's Tacos.

This place has a decent selection of meats that you can go with even though they are cash only - and the rest of their menu looks pretty decent as well.  Service was relatively quick, but the tacos came out with a lot of cilantro on them. It always makes me wonder when places pile on toppings like this - are they covering up something or trying to add flavor to something lacking?

I went with a pollo (chicken) first. It was an orange color but juicy and had a decent amount of meat.  Pretty flavorful - it's one that I wouldn't mind having again. Not the best chicken we've had, but good enough to have it again if we return.

The al pastor was next. I kind of like this taco. It is tender but slightly chewy (not uncommon for al pastor meat). It had a nice little seasoned kick to it as well.

I always look forward to carnitas... But I'm also always comparing it to Pollo Express. This one fell short. It had plenty of meat and was juicy and mostly tender. It had a decent taste but not much seasoning and definitely not as bold as PE.

The asada was last and it was just ok. It was slightly overcooked and had almost a burnt taste to it.  The meat was also kind of chewy - so it really wasn't that good.  I can't recommend this one.

I decided another taco was needed so I wanted to try their "americano" taco - but it's not a ground beef. It's just one of their normal meats like above only served in a shell with cheese.  After hearing that I just decided to have another chicken and call it good.

Overall, I think this place is probably just above middle-of-the-road.  If they weren't cash only, I might be more interested.  The service was polite and food came out in a timely manner - but there just wasn't much memorable about this stop.  If I'm in the area, there are quite a few places that are close that I'd rather go to.  But having said that, don't be afraid to stop here and check them out.

Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:

Food Taste:
Value:
Cleanliness:
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Overall:
Likelihood to return:

Travis - Taco Tour stop #40 - El Jalisco Restaurant - 627 E 47th St S

Somewhere in the depths of the recommendations we've had was a place called El Jalisco Restaurant.  I can't remember who recommended it or why, but sometimes that's good enough!  This place is on the south end of town (47th between Broadway and the interchange), so it's sort of "new territory" as far as our tour goes.  It's definitely not in the "typical" places we find them anyway...

So it's a bit out of the way, but we ventured down to see if it was worth the drive.  By the time I got there (which was still on time), the other two girls were already eating their tacos. They said there were only two options for tacos (chicken or steak) and they ordered me a plate of 4 (2 of each).  That's usually an indicator for not so great results, but I wanted to give the place a fair shot.

The chips and salsa were actually pretty good - I definitely enjoyed them.  The salsa kind of has a sweet taste when you first get it in your mouth and then follows up with a good spicy kick.  I could definitely enjoy a bunch of these. But my tacos were delivered pretty quickly so I didn't fill up on them first.

The small selection of options was kind of a bummer, but the lack of variety isn't going to hold them back on good tacos.  They come out sort of "street style" but with only 1 tortilla and some shredded cheese on top. The steak is shredded and was pretty tasty.  It was tender and juicy and I definitely enjoyed the two that I had.

The chicken was served basically the same way. It was shredded and was both tender and juicy. It was also pretty good.  It didn't have as much flavor as the steak did but still definitely an acceptable taco by our "tour standards".

The struggle with this place is the location. It's not conveniently located - unless you're headed to the casino or on the far south side of Wichita for something.  I would come back here for sure - but I wouldn't make a special trip here.  Unfortunately, because of that (and only that), I'm going to ding them for "likelihood to return".  Location, location, location!  Other than that, service was very quick and polite and although I can't remember what my bill was now, it was acceptable pricing.

Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:

Food Taste:
Value:
Cleanliness:
Service:
Overall:
Likelihood to return:

Shon's Take - Taco Tour Stop #40 - El Jalisco's - 47th St S and Broadway

Well, after traveling to the north end of Broadway to Goyo's, we decided to go to the complete opposite end of Broadway last week to a little hole in the wall that you wouldn't know was there unless you were told to look for it: El Jalisco's Mexican Restaurant.


El Jalisco is located in a strip mall at 615 E 47th St S - right behind the KFC just west of I-135 and 47th St S. You walk in and place your order, then they bring it to your table. Issue #1 - the taco menu here is pretty limited. NO Al Pastor, NO Chorizo, NO Carnitas. Basically nothing but steak or chicken to choose from. They had a 4 taco plate for $7.49, so I went with two steak and two chicken. We got some chips and salsa to start and they were a pretty tasty appetizer.


Our tacos came out in less than 5 minutes. Probably not even two minutes. Since I didn't order them "kiddie style" like Chris, my tacos came out with onion, cilantro, and cheese, with limes on the side. If you're only going to do two types of tacos, you better do them well. And EJ's didn't disappoint. All of the tacos were filled with plenty of lightly seasoned, tender and juicy meat. While it seems like most of our street tacos at other places have been of the fried meat variety, these tacos were more on the "juicy stewed" side, as if they had been shredded and left percolating all morning in the crock pot. A nice change from most of the other places we've been to so far.


Overall, I'd say the tacos were pretty tasty. Only knock by me was the lack of choices. But, the place seemed to be doing a healthy business, so I'm looking forward to going back and sampling more of the menu next time I'm in that area. My overall ratings on the 5 Taco Scale are below.


Food Quality - 4.0 Tacos
Price - $
Value - 3.5 Tacos
Cleanliness - 3.0 Tacos
Service - 4.5 Tacos
Overall Experience - 3.5 Tacos
Likelihood To Return - 3.0 Tacos

El Jalisco as seen by Chris

Today we find ourselves at El Jalisco. I didn’t know what a Jalisco was so I had to ask. Turns out it is the owners hometown in Mexico. 

Their tacos consist of a taco platter with 4 tacos. They offer steak and chicken tacos. I ordered a plate with 2 of each. 

They provide chips and salsa while you wait on your order. The salsa has a sweet but spicy flavor that is delicious. 

The tacos came out approximately 42 seconds after we ordered. 

The first bite of the steak taco has me wondering...is this steak or is this barbacoa. They finely shred the steak and it is absolutely delicious. There is tons of meat inside and it is flavorful and extremely tender. 

The chicken taco is also EXTREMELY tender and flavorful. The chicken is chopped into tiny, delicious bits. Add a bit of the salsa and darn, it’s amazing. 

In short, this place is delicious, they are quick and they are half way to the casino. 

I WILL be back. 

To go or not to go to Goyo’s

Today we went to Goyo’s Mexican food based on the recommendation of Ernest from Pollo Express. I figure that if Ernesto says it is good, it is likely very good. 

I reviewed their menu and ordered 5 of the 6 tacos they offer. 

When my tacos arrived, total disappointment set in. I dislike raw onion so I order my tacos without raw onion. What I didn’t realize, and they didn’t disclose, is they put guacamole on each of their tacos. 

Before we get into the specifics of my review, I have a rant to go on. Guacamole does NOT belong on a taco. It just doesn’t. As a rule of thumb, the places that put guacamole on tacos seem to have terrible meat and the guac is there to cover up the lack of flavor.  End rant. Now on to the tacos.

The ground beef on their crunchy shell was ok. The meat was fairly bland but it was tender and there was tons of meat on it. The crunchy shell was extremely fresh and delicious, the meat was just lacking a little. 

The adobada was next on the list. The meat was super tender and had tons of flavorful meat. 

Next up was the carnitas. It was very well cooked, tender and not overly squirty, like most carnitas tacos. It was quite delicious and I considered ordering another. 

The asada was nicely seasoned, nice amount of meat and it was fantastic and tender. 

The grilled chicken was delicious. There was tons of meat and tons of flavor. I think this was their best taco. 

In short, I will likely return for their tacos, just without guacamole. I knew Ernesto wouldn’t send us somewhere terrible but when his restaurant is the measuring stick, it is extremely difficult for anyone to keep up. If you are in Park City, stop by and give them a try. 

Shon's Take - Taco Tour Stop #39 - Goyo's Mexican Fast Food - 53rd St N and Broadway

Well, after last week's holiday hiatus, (stuffing our faces with turkey and pie, instead of tacos for once) we're back at it again, this time going to a recommendation that we actually got from our pal Ernesto over at Pollo Express - Goyo's Mexican Fast Food.


Goyo's is located in a stand alone building on the southwest corner of 53rd St N and Broadway in Park City. Which for me, is a little out of the way from my normal stomping grounds, so these tacos better be worth the drive. Just a quick note if you go - the parking here is cramped and limited. So you don't wanna be rolling through in your huge work truck or RV. On the plus side, they do have a drive thru and I noticed that they seemed to be doing a pretty steady business both inside and out. All of that, combined with the aroma, gave me a good vibe when I walked in. The counter is immediately inside the door and you order and sit, just like a typical fast food joint. I decided to go with 4 tacos: grilled chicken, adobada, asada, and carnitas. Chips and salsa cost extra here. But, I wanted to try them so I went with an order of those as well.


The lady working the front counter handed me the chips immediately and I was pleasantly surprised that we got a decent sized basket. The chips were pretty fresh and the salsa was tasty. More on the almost-sweet side and tomato-y, as opposed to a lot of the spicy salsas we've had lately. My tacos were out in 5 minutes (if even that), garnished with cilantro, raw onion, and guacamole, with salsas and lime on the side. You can pick between hard and soft, corn and flour shells here which is nice for those of you who like options. I went with soft flour for all 4. All four tacos were well filled with plenty of lightly seasoned, tender meat. I think my only knock is that the seasoning IS pretty subtle, so having the guac on top kinda covered up the flavor a bit. The adobada was probably the most flavorful, had a nice peppery seasoning to it that stood out a little more than the other three, even over the guac. The guys mentioned getting a spot or two of "chunky meat" but apparently I lucked out as I had no such issues with any of my tacos.


Overall, I was pretty pleased with this stop. Ernie definitely sent us to a quality place (though Pollo Express is still tops by a good margin). But variety is the spice of life. And of tacos. My overall ratings on the 5 Taco Scale are below.


Food Quality - 4.0 Tacos
Price - $
Value - 3.5 Tacos
Cleanliness - 3.5 Tacos
Service - 4.0 Tacos
Overall Experience - 4.0 Tacos
Likelihood to Return - 4.0 Tacos

Travis - Taco Tour stop #39 - Goyo's Mexican Fast Food - 5355 N Broadway (Park City)

We were going to try Goyo's last week but the Thanksgiving holiday didn't let us get out for our regular tour.  So this week we did make it to Goyo's Mexican Fast Food up on N Broadway. Shon had to remind me this was a place that came recommended to us by Ernesto at Pollo Express.  So when our reigning champ recommends a taco place, it must be good!  The place is obviously under some exterior remodel right now, but we try not to let curb appeal deter us.

It's definitely set up like a fast food joint - the counter is immediately inside the door and you order there from a menu overhead. The service is polite and quick though and we took our seats with some very tasty chips and salsa that Shon ordered.

There are 6 tacos on the menu, but I opted for 4: ground beef, carne asada, carnitas, and adobada.  Something to note here is that you can have your choice of shells. Soft, hard, flour, corn, etc.  Also, it sounds like the tacos come with guacamole on them by default - and I'm glad I asked as that's something I don't want.

The tacos came delivered to our table in reasonable time so I went for the ground beef first.  It's a fairly typical ground beef - lettuce, cheese, meat.  I decided on a soft shell for this one just to be different.  The lettuce tasted a little eh - maybe not as fresh as it could have been or just cheap or something.  But overall this taco was decent. Juicy and definitely not as bland as other plain ground beef tacos we've had.

The asada was next and it had a nice steak flavor and was juicy.  There was a small hint of seasoning on the meat which made it appealing.  There was enough meat to make this an enjoyable taco - overall a pretty good asada for our tour standards.

The carnitas looked really good and I was excited for this one.  I wasn't disappointed - however it's definitely no comparison to Pollo Express carnitas.  Having said that, it's still good - tender meat, and plenty of it. Juicy, good flavor, etc.  I like this one also.

Last was the adobada and out of all that I had, probably my least favorite. It was still a good taco, but it was a little more chewy with a few fatty parts.  It was good - a nice flavor.  I think if you like this style of meat, you'll probably enjoy this taco.  It did leave a pretty strong aftertaste for a few hours aftewards though.  I think we'll likely be back here sometime, but I probably won't get this one again.

Overall, Ernesto didn't steer us wrong. This was a good stop and I'm sure we'll be back.  They have 2 different chicken tacos I want to try.  The service was very polite and engaging - not something you'd typically see at "fast food".  The value was good here also as my ticket was $8ish for 4 tacos and water.  Right now, this place is hanging out in my top 10, but maybe not quite in the top 5 - so I'd definitely say you should check them out!

Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:

Food Taste:
Value:
Cleanliness:
Service:
Overall:
Likelihood to return: