a nice assortment of Austin, TX tacos
Warning: do not click this link if you are hungry.

Despite its legendary status as a benchmark in fine interior Mexican cuisine, Austin American Stateman food critic Mike Sutter was clearly NOT impressed with his recent visit.  He is certainly was aware of over 3 decades of untarnished praise bestowed upon FSM by food writers, much of it from the Stateman itself…but just maybe things have slipped with the newest head chef Alma Alcocer-Thomas.

We weren’t prepared for the room-temperature preparation of the relleno (neither the menu nor the waiter mentioned it). I was disappointed by the chopped tuna filling, which reminded me of canned fish. Even with olives and capers, two Anaheim peppers and a side of heirloom beans, the dish was a washout of soft textures and even softer flavors.

Sutter goes onto to DISS the award winning interior design art collection as “tacky and carnivalesque” and their famous Sunday brunch as “like eating in a storage room”…And don’t get him started on the Angels on Horseback, “a trainwreck of stiff textures and a sour-sea aroma…”

Of course, its not ALL BAD – he does say like 2 nice things, but i think its just to be diplomatic…read for yourself

OK – I will admit that my last visit for Sunday Brunch was not quite as amazing as previous euphoric experiences…and with great new spots like Garrido’s and La Condesa popping up to challenge the throne of Interior Mex – I’d say Fonda better keep their game tight – but that’s as far as i would go – Fonda is still the king to me…until further notice.

cabeza

Ever wondered how to turn a Taco Bell Fail feast into a gourmet dish?  Fancy Fast Food shows you how to make a TacoBellini from a Burrito Supreme…Yes, its still liable to give you giardia, but doesn’t it look fancy?

California Love
ATX Taco Blogger El Mundo de Mando (of Taco Journalism) blogs his Taco Crawl through San Francisco’s Mission district for SFweekly. La Taqueria and Taqueria Pancho Villa both received high marks.  He goes on to weigh the pros & cons of Tacos vs. Burritos…is it even close, Mando?? (SFweekly)

Eat This Lens!
local photographer has some stunning shots from their recent Houston Taco Tour…nice work Marshall.

Houston’s Top 10 Taco Trucks
H-town’s finest mobile tacos – as compiled by the honorable and knowledgable Robb Walsh…El Ultimo (My favorite) comes in at a respectable #3….and the winner is >

Barbacoa 2 ways
Señor Robb Walsh gives us a detailed recipe and history lesson on the all-but-extinct art of Mexican Mutton BBQ, Barbacoa de Borrego…Also, peep Robb’s video tutorial on Backyard Barbacoa, AKA smoked cow head.

> NEW South Austin music venue/taco shop opens this Saturday | Its called Villa’s Music Garden – just north of Hill’s Cafe on S. Congress.  Shout out to our boy Shawn Nelson, who’s on this inaugural bill | event page

> Houston Taco Truck Tour by Camera Phone

> Austin Bloggers take the Houston Taco Tour 2009
Long Point Drive is Houston’s version of South 1st Street. taco Mecca.

> “Show Me Your Taco” is going to Iowa July 6th for a Taco Tour good luck Nelson, but if Davenport is any indication – Iowa tacos pretty much blow cabritos.  Sorry, el Boz.

> Stop Laughing at THIS retarded preacher, or you’re going to Hell

Wall Street Journal, that is…check out this article on gourmet food trucks, a trend that’s sweeping the country and bridging the gap between expensive restaurants and fast food:

Jeff Blank, Owner of Might Cone

Jeff Blank, chef and owner of Hudson’s on the Bend, in Austin, Texas, where the average check is $75, rolled out a lunch truck in March. The truck, called the Mighty Cone, specializes in fried chicken, shrimp and avocado coated with a mixture of almonds, sesame seeds, cornflakes and chili flakes; average checks are under $10. At Hudson’s, revenue is off by 20% to 25% compared with two years ago, Mr. Blank says, but revenues from the truck have made up for those losses and even allowed him to hire extra staff.

Good Stuff and congrats on Blank’s success. TacoTown will always be children of the cone.

]]> http://tacotown.org/2009/06/08/mighty-cone-hits-wall-street/feed/ 1 http://tacotown.org/2009/02/23/cook-to-bang-recipes-to-get-you-laid/ http://tacotown.org/2009/02/23/cook-to-bang-recipes-to-get-you-laid/#comments Mon, 23 Feb 2009 23:56:36 +0000 Cabeza De Taco http://tacotown.org/?p=878

eat this...now eat this...

Cooking for your date can get you laid (Unless you’re this douche).  Think about it- you’ve already got her “back to your place”.  Plus, its easier on the wallet and, thanks to the interwebs, finding decent recipes is not an issue. peep this:

www.cooktobang.com – simple, effective methods for of enjoying the two greatest pleasures, food and sex.

So, learn to cook…or get used to doggy bags & blue balls.  Cook to Bang has plenty of Taco Town friendly recipes that should also assist in panty droppin’.  see below >

• mo’ lays chicken mole
• oh god don’t stop! jalapeno poppers
• fishy pink tacos
  
• simple sexy salsa
• roasted tomatillos para mis amigos
  
• horizontal mambo mango salsa
• senorita lupita’s cactus fajitas
• break you off something burrito
• huevos grande rancheros

Carnitas taco - fresh guacamole, salsa, thick corn tortilla

Roadfood Digest says its this one from Los 5 Puntos on East Cesar Chavez

Great Taco Hunt seems to agree

cabeza

Al (of focus) Pastor Taco

Fuego’s was started up by a family of ex-patriate californians. Cabeza and I ate there about a year ago, and remember the place having a promising menu..but it was understaffed and seemed to be on a shoe-string budget.  I just checked out some of the recent reviews on Chowhound, and Fuego’s looks to be finding its groove. The fish tacos are a consensus highlight…We’ll be back for a followup visit soon. Oh yeah, and its BYOB and right next to a liquor store.. They are at a strange location.. on lamar, just south of 183..It takes a u-turn to get there if you’re coming from the south.. more reviews on yelp

Fuego’s
Authentic Mexican & California Cuisine
7600 North Lamar Blvd.
Austin, TX 78752
512-524-1164

Our good friend Elizabeth AKA The Wandering Teacher has been wandering (and blogging) her way “Around the World” since August…Right now she’s partying with the soccer hooligans in Brazil, but already she’s seen the ancient ruins of Tikal, climbed volcanos near Antigua, taught Kindergarten in Nicaragua, and of course she’s eaten tacos in Honduras.

You never really know what you are going to get when you order food anywhere while you are traveling. There is a lot lost in translation. When you are hungry, you will eat just about anything… A lot of my orders is pointing & praying. I have broadened my horizons tremendously as I travel. (Crazy to think that I didn’t eat EGGS till I went to Spain.)

In Central America I have learned that “enchiladas” are actually “tacos” and vice-versa. This meal was in Tegucigalpa, Honduras and cost me $1.50 (The refresco’s are almost more expensive than the actual meals.) In general the street food has been delicious & super cheap. One of the best parts of this meal is we traveled back in time to some cheesy 80s tunes because the cafe played VH1 classics! (I have been surprised how many cheesy 80′s love ballads are still played here in Central America.)

We are very spoiled with homemade salsa back home. The “hot sauce” has been less than par throughout Central America. It comes in a squirt bottles and always super runny.  Read the rest here…

Look for an official Taco Town review from The Wandering Teacher soon…

\cabeza

Lisa Fain of the Homesick Texan blog gives an entertaining and informative recap of her experience as a preliminary judge for the 2008 Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival.  There’s even a bonus tomatillo salsa recipe at the end of her post..

There were about 30 of us gathered around the table, and as there were over 1,000 salsas for us to work our way through, we didn’t try each one. Instead, each little group seated in the immediate vicinity would go through a stack of salsas with three votes of yes meaning the sauce moved on to the next round to be judged by local food celebrities, and three votes of no meaning that salsa was out of competition. Read the Full Post >

From ViceLand (also check out the DOs & DON’Ts while you’re there)

¡AY CARAMBA!
Mexican Food in London Mostly Tastes Like Sewage.

This we know because we grabbed a Mexican who we found doing capoeira in a park with a bunch of Brazilians and dragged her around three of what purported to be London’s best Mexican takeaway joints. Turns out that if they were trying to peddle their burritos back home, they’d be hounded out quicker than the spring break kids being chased out of Tijuana by the warring Sinaloa and Gulf drug gangs. read on>

cabeza

while browsing Roadfood.com the other day, I stumbled upon our namesake in restaurant form – a taco destination hidden in the unlikely state of Nebraska. Taco Town, the restaurant, claims that is the “tac-0 the town” and roadfood critic Michael Stern agreed. Looks like an OK joint, respect. [full review here]

The Austinist has posted a review of their favorite ATX vegitarian breakfast tacos.. with the infamous Dirty Sanchez from Torchy’s landing at the top of the pile..heres an interesting comment from 1 reader:

Speaking of, not to be all nit-picky, but vegetarians can’t eat egg. Egg is meat. Egg is pre-animal, not animal lactate. Egg is meat for the same reason aborted fetuses aren’t breast milk and semen isn’t yogurt. Sorry to be all gross, but eggs are gross.

well put. but  let me add, soyrizo is excrement.

The folks at Apartment Food Hobos have reviewed the gorditas at the little Taco truck on Airport called La Canaria. hard to miss- its bright yellow. Anyway- this gordita looks mighty tasty. Check it out>

Cabeza

SAZON
1816 S Lamar Blvd
Austin, TX 78704 | (512) 326-4395
official website

Taco Town hasn’t tried Sazon (yet), but the other bloggers have and they’re weighing in- Metroblogging Austin gives a quick but informative review of this newish South Lamar joint. They love the mole and the margaritas. Full review here >

for even more opinions try the Yelp entry for Sazon

UPDATE: We finally tried Sazon for lunch the other day: i had the  Pollo En Pipian: a tender chicken leg, smothered in a greenish pumpkin seed sauce, served with rice and fresh corn tortillas.  The dish was very interesting, though i probably would not order it again.  Maybe just not my bag.  I did eat the whole thing though.  The service was outstanding and the atmosphere was nice too.  Return trip is needed for the full review, but it looks very good so far. – Cabeza

Metroblogging Austin gets a quickie review in of Jorge’s..they were spurred by an extensive review done by the Austin Chronicle….all good, but if you want an account thats “from da streets”.. you best check out Taco Town’s reviews #1 and #2

dont forget the brisket taco review we did as well..  tacotown on the beat.. we got your back.

The great Robb Walsh recently wrapped up a mini-series of Houstoned blog reviews on Houston taco trucks entitled the Taco Truck Gourmet.

Need credentials? Robb’s the founder of the Austin Chronicle Hot Sauce Festival, Lead Food Critic for The Houston Press and author of several books including The Tex-Mex Cookbook. If you thought taco journalism was a relatively safe form of reporting- think again. The seedy, nomadic and oft-times unsanitary world of taco trucks has claimed the bowels of more than one taco explorer. Mystery meats abound- Robb even tried sweetbread tacos for Christ’s sake…so move over Geraldo, there’s a new face on the front lines of batlleground taco journalism. Taco Town salutes you Robb Walsh!

Below: highlights from Robb’s blog mini-series, Taco Truck Gourmet:

Taqueria Tacambaro [2520 Airline Drive - behind Canino Produce]
The sweetbreads were white and just barely cooked through. They had a delightfully mild flavor and a lovely fluffy texture that might remind you of the filling of a German veal sausage, like bratwurst or weisswurst. The tartness of the lime juice and sweetness of the onion were beautiful complements. But it was the addition of that dark brown salsa that made me close my eyes and sigh. Full Post…

El Mapache III [Renwick Dr & Gulfton St]
The barbacoa taco was by far the best –a huge mound of hot cheek meat nicely shredded and very moist. I was offered my choice of flour or corn tortillas, which is pretty unusual. I went for corn. The salsa was a thick and creamy green concoction and it packed a major kick. The truck also sells roast chickens and the beans are free on the weekend. Full Post…

more after the fold…

Tacos Y Mujeres [13502 Almeda - parking lot of Mi Ranchito]
While I was standing there, a well-lit patron stumbled out of the front door of Mi Ranchito and ordered a taco. There is a sign by the door that says “Mujeres! Mujeres! Mujeres!” I asked him what went on inside. He offered a particularly succinct summary of a taxi dance bar, “You go in there with $200 in your wallet and you meet all these 23- and 24-year-old girls, and then you come out broke,” he said in Spanish. Luckily, he saved enough to buy a taco. Full Post…

El Ultimo Taco
I sampled three egg tacos, one with machacado, one with nopalitos and one with chorizo. The flour tortillas were hand made and all three tacos were generously stuffed. They all tasted great, but the chorizo was truly exceptional. And the thick green salsa served on the side was super hot. Highly recommended for your proximo desayuno!

Jarro Cafe Taco Truck [1521 Gessner]
Go get an Angus sirloin taco at the Jarro taco trailer, slather it with your choice of five awesome salsas, smother it with pickled onions, and tell me whether or not this is the best taco truck in the city. If you’re still undecided after the steak taco, try a taco al pastor with a little pineapple, or a cochinta piblil taco with purple onion salsa. Full Post…

Taco War on Caroline
Jesse’s Taqueria excelled in the chicken taco genre. And they had a copy machine too, in case you needed to duplicate some documents while you ate lunch. Full Post…

http://blogs.houstonpress.com/houstoned/2007/01/taco_war_on_caroline.php

Nice Asados
El Norteno is the name of the Long Point roasted chicken dynasty. And “pollo asado estilo Monterrey” is their specialty. Full Post…

Houston is BIG.  And Cabeza has but one stomach.  I was happy to find out some other Houston blogs have joined the taco review party.  Shit, the more the merrier.  The Houstonist Bites gives a berry favorable review to this unassuming Heights joint.

Chilosos has six varieties of breakfast tacos, all of which are $1.35 (add $0.30 for additional toppings). As we walked up to the counter to place our order, we were greeted with a smile and could see the fresh tacos being prepared in the background. We opted for one bacon, egg, and cheese (for comparison purposes) and one chorizo, egg, cheese and guacamole. Although there were no chips and salsa to munch on while we waited, we did enjoy the checking out the house’s decor…Full Review>

Another blog called Food In Houston skews their review of Chilosos to the lunch fare with equal enthusiasm. they say:

The breakfast tacos are good, but my favorites are two lunch tacos: carne guisada and puerco en salsa verde. Carne guisada is a stew of beef tips in gravy. Chilosos’ version does not have quite as much cumin as my favorite carne guisada recipes, but it is far above average. Even better is the puerco en salsa verde, chunks of pork in a mild green salsa. This thick, yummy salsa is not as spicy as I might expect, but it is full of flavor. Chilosos also makes a good chicken fajita taco, which is greatly improved by a liberal dousing of the salsa verde. Although the default tortillas are flour, I prefer the corn tortillas which are thick and taste homemade…Full Review>

Chilosos Taco House
701 E 20th St
713.868.2273
Mon.-Sat. 7am – 4pm