TACO TIME

One Writer’s Favorite Tacos

By Ted Scheffler

Ihave plenty of friends, family and colleagues who are taco snobs. I am not one of them. But I’ve seen fights almost break out during heated discussions of the best taco cart or truck in town, the most “authentic” Mexican street taco, the best birria taco, the best bougie taco, and on and on.

And sure, I have my favorites too. I’m just not as militant about my taco consumption as are some. In fact, I would go as far to say that I’ve never met a taco I didn’t like. Like most Americans, my first taco encounter was a Taco Bell-style taco: a crunchy tortilla shell filled with seasoned ground meat and garnished with shredded yellow cheese, iceberg lettuce, and a few tomato morsels. It was probably taco night at our house featuring tacos from an Old El Paso taco kit that my mom made. Confession: I still love that style of taco and stop by Del Taco once or twice a month to get my crunchy taco fix, perhaps with a Crunchtada on the side.

The first authentic Mexican street tacos I encountered were at a taco cart in Mexico City, and they were a revelation. Those tacos were delicious, but sure didn’t agree with my digestive system. I remember spending most of my first night in the funky Hotel Texas in Mexico City, rushing to the communal bathroom in the hallway. Still, it didn’t scare me off of Mexican street tacos, and I’ve enjoyed them from Nogales to

Oaxaca, and from Puebla and Cabo and Puerto Escondido, not to mention in many cities and towns in the US.

When I was asked to write a story about SLC’s “best” tacos. I thought: Do we really need another taco roundup article? It’s been done plenty. But then, I do have my favorite taco joints; I just wouldn’t be as bold as to say I’ve found “the best” birria taco or “the best” crunchy taco, etc. These are simply some tacos that I love, and that you may come to love, as well. It’s not a scientific survey or sample, but merely my faves.

When I’m looking for the perfect carne asada taco, with tender beef seasoned and cooked just right, I turn to Taco Taco and order a couple of carne asada tacos with a Mexican bottle of Coca-Cola on the side. The 6-inch tacos at Taco Taco are a bit larger than standard street tacos, and while I love the carne asada, my wife is a big fan of the vegan zucchini blossom taco with a savory coconut cream sauce. There’s also a good salsa bar with a selection of salsas, cabbage, jalapeños, onions, cilantro, hot sauces and more. Tacos Don Rafa and Taqueria La Tapatia in Ogden also are carne asada masters.

When we think of tacos, we tend to think of the various fillings — from pollo, lengua and cabeza to fish, shrimp and birria. But the tortilla is oh-so important! It’s like the bread of a sandwich or a pizza’s crust. Which is one reason I love El Cabrito in Rose Park so much. They make their own corn and flour tortillas, and for my money, El Cabrito constructs the best pork carnitas tacos in town, not to mention terrific tortas, gorditas, pozole, menudo and more. By the way, cabrito means kid or billy goat in Spanish, and yes, they have authentic goat meat burritos, tacos and such.

In Park City, I always try to make time to stop by El Chubasco, which was cooking up street-style tacos before just about anybody in SLC or Park City. The carnitas and shredded beef tacos are my favorites at El Chubasco. But no matter what you order, you’ll have access to the best Utah salsa bar I know of, with some 15 different homemade salsas ranging from ranchera, morita, and serrano frito, to mango & manzano, arbol y aceite, habanero, cilantro crema, escabeche, and many more. I also love the carnitas tacos at Lola and Santo Taco in SLC, and Tacos Blanquita in Layton.

Taqueria 27 was the first Utah taqueria to jump on the bougie taco train (aka bourgeois tacos), a trend which now seems more the norm than not. If you’re not sure what goes into a bougie taco, take a gander at the Taqueria 27 menu where you’ll find tacos filled with roasted beets and grilled pears, house-smoked pork belly, grilled portobello mushrooms with balsamic and gorgonzola, and so on. The bougie taco that hits all the right notes for me is the duck confit taco, made with chipotle-spiked duck confit, roasted corn, squash, peppers, chipotle crema, and addictive crisp leek strings.

I like the fact that Red Iguana doesn’t get too caught up in arguments about authenticity. I mean sure, you can get tacos de pollo and tacos de carne asada and such, made with soft corn tortillas in the traditional Mexican style, but they’re not afraid to also put an American-type taco on the menu, which they call Red Iguana Traditional Tacos.

It’s a plate of three hard-shell tacos filled with a choice of shredded beef or chicken (either is great), garnished a la Taco Bell with shredded lettuce, tomatoes and cheese. Fish lovers like my wife will enjoy Ramon’s Famous Fish Tacos at Red Iguana, in which the fresh fish is grilled, rather than battered and fried.

Barrio SLC gets rave reviews about their Surf & Turf tacos with wagyu steak and grilled garlic butter shrimp.

For a bodacious birria taco, look no further than Los Tapatios Taco Grill, with locations in Taylorsville and Salt Lake City. With a menu that features stewed beef birria in almost every dish, you know these folks from Guadalajara are serious about birria. I love the signature birria crispy taco with housemade consome for dipping. But they also serve up birria-filled tortas, mulitas, quesadillas, burritos, nachos, and even birria ramen. If it’s birria you’re after, Los Tapatios is the place. SLC’s Monarca and Chonchis in Farmington are also great for birria.