One Way Ticket to Flavor Town

Robin Figueroa Pairs Passion and Technique to Make The Daily Station Extraordinary

Now and then, you meet someone with a gift for cooking. How they can turn a handful of ingredients into a delicious meal seems mysterious and wondrous. After all, how can simply applying heat to some meat and vegetables leave them so utterly transformed?

It starts with skill and practice.

Robin Figueroa is a perfect example of how training can refine a cook into a master of the art. Before he started The Daily Station with his wife, Lidia, he spent years honing his skills under renowned chefs at Boston’s TD Garden, Harbor Hotel and Bar Boulud at Mandarin Oriental. In these kitchens, he learned the New England and French cooking styles. Later he would expand his repertoire by traveling to Central America, delving into his heritage and perfecting the traditional techniques of Salvadoran cooking alongside his mother.

What he creates at The Daily Station is a fusion of Mexican and El Salvadoran food, built on the processes he learned in the French discipline.

“If you want to master your culinary path, I think it all starts with French cooking,” said Figueroa. “Because there are no shortcuts. You have to do it right. If you don't, it's not going to come out the way you want it to.”

But in addition to his vast technical expertise, Robin has another special ingredient — passion. When you eat at The Daily Station, you are treated to a meal made with love for the process, and you can taste the difference. It’s why the food truck has developed a cult-like following.

Robin is uncompromising in his approach from start to finish. For him, it always begins with carefully selecting the freshest ingredients and devoting the optimal time to make them right. He’s not interested in shortcuts.

“I let my steak marinate for 24 hours, but I also sear it to lock the flavors in,” said Figueroa. “With other meats, we do a slow braising, which means letting it cook slowly so it will be nice and tender. Our birria takes 12 hours. Our carnitas is six hours. This way, we maximize the flavor. I don’t like to rush it.”

The result is delicious items like tacos, pupusas, and empanadas that you can’t help but devour. If you find yourself standing at the window to order, struggling to choose between loaded fries, loaded nachos or any of their other delectable offerings, Robin will kindly ask you questions and give you a sample of pork or beef to help you decide. Deciding will be the only problem you have at The Daily Station. With so many tempting options, it’s hard to make up your mind. But once you have your first sip of made-from-scratch strawberry horchata or hibiscus tea called jamaica and sink your teeth into your pizza birria or taquitos dorados, you will be swept up in the joy of good food made with love.

The Daily Station at 312 W. South Avenue is open Tuesday through Saturday, 11:00 am to 8:00 pm. You can also follow them on Facebook.