Well, I'm a couple of weeks behind on my reviews. So, I'm going to make this one short and sweet....well... maybe not that sweet. If this one sounds a little irritated, it's because I am. I'm irked that I even have to spend 5 minutes of my time on this one, three weeks after the fact. That should tell you all you need to know.
After our usual back and forth, we finally settled on Margarita's. I've been there a couple of times on the weekend (they have a great house band and it's a fun spot on Saturday nights) but never for lunch. I've never had their tacos, but I kinda remembered the food I DID have there as being okay. Nothing amazing, but decent. Anyway, we started with some chips and salsa. The salsa wasn't bad and was basically the best part of my lunch. After getting a nonsensical explanation about "new style vs old style tacos" from our server (who otherwise did a pretty good job), I ordered three tacos - a tilapia taco, ground beef, and chicken.
The tacos came in a decent amount of time. Basically, the ground beef taco was ok and probably the best of the three. But a little greasy for my taste. That said, my main complaint is that I got gipped on the meat. The chicken was bland. It was tender, but still lacking on the flavor side. The fish taco was almost the opposite - peppery beyond belief. WAY too peppery and spicy. I couldn't taste anything else BUT pepper. Like the beef taco, the fish was way too greasy. If you look at the picture on our Facebook page, you can actually see the grease oozing out of the bottom. Yech.
All of that at $3.00 a taco. I'll come back for the band. Maybe even try the enchiladas if I'm hungry enough. But I'll take a pass on the tacos. My overall ratings on the 5-Taco Scale are below.
Food Quality - 1.5 Tacos
Price - $
Value - 1.5 Tacos
Cleanliness - 3.5 Tacos
Service - 3.5 Tacos
Overall Experience - 2.0 Tacos
Likelihood to Return - 2.0 Tacos
Tuesday, January 9, 2018
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Travis - Taco Tour stop #44 - Gaga's Grub (Ugliest Taco Truck)
So because Chris is going to be unavailable next week, we decided we needed to squeeze in a second stop this week. Chris insisted that it needed to be Gaga's Grub - Wichita's Ugliest Taco Truck. You'll need to keep an eye on his FB page to figure out where he's at - this week he was in the Red Cross Parking lot on N Main. The owner of Gaga's heard about our tour sometime back and reached out to us. Chris also ran into him at Taco Fajita recently - so we figured we better try to get over to him!
For being touted as the ugliest taco truck, I was a little disappointed. I wanted UGGGLEEE - I'm kidding of course. When you spot the truck, you'll know you have the right place because he's got it plastered on the side. And yeah, he's not going to win any design awards! HA! It's all good though - that's his schtick and it's cool. If you have a chance to talk to the owner Dustin, you should. Super nice guy and down to earth - and he's proud of what he does.
Anyway, I got there before the other 2 bozos (as usual) and rather than stand outside, in the cold, waiting, I went ahead and ordered. He's got a lot of options on his menu - so at first glance it's a bit overwhelming. But I decided to try the 3 taco plate for $8 - which is a great value by the way! Only two kinds of meat on the menu - chicken and pulled pork. Sadly, no beef - but don't let that discourage you. He's got TONS of topping options between the condiments and sauces! I ordered a chicken with cilantro and onions only, a pulled pork with jack cheese and blueberry BBQ sauce, and a pulled pork with cilantro & onions and a roasted poblano sauce.
I was already sitting on my tailgate eating food by the time doofus #1 & 2 showed up. Food came out quickly since he's already got it cooked and ready for you! First thing I noticed - this guy does NOT skimp on meat. All 3 tacos are single tortilla style and LOADED - if it's possible to have too much meat in a taco, Gaga's probably pulled it off.
I started with the pork and poblano combo first. The meat is very tender and juicy - and LOTS of it. The poblano definitely has a nice little kick to it and overall this was a very flavorful taco. I really liked it. I would say I'd get it again, but with so many choices of toppings, I'd want to try other options first - but you won't go wrong with this one.
The chicken taco was next - I tried to make this one as close to "traditional" as I could with no sauce and just cilantro and onion. This taco wasn't bad, but for me, the chicken was just a little too "chunky". I'd rather see the chicken in smaller pieces or even shredded. It tasted good - so I'm not even close to suggesting this was a bad taco. It's just that the texture was a little off for me - especially since there was so much meat. I used a fork to "shred" and eat the pieces that fell off and the flavor was nice. I think next time I'd either skip the chicken, or go with different toppings and try to shred some of it myself.
The last taco was the other pulled pork and I made this more "Americanized" with jack cheese and bbq sauce. Unfortunately, because the weather was cold, this taco had cooled in temperature by the time I got to it. It was warm when served, so no fault to Gaga's - just a byproduct of going to a food truck on a cold day. This taco was very yummy. The blueberry BBQ sauce was unique and really tasty. A tender juicy taco with tons of meat. I really liked this taco also!
Overall I really enjoyed this round of tacos. These aren't going to necessarily be "traditional" tacos - so if that's what you're looking for, this might not be what you're after. BUT, I still think you'll like it. You have SO many options for toppings, it's hard not to find something you'd like. You may have trouble deciding what to try. The tacos are very juicy, so get a handful of napkins. By the time I finished the last taco, the tortilla was a bit soggy. I wished for at least one more kind of meat - ideally a beef option. However, the amount of meat is awesome (and very tasty) - and for the price, this is a great value. I will be back to hit up Gaga's again and I want to try lots of other toppings and sauces.
Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:
For being touted as the ugliest taco truck, I was a little disappointed. I wanted UGGGLEEE - I'm kidding of course. When you spot the truck, you'll know you have the right place because he's got it plastered on the side. And yeah, he's not going to win any design awards! HA! It's all good though - that's his schtick and it's cool. If you have a chance to talk to the owner Dustin, you should. Super nice guy and down to earth - and he's proud of what he does.
Anyway, I got there before the other 2 bozos (as usual) and rather than stand outside, in the cold, waiting, I went ahead and ordered. He's got a lot of options on his menu - so at first glance it's a bit overwhelming. But I decided to try the 3 taco plate for $8 - which is a great value by the way! Only two kinds of meat on the menu - chicken and pulled pork. Sadly, no beef - but don't let that discourage you. He's got TONS of topping options between the condiments and sauces! I ordered a chicken with cilantro and onions only, a pulled pork with jack cheese and blueberry BBQ sauce, and a pulled pork with cilantro & onions and a roasted poblano sauce.
I was already sitting on my tailgate eating food by the time doofus #1 & 2 showed up. Food came out quickly since he's already got it cooked and ready for you! First thing I noticed - this guy does NOT skimp on meat. All 3 tacos are single tortilla style and LOADED - if it's possible to have too much meat in a taco, Gaga's probably pulled it off.
I started with the pork and poblano combo first. The meat is very tender and juicy - and LOTS of it. The poblano definitely has a nice little kick to it and overall this was a very flavorful taco. I really liked it. I would say I'd get it again, but with so many choices of toppings, I'd want to try other options first - but you won't go wrong with this one.
The chicken taco was next - I tried to make this one as close to "traditional" as I could with no sauce and just cilantro and onion. This taco wasn't bad, but for me, the chicken was just a little too "chunky". I'd rather see the chicken in smaller pieces or even shredded. It tasted good - so I'm not even close to suggesting this was a bad taco. It's just that the texture was a little off for me - especially since there was so much meat. I used a fork to "shred" and eat the pieces that fell off and the flavor was nice. I think next time I'd either skip the chicken, or go with different toppings and try to shred some of it myself.
The last taco was the other pulled pork and I made this more "Americanized" with jack cheese and bbq sauce. Unfortunately, because the weather was cold, this taco had cooled in temperature by the time I got to it. It was warm when served, so no fault to Gaga's - just a byproduct of going to a food truck on a cold day. This taco was very yummy. The blueberry BBQ sauce was unique and really tasty. A tender juicy taco with tons of meat. I really liked this taco also!
Overall I really enjoyed this round of tacos. These aren't going to necessarily be "traditional" tacos - so if that's what you're looking for, this might not be what you're after. BUT, I still think you'll like it. You have SO many options for toppings, it's hard not to find something you'd like. You may have trouble deciding what to try. The tacos are very juicy, so get a handful of napkins. By the time I finished the last taco, the tortilla was a bit soggy. I wished for at least one more kind of meat - ideally a beef option. However, the amount of meat is awesome (and very tasty) - and for the price, this is a great value. I will be back to hit up Gaga's again and I want to try lots of other toppings and sauces.
Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:
| Food Taste: |   |
| Value: | |
| Cleanliness: | |
| Service: | |
| Overall: | |
| Likelihood to return: | |
Friday, January 5, 2018
Cactus Cantina
Today we find ourselves at Cactus Cantina on south Hydraulic.
I was the first to arrive, as usual. The first things I noticed when I pulled in was the building. It was an awesome stucco finished building. Cool looking building, let’s hope the tacos are delicious.
Upon being seated, they delivered chips and salsa. The salsa was good but the chips were stale, even though they were heated.
As usual, both of our senior citizens were late, leaving me with a bowl of stale chips to stare at.
Their menu shows several options for tacos. I am going the the a la carte tacos. They have street tacos and regular tacos with options like carne asada, al pastor and chicken fajita tacos.
The chicken had an interesting flavor. It was finely chopped and had a lot of seasoning. It was definitely not the best but a long way from the worst.
The Al Pastor was tasty. The meat was well cooked, tender and flavorful. They don’t skimp on the meat with their tacos which made this one delicious taco.
Their beef fried flour had a ton of unidentifiable crap inside. But it was tasty. I should have eaten it sooner as the meat had cooled by the time I ate it. With that said, it was pretty yummy. Of all of the fried flour tacos we have sampled, this was one of the better examples.
The carne asada was tender but lacking a little in flavor. A big squirt of lime and some of their salsa and it really comes to life.
Their tacos leave me in a bit of a tough spot. They are good, just not great. The al Pastor is by far the best and I would love to try the fried flour beef when it’s hot. If I found myself in this part of town and craving some al Pastor, I would consider swinging by.
Thursday, January 4, 2018
Margarita’s Cantina...sober
On December 20th, we went to Margaritas Cantina. They have been around a long time but I don’t think I have ever had their tacos. That will change today.
Let me start by saying that I have been to Margarita’s many times, some I remember the next day, some I don’t. Usually there are issues with the ticket and customer service isn’t their strong suit.
The fried flour beef was decent but there wasn’t much meat inside. What meat was there was tender though. Fried flour tacos are usually filled with meat and cheese. This one just doesn’t have that...
No idea what the second taco was but it was a tad on the spicy side. It was some sort of chicken and was on a soft shell.
The chicken taco in their fried flour shell was the best of the three. There was plenty of meat and it was nice and tender. The thing that they seem to lack here is seasoning. The meat is cooked well, they just forget the part that adds flavor.
In short, the food was ok. Nothing much to say beyond that. I came hungry and left full...and sober. This place is much more fun at night.
Alondra’s Tacos...3 weeks late
We stopped at Alondra’s Tacos about 3 weeks ago. I just haven’t posted my review until today.
This weeks stop was a total mess. The other two yahoos sent us to one place that was closed and another place that didn’t take modern forms of payment, then to this place. Guess what, they don’t take plastic either.
They had a handful of tacos on the menu, I ordered four and let Shon pay, since he had the cash.
The first taco I dove into was the chicken. When it was delivered to the table, it was the first one I noticed. It was likely due to the orange color. The taco had plenty of meat (for a tiny taco) on it which was tender and delicious.
Next was the carnitas. Carnitas can be delicious...carnitas can be awful. This fell somewhere in between. The meat was chewy and greasy at the same time. Each bite taken sent grease squirting.
When I got to my al Pastor taco, I thought it may actually stand a chance at being delicious. It looked fantastic. I was wrong. The meat was extremely chewy. It was flavorful but the chewiness distracted from any of the positive attributes this taco had.
Last came the carne asada. There was quite a bit of meat but it was chewy and gristley at the same time. There was a serious texture issue with the asada that made it less than fantastic.
Strike one: cash only
Strike two: tiny tacos
Strike three: everything was chewy
I’m out.
Wednesday, January 3, 2018
Travis - Taco Tour stop #43 - Cactus Cantina - 2802 S Hydraulic
*insert a few sentences about our lack of planning here*. Okay, now that I've got that out of the way, we ended up at Cactus Cantina on S Hydraulic today thanks to a recommendation that Chris seems to think we had to go here. This visit is best summed up with: some good, some bad.
So let's get into it. Firstly, the location sucks - at least for me. It's not convenient to get to at all and I'm never in this area. So the tacos would have to be exceptional for me to make a point to drive down here to get them...
Today I decided I would arrive on Shon time (which is about 15 minutes late) - and ironically, we pulled into the parking lot at same time. I sat down at the table and the first thing I noticed was a sauce bowl that was dirty. It had some leftover dried food in it, so I set it to the side and grabbed another....and IT had some leftover dried food in it. Also, this place is dark inside. It's a sit down restaurant, so maybe that's the atmosphere they're going for - but I wasn't feeling it today. The waiter was polite (and confident) and took our orders. The chips were very crunchy - and slightly stale. The sauce was pretty good though - the hot sauce definitely had a kick to it that many would find uncomfortable.
They have a few classic street tacos and some "Americanized" tacos as well - and on the a la carte, the tacos are $2/ea IIRC. I opted for one of each of the street tacos (al pastor, carne asada, & chicken) which come on only one tortilla but with the expected onion and cilantro. I also asked for a ground beef taco on a fried flour shell.
Our food seemed to take some time to arrive. I'm not entirely sure why because the place was pretty quiet. For a sit down restaurant with plenty of seating, only 3 or 4 tables were in use (including ours). But the waiter made a point to say how good their street tacos were and how some places you go it's rubbery - but not theirs. Nothing wrong with being confident, but you better back it up. When our food did finally arrive, everything looked (mostly) in order. I unwrapped my real silverware from a real cloth napkin but seemed to be missing a fork (or I dropped it unknowingly). Chris gave me his unused one - which I later discovered had dried food on it also.
I started with the beef fried flour taco. It wasn't bad but it wasn't anything special. It seemed to be a little skimpy on meat - which was a bit surprising. The shell was fresh and the meat had a decent flavor. Not too bland, but nothing exciting and definitely nothing memorable. Maybe I just don't care for these kinds of tacos...
The chicken street taco was next. It had a pretty good flavor and it was tender. It wasn't dry, but it wasn't necessarily moist or juicy either. Overall it was an acceptable chicken taco, but it was light on meat. It probably could have used about twice as much as it had - I might have rated it a little better if it did. The taste was acceptable.
The al pastor was next and I actually kind of liked this one. It had a bold flavor. The meat was a little chewy (even though the waiter made a point to say their meat wouldn't be). There was plenty of meat on it and I enjoyed every bite. If I come back, I'll definitely have this one again - and I'd recommend to you to have it if you make it here.
Carne asada was last and it had plenty of meat on it as well. It wasn't very hot (temperature-wise) - but it was the last taco I ate and it had been sitting open-face the whole time. So I'm not really going to blame anyone for that. The steak flavor was subtle but good. It would be hard to say it was tender but I wouldn't call it chewy... It just took a little extra effort to chew it if that makes sense. It's probably slightly above average for the asada tacos we've had on the tour.
Overall, 2 good tacos, and 2 acceptable (but skimpy) ones including a yummy but slightly chewy al pastor (when he told us it wouldn't be). If you're going to make a point about telling us why your food is good, it better live up to what you say. Be confident - but be right. Even though the service was polite, he didn't back up his confidence and they were a little slow. The slightly stale chips, dirty bowls and silverware, and the bad location just brings this place down. I understand occasionally one dirty item might sneak through - but not 3 items on one table. It had me looking at everything. I honestly can't think of any reason to go back.
Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:
So let's get into it. Firstly, the location sucks - at least for me. It's not convenient to get to at all and I'm never in this area. So the tacos would have to be exceptional for me to make a point to drive down here to get them...
Today I decided I would arrive on Shon time (which is about 15 minutes late) - and ironically, we pulled into the parking lot at same time. I sat down at the table and the first thing I noticed was a sauce bowl that was dirty. It had some leftover dried food in it, so I set it to the side and grabbed another....and IT had some leftover dried food in it. Also, this place is dark inside. It's a sit down restaurant, so maybe that's the atmosphere they're going for - but I wasn't feeling it today. The waiter was polite (and confident) and took our orders. The chips were very crunchy - and slightly stale. The sauce was pretty good though - the hot sauce definitely had a kick to it that many would find uncomfortable.
They have a few classic street tacos and some "Americanized" tacos as well - and on the a la carte, the tacos are $2/ea IIRC. I opted for one of each of the street tacos (al pastor, carne asada, & chicken) which come on only one tortilla but with the expected onion and cilantro. I also asked for a ground beef taco on a fried flour shell.
Our food seemed to take some time to arrive. I'm not entirely sure why because the place was pretty quiet. For a sit down restaurant with plenty of seating, only 3 or 4 tables were in use (including ours). But the waiter made a point to say how good their street tacos were and how some places you go it's rubbery - but not theirs. Nothing wrong with being confident, but you better back it up. When our food did finally arrive, everything looked (mostly) in order. I unwrapped my real silverware from a real cloth napkin but seemed to be missing a fork (or I dropped it unknowingly). Chris gave me his unused one - which I later discovered had dried food on it also.
I started with the beef fried flour taco. It wasn't bad but it wasn't anything special. It seemed to be a little skimpy on meat - which was a bit surprising. The shell was fresh and the meat had a decent flavor. Not too bland, but nothing exciting and definitely nothing memorable. Maybe I just don't care for these kinds of tacos...
The chicken street taco was next. It had a pretty good flavor and it was tender. It wasn't dry, but it wasn't necessarily moist or juicy either. Overall it was an acceptable chicken taco, but it was light on meat. It probably could have used about twice as much as it had - I might have rated it a little better if it did. The taste was acceptable.
The al pastor was next and I actually kind of liked this one. It had a bold flavor. The meat was a little chewy (even though the waiter made a point to say their meat wouldn't be). There was plenty of meat on it and I enjoyed every bite. If I come back, I'll definitely have this one again - and I'd recommend to you to have it if you make it here.
Carne asada was last and it had plenty of meat on it as well. It wasn't very hot (temperature-wise) - but it was the last taco I ate and it had been sitting open-face the whole time. So I'm not really going to blame anyone for that. The steak flavor was subtle but good. It would be hard to say it was tender but I wouldn't call it chewy... It just took a little extra effort to chew it if that makes sense. It's probably slightly above average for the asada tacos we've had on the tour.
Overall, 2 good tacos, and 2 acceptable (but skimpy) ones including a yummy but slightly chewy al pastor (when he told us it wouldn't be). If you're going to make a point about telling us why your food is good, it better live up to what you say. Be confident - but be right. Even though the service was polite, he didn't back up his confidence and they were a little slow. The slightly stale chips, dirty bowls and silverware, and the bad location just brings this place down. I understand occasionally one dirty item might sneak through - but not 3 items on one table. It had me looking at everything. I honestly can't think of any reason to go back.
Out of 5 tacos, here are my ratings:
| Food Taste: | |
| Value: | |
| Cleanliness: | |
| Service: | |
| Overall: | |
| Likelihood to return: | |
Tuesday, January 2, 2018
Shon's Take - Taco Tour Stop #41 - Alondra's Tacos - 1580 W 21st St N
Well, my apologies for getting this review out so slowly. Time to play catch up after the holidays!! This stop was one recommended by our reader, Mick. It actually wasn't on our radar to go to that day, but after going to Peleteria Reyna and finding it closed, then going to Mr. Taco and not finding any seating, we decided to hit this place up. Speaking of Mr. Taco, if you try to Google Alondra's or Mr. Taco, there seems to be some overlap - maybe same owners, maybe Alondra's split off, moved...who knows? Anyway, they are, apparently, two separate places. Feel free to clarify any of this for our readers in the comment section
Anyway, we got there and almost turned around again because the sign said "cash only". So be prepared. After taking stock of our cash situation, we went ahead and went in. You basically step up to the counter and order and they bring it out to you, fast food style. I liked the wider variety of meats and since I knew Thing 1 and Thing 2 were going to be pansies (as usual) I decided to go off the usual path a little bit with my taco order. I went with 4 tacos: asada, al pastor, cabeza (cow head), and lengua (cow tongue). It took me a little bit to get my order through and pay because there was a definite language barrier between me and the lady at the register.
Once our order was in, the tacos came in quick fashion. They looked pretty tasty, although there was nearly an entire salad's worth of cilantro on top. After thinning out the cilantro a little, I threw some lime on top and dug in. My taco mates, as usual, miss some tasty tacos by sticking to their standard chicken/steak/pork orders. The cabeza and lengua were both tasty tacos and very tender. Lightly seasoned, but still pretty tasty. The al pastor was probably my favorite though, as it had a little more kick to it and plenty of meat. My taco mates thought some of it was a little chewy but I didn't think that was the case. The asada on the other hand, was a little drier and chewier than the other three. Not a horrible taco, but definitely the bottom of the four I ordered.
Overall, I thought Alondra's was a pretty decent stop and I would say if you're in the area you should definitely check them out. I will probably stop in again to try the chicken and get more of the lengua and al pastors for sure. My overall ratings on the 5 Taco Scale are below.
Food Quality - 3.0 Tacos
Price - $
Value - 3.5 Tacos
Cleanliness - 2.5 Tacos
Service - 3.0 Tacos
Overall Experience - 3.0 Tacos
Likelihood to Return - 3.0 Tacos
Anyway, we got there and almost turned around again because the sign said "cash only". So be prepared. After taking stock of our cash situation, we went ahead and went in. You basically step up to the counter and order and they bring it out to you, fast food style. I liked the wider variety of meats and since I knew Thing 1 and Thing 2 were going to be pansies (as usual) I decided to go off the usual path a little bit with my taco order. I went with 4 tacos: asada, al pastor, cabeza (cow head), and lengua (cow tongue). It took me a little bit to get my order through and pay because there was a definite language barrier between me and the lady at the register.
Once our order was in, the tacos came in quick fashion. They looked pretty tasty, although there was nearly an entire salad's worth of cilantro on top. After thinning out the cilantro a little, I threw some lime on top and dug in. My taco mates, as usual, miss some tasty tacos by sticking to their standard chicken/steak/pork orders. The cabeza and lengua were both tasty tacos and very tender. Lightly seasoned, but still pretty tasty. The al pastor was probably my favorite though, as it had a little more kick to it and plenty of meat. My taco mates thought some of it was a little chewy but I didn't think that was the case. The asada on the other hand, was a little drier and chewier than the other three. Not a horrible taco, but definitely the bottom of the four I ordered.
Overall, I thought Alondra's was a pretty decent stop and I would say if you're in the area you should definitely check them out. I will probably stop in again to try the chicken and get more of the lengua and al pastors for sure. My overall ratings on the 5 Taco Scale are below.
Food Quality - 3.0 Tacos
Price - $
Value - 3.5 Tacos
Cleanliness - 2.5 Tacos
Service - 3.0 Tacos
Overall Experience - 3.0 Tacos
Likelihood to Return - 3.0 Tacos
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