palindrome

Our buddy Phil gets the ultimate tacotown stamp of approval™ for his costume at Phish’s Festival 8…TACOCAT!!

here’s the original, in case you live in a cave.

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Blackened Chicken and Cream Cheese wrapped in a flour tortilla, then deep fried and covered with queso

I recently had the pleasure of making it back to my hometown of Orlando, FL for the July 4th weekend and was able to hit up an old school Mexican joint that we used to frequent in high school. The place is called PR’s Taco Palace and it definitely was, and still is, a nice little hole in the wall restaurant. All the original wood and smells therein still remain embedded.

Now PR’s as far as I can recall, was always thought of for its “train track tequila” deals. To explain… PR’s was built about 50 feet from the tracks that run through Winter Park. Back in the day when the train used to come screeching by, they would come around with a cart of tequila shots for FREE. Of course it was, and still is, Jose Cuervo… which I refuse to touch any more, period. Except now, they’re not free any more, just discounted. So this time when the train came by while we were there, I just opted for Patron just to keep with the tradition of at least shooting some kind of agave booze.

As for the food at PR’s, not amazing, but traditionally tasty none the less. I always roll with their favored gut bomb called the “Fundido”. The Fundido is simply blackened chicken and cream cheese wrapped in a flour tortilla, then deep-fried and topped with queso. So as you can imagine this thing is amazing for the sole reason that it contains the words “cream cheese, queso, and fried”. I followed suit of my good buddy and only got the mini-Fundido as the regular sized one is something that would have created leftovers that woulda sat in my buddies car for the entire rest of the evening while we were at the bars. Not to mention I was with good friends that I hadn’t seen in a while and the dinner turned more into a tequila-thon than a food event.

I would write more about what everyone else at the table had but they didn’t speak to highly of their dishes so Im going to just tell you to get the damn Fundido and like it.

Bernout~

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

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Taco Town presents another transmission from South America courtesy of our friend Elizabeth, aka the Wandering Teacher

One of the best birthday presents I have ever received was a surprise queso & Dr. Pepper feast from my travel buddy Monica. After all, I have been 4 months sin real “TEX-MEX.” Monica came out singing happy birthday with queso, tostido chips, Dr. Pepper, & Beer. What more could a traveler want, but to have a little taste of home with a close friend to share it with?

starter soup

After 4 months, I am able to try just about anything. And if I do not finish my plate, you know it is bad…. Some highlights have been Brazilian all you can eat BBQ, creamy, gooey, carmely, Dulce De Leche in Argentina, Lots of delicious tea, & EMPINADAS!

pasta win

Now I am in Peru, and it is past pointing and praying for the food you want. There are so many mom & popshops everywhere. Most of the time you show up, sit down, and wait for whatever deliciousness the waiter brings you. If you are a vegetarian, you better speak quickly because just about everything comes with meat.

This particular meal I had arrived to Cusco, Peru after a 4 day bus journey. I hadn’t really eaten real food in a couple days and didn’t know what planet I was on. I saw a great looking dive restaurant and was seated immediately.

In Peru you get warm soup with every meal as a starter. Delicious. Next the waiter asked me if I wanted chicken or fish. My stomach was in a tender place so I went for the chicken. Solid decision! With that dish he brought me out a refresco that was purple. Do not let the color scare you off, because the homebrewed refrescos are always the best! This particular one was made of corn. The chicken & pasta were marinated so well. In general the people here are so much more resourceful.

I admit my rating system is probably a bit skewed since I had not eaten “real” food in 96ish hours, but the meal was plate scraping good & $1.30. JAAAAAM.

worth the wait!

We stopped by Food Shark at lunch time on new years eve and this funky renovated food truck was hoppin with tourists and townsfolk alike..

My companion and I both ordered from the daily specials menu.. I got the ancho beef chili with salad and a blue sky orange creme soda.. she got the roasted chicken sandwhich with brie and basil pesto on a ciabatta bun with salad and blue sky ginger ale…

We had to wait about 20-30 minutes for the food.. which actually seemed rather quick considering the amount of people (~40) there and the fact that there was 1 dude at the register and 1 lady preparing the food.. Read the rest of this entry »

TacoTown would like to welcome our new contributer-  Nick of Nick’s Adventure’s in Food, coming straight outta Champaign-Urbana, Illinois!  Nick will be helping us in the quest for edible mexican food in the midwest..

Follow her…
Too many times I have doubted Grace over food, her cooking, and her choice of establishments in which we choose to dine in. It seems that every time that I have a great doubt, she proves me very, very wrong. Our latest outing was no exception.

Green Street is a place of hustle and bustle, at least in whatever form you can call such a thing in a Midwestern town. Of course the primary crowd that congregates around Green St. are those who are somehow related to the University of Illinois, students, teachers, staff, construction workers, all types of people from all walks of life. I think this diversity helps to create Green St. into what it is, eateries that range from Chinese to Korean to Pizza to Mexican. Now, I have always been a big fan of Mexican food, and I’ll be the first to admit that I am a stupid gringo when it comes to Mexican food, but I think I have learned enough from books and Mr. Bourdain to understand that the Mexican food I get is usually a very unauthentic cuisine, developed and molded to fit the tastes of Americans. Lot’s of cheese, sauce, covering of flavors, a departure from the real natural taste of foods that most cultures really seem to enjoy. Read the rest of this entry »

We arrived in San Marcos with our bellies empty and not much time to sit down and grub.  The venue we were playing at happened to be right next to this place called Cancun Rob’s.  Personally, it looked right up my alley.. what with all the fishnet, christmas lights, and caribbean decor.  I was sold but Chappy, TacoBlob, and Beako De Gallo were definitely not.  So Beako de Gallo went to hit up some advice from the gas station right next door.  Because you know, the people at gas stations are always so adept at restaurant suggestions.  Well, right away the lady in there told Beako that this Cancun Rob’s place was simply bombastic;  “best fajitas and tacos in town”, she says. Read the rest of this entry »

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

A British man died recently after creating and consuming a “super-hot chili sauce” when a friend challenged him to a “who’s balls are bigger” endurance contest.  Though officials initially suspected Andrew Lee died of a heart attack, a post mortem uncovered no heart problems and an earlier medical examination had found him in perfect health.

Andrew Lee obtained the peppers from his father’s garden to up his sauce’s spice-factor.  Considering the typically mind-numbing blandness of British food, one must wonder from what corner of the planet these chilies originate, and what the dickens they were doing in someone’s English garden in the first place.

Lee’s sister spoke of Andrew’s culinary ambitions, saying, “He always said he wanted to be a chef but didn’t want to start at the bottom.” Perhaps if he had started at the bottom of the spicy spectrum, or even within the intermediate to advanced Austin range, he wouldn’t be ending his start at the bottom of the grave.

What I want to know is, where can I get the recipe?

TacoTown is proud to accept the award for ‘best place to find a decent taco’ in the 2007 Austin Chronicle Best of Austin Awards.  Despite having to share this prestigious honor with rival taco-nauts: taco journalism, we here at tacotown will continue to be trusty sources of taco knowledge.  So if you’re in from out of town, or just stumped on where to go in Austin to find the best taco, burrito, enchilada, torta, or other mexican food dish.. look us up and you’re sure to get the no holds barred report.. and maybe you’ll see some kind of non-related funny video or picture.. who knows? we wont apologize for our taco lifestyle.. its all we know.

Best Way to Find a Decent Taco: TIE: Taco Town, Taco Journalism
(Critics Picks, Food & Drink)
We suspect these guys love tacos more than they love sex. Taco-passionate bloggers fulfill their destiny as pioneers in the quest for the perfect Mexican meal. The search starts in Austin and often ventures far beyond home. From Torchy’s Tacos to Zuzu Handmade Mexican Food, from Brownsville to Seattle, these Austin gustatory guides take it in the gut, sample it all, and report back with their findings to all of our gastronomical delight. So straighten up, taco stands and Mexican restaurants, Taco Town and Taco Journalism are coming to critique your flan and fish tacos and tell it to the world. www.tacotown.org; tacojournalism.com

and for the record.. we make love to tacos…so your point is moot.