Entries tagged with 'Mexican'
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[Photograph: Michael Nagrant] Rabid culinary celebrity worshippers probably know by now that Top Chef Masters winner and Mexican food savant Rick Bayless just unveiled another jewel in his tasty empire, Xoco, a contemporary expression of Mexican street food here in Chicago. The two times I tried to visit, the hour or so long line on opening week was spilling out on to Clark street in front of his other sister restaurants, Frontera Grill and Topolobampo. Though there's no doubt that Bayless' chili spiced hot chocolate, fresh churros, tortas, and caldos made from responsibly raised ingredients from local farms will be a welcome addition to the other goodies he's brought this town, I didn't really want to wait an hour for...
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[Photographs: Nick Kindelsperger] La Pasadita 1141 N. Ashland Avenue, Chicago IL 60622 (map); 773-278-0384 The Short Order: Oddly beefy grilled steak tacos. Want Fries with That? No sides are needed. Save room for tacos. Want Ketchup? Just bottles and bottles of bright and spicy tomatillo salsa. Let's get right to the reason I've eaten here twice in the past week. La Pasadita serves carne asada (steak) tacos that are gorgeously browned on a hot grill, chopped up into little bits, and stuffed into corn tortillas. They are then topped with a sprinkling of onions and cilantro, and squeeze bottles of tomatillo salsa are available for a little heat. That's it. No syrupy margaritas served in medieval chalice-sized cups. Just...
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[Photograph: Michael Nagrant] I like a steak taco that doesn't look like it’s been hacked to death by Edward Scissorhands. But, rather than cutting skirt steak nicely across the grain in reasonably sized slivers, most of the Chicago taquerias go all samurai and chop their taco meat into a pile of tiny fleshy bits. If you're lucky, you'll get those bits fresh (as is the case at Tio Luis and Taqueria El Asadero—my current favorites), but it's more likely you'll get them shoveled off from a steaming pile in the corner of the grill and re-griddled to a jerky dryness. Not so at Carbon (pronounced car-bone, as in what it might sound like if automobiles had sex), where the...
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Note: Hawk Krall is a Philadelphia-based illustrator who will be chiming in with his hot dog wisdom and original artwork on a regular basis. Take it away, Hawk! Past Weeks' Dogs Flo's Hot Dogs, Cape Neddick, Maine The Philly Combo The Tijuana Dog—aka the Mexican Hot Dog, Sonora Dog, Border Dog, or Danger Dog—seems to be popping up everywhere these days, even on the East Coast. These bacon-wrapped beauties have actually been sold by Mexican street vendors since the 1950's and slowly made their way across the border to California and Arizona. Tijuana dogs are as versatile as tacos, the only rule being that the dog is wrapped in bacon and cooked on a flat grill or deep fried, and...
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California Taco Trucks has a roundup of links showing how the CalbiBBQ truck has copied the Kogi taco truck from logo and menu right down to its Twitter marketing strategy. Chicanery or just a happy case of "more Korean tacos for everyone"? A very interesting post from the Kogi team gives further insight....
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Cinco de Mayo is here—your favorite excuse to blend a weekday pitcher of margaritas. Need some last-minute ideas for your party tonight? Here are some Mexican (or at least Mexican-inspired) crowd-pleasers. Snacks Stuffed Poblanos with Black Beans and Cheese Chilaquiles Rojos Chorizo, Onion, and Poblano Quesadillas Crusty Tortas with Black Beans and Chorizo Dips Chipotle and Tomatillo Salsa Chipotle-Bacon Salsa Green Papaya Salsa Mango Pomegranate Guacamole Classic Guacamole Tacos Baja-Style Tempura Fish Tacos Turkey Tacos with Mole Ground Beef Tacos with Guajillo Chiles Tacos Al Pastor with Roasted Pineapple-Habanero Chile Salsa...
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Good Food is a radio show on KCRW hosted by Evan Kleiman which just launched an online video series. In the first episode, Kleiman looks at Los Angeles taco trucks—the emblematic foldable food of the city. She starts at El Pique in Highland Park for some al pastor, the gold standard for tacos on wheels, but needs a radish palette cleanser before heading to Venice Beach for kimchi quesadillas, short rib tacos, and other Korean-Mexican fusion at the Kogi truck. "Taco truck culture is about being part food critique and part political activist with just a little bit of hungry thrown in." The video, after the jump....
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Editor's note: We continue our Kogi BBQ Taco Truck coverage with this insider's look from Kogi team member Alice Shin. You already know that a day on the Kogi truck is a long one, but Alice dissects the day even further, revealing the good and the bad. Photograph from Eric Shin on Flickr After adopting a 4-star chef into the family and renting out a humble little truck, we’ve been on the road in search of bellies hungry for our K-town homage to Mexican taco trucks. Here are some of the things I learned along the way. Fasten Your Seatbelts Riding around at 55 mph in a creaking, hulking Korean taco truck feels a lot like surfing. It’s also the...
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Tacos de pescado. When I want a fish taco, this is where I go. It's an hour's drive from where I live, and I have to rustle up a couple of burly guy friends (no going solo because the area's pretty sketchy and I'm chicken), but this is where I go. Mariscos Sinaloa. In four years of seeking out fish tacos, I've not found a better one than that served up by the folks at Mariscos Sinaloa. Plump, lightly battered, and deliciously moist morsels of fish are served up on a griddled tortilla, adorned with tomatoes, red onions, and jalapeño. Ceviche de pescado. On top of that, they do a mean fish ceviche. Firm to the bite with plenty...
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The Kogi BBQ Taco Truck has a cult following in L.A. We take a peek into the daily routine of Kogi staff member
Mark Manguera to get an idea of what it takes to run the Kogi truck. It's a 9-to-5 job, but not in the way you'd expect.
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