The Serious Eats Guide to Taco Styles

Check out this quick guide to tacos!

The Great Fish Taco Debate

Grilled or fried? Join the debate at Epicurious!

Creamy Crunchy Cha Cha Chow!

Doh, missed today's special taco platter: beer battered fish taco with creamy homemade guacamole and red cabbage slaw. Looks yum! Please repeat next Wednesday at your Barnes stop Cha Cha Chow! Must try! :)

Fish tacos in the Big Apple

I recently returned from a most lovely long weekend in New York City. In planning for my trip I had included Empellón's soft shell crab tacos in my culinary itinerary (in addition to amazing chocolate almond croissants at Ceci-Cela and fabulous pumpernickel bagels at Ess-a-bagel - lest you think I only enjoy fish tacos) after having read a most stellar review of them. However, I neglected to find out that they are only open for dinner and were booked into at least the following week. Oops.

Thankfully I was steered in a different fishy direction and headed to Hecho en Dumbo. The place started as a pop-up in 2007 operating several nights a week out of a local cafe in Dumbo, Brooklyn (so no, it's not named after a famous flying elephant) before moving across the river to the East Village and opening a restaurant in 2010. The decor is tasteful and spare in its industrial-chic vibe consisting of exposed brick walls and a wood-plank ceiling complete with steel air ducts. Matching the contemporary Mexican atmosphere, the food is appropriately urbane. The restaurant specializes in antojitos, otherwise known as small plates, so expect dainty portions and inventive cuisine.

The $11 Tacos el Alcalde on the menu sounded pretty amazing - a mélange of smoked sable fish, braised Spanish octopus, and fresh Gulf Shrimp, folded into a trio of flour tortillas with red and yellow pepper, tomato, red onion, queso fresco, and garnished with crisp fried Fish Chicharrón.  The three bite-sized tacos came fully stuffed with fishy goodness. They were amazingly flavored and juicy and had lots of spicy, smokey Spanish flavors. They were even better once you topped them with any of the accompaniments - a spicy red tomato salsa, a green tomatillo salsa, or pico de gallo. As for the house made tortillas, they were springy and perfectly salted. The only thing that was missing for me was a creamy sauce to hold the mélange together.

So if your travels take you to New York City, do check this place out. And be sure to sample other goodies on the menu, such as the chile relleno de atun and tostadas de ceviche, both of which were mouth wateringly delicious. The cocktails list definitely merits sampling as well, with only boutique tequilas on the menu. At $10+ each, the margaritas are a bit pricey, but they go down oh so smoothly without the gross sourness typical of cheaper swill. My fresh grapefruit and Cazadores tequila Paloma ($12) was both refreshing and potent.

354 Bowery

New York, NY 10012

(212) 937-4245

http://hechoendumbo.com/

4.5 out of 5 fishies.

This fish taco blogger braves suburbia - Salina's Mexican Cafe

Since the beginning of this little fish taco blog I've been hearing great things about a place way out in the county. It is called Salina's Mexican Cafe and it's located in a strip mall way out in Chesterfield. We tried to make it out there a few months back, but city slickers that we are, we completely neglected to realize that for people in the county Sunday means Closed. We left feeling foolish and hungry, and the really bad fish tacos we eventually found nearby (in county terms) were little consolation. This time we ventured out on a Friday expecting some excellent grub. For $10.50 you get your choice of either two tilapia or two fried cod fish tacos. Now I say either, because when I first asked to have one of each I was told that was not a possibility. Even though my fishy friend asked for the same (bringing the combined order to two of each fish) so that all we needed was a little switcharoo between our plates. Not a difficult concept, right? Eventually, they were able to figure that out and accommodate us. But if it's just you eating fish tacos, be prepared to choose one kind of fish. The tacos come in house made flour tortillas and are topped with cabbage, carrots, a house made tart ranch dressing mixed with a bit of spicy house made salsa and sprinkled with a little bit of cheese. On the side is a healthy serving of rice and your choice of refried or black beans. This is what I would call a pretty traditional fish taco, outside of the pinkish tone to the sauce. The tilapia was nice but could have used some seasoning, so I would definitely suggest going with the fried cod, which had a nice and crisp batter, with a lovely touch of saltiness to it. The addition of carrots to the cabbage was a welcome touch. The sauce was good and had some tang and spice to it, but it certainly did not make the fish tacos as outstanding as advertised. My watered down simple syrup saccharine sweet margarita did not help matters. Nor did the service, between the difficulty of being served both kinds of fish tacos and the weird sensation of eating in someone's kitchen. So all in all, these fish tacos were good - but certainly not so good that you should brave however many miles of suburbia to give them a try.

Salina's Mexican Café
20 Clarkson-Wilson Centre
Chesterfield, Mo
(636) 530-9010

3.5 out of 5 fishies.

 

Another one to add to the to-make-at-home-list :)

So need to try a fishy version of these. Yum!

Las Palmas - come for the tacos, stay for the karaoke

Las Palmas is located on Maplewood's Manchester strip. This little hole in the wall place has a colorful and lively decor which was much appreciated on what was yet another gray day in the Lou. Also charming was the friendly staff, which was quick to bring out a basket of complimentary chips and salsa (that had an interesting creamy texture) and take our drink orders. The fish tacos here are a steal - $10.50 for three tacos plated up with a generous heap of cilantro rice and baked beans. Each taco comes with two pieces of battered and fried tilapia, topped with iceberg lettuce, pico de gallo, a spicy chipotle mayonnaise sauce and an assortment of cheeses sprinkled on top. All of this goodness is barely contained in the flour tortilla, which makes for quite a mess once you take that first bite. The perfect flavor and texture of the fish and the spicy kick of the sauce make the mess all worth it though. The tasty margaritas are as big as my head and the tequila selection is quite impressive for a little place. Be sure to check Las Palmas out on a Wednesday night when the PBR clock on the wall sets the rhythm and the locale fills up with hipsters in search of karaoke.

7356 Manchester Rd.
Maplewood, MO
(314) 645-3359

4.5 out of 5 fishies.