Today I get the honor of talking to you about tacos, specifically a taco joint, literally The Taco Joint in Dallas. I grew up in a taco loving family and thankfully, I am still in a taco loving family with a wife that also makes and loves tacos. I am almost on a quest to find the best tacos around. I am an avid breakfast taco lover and Rachel has thankfully grown into one as well, not to mention she can make a mean taco. Every weekend growing up our family would have some type of breakfast tacos either from a taqueria or homemade. During the week, we probably had some type of taco night every couple of weeks, so either way, I like to think of myself as a authority on the subject.
Over the past few years these taco focused dining establishments have gained in popularity, which is great for a taco lover such as myself. So when you are going to open up a place and pretty much focus on a certain food group: (1) it better be good (2) if you are going to call it “X” joint (i.e. burger joint, pizza joint, bbq joint, etc.), not only is the confidence in your food out of control, but the food has to be better than just good, it has to be dynamite. You see, to call yourself a taco joint, or BBQ joint, or burger joint, that speaks volumes about your establishment; it means at least 90% of the food served is just that type of food and if you are hungry for something else, good luck because you are in the wrong place. If you go to a steak place and order the chicken, then we probably need to talk (honest moment here: I go to a Tex-Mex place and order the chicken fried steak so I am a hypocrite. Admitting is the first step I guess).
Why yes Willie Nelson, I will share a taco with you
The Taco Joint backs up their name by serving almost entirely tacos. If it isn’t a taco, it probably comes with a tortilla or is stuffed inside a tortilla. The Taco Joint has three locations in and around Dallas but the one on Peak near Deep Ellum is the “Original Gangsta.” But beware, they are only open until 2p M-Sa. The Lakewood and Richardson locations are open until 9 or 10p, and these locations offer breakfast all day (major bonus points!). This is especially important since The Taco Joint is known for their breakfast tacos. The Taco Joint specializes is making a darn good taco that is fresh, homemade and of good quality all at a reasonable price.
Grading the Taco Joint on our Tex-Mex grading scale, let us look at the each category now (Please note, this scoring focuses on the Peak location unless otherwise noted):
Atmosphere: 4. The Taco Joint can get extremely busy during breakfast and lunch. You order at the counter where there is generally a line, but it moves pretty fast. It is definitely family friendly but you will probably find more families at the other locations. This location mainly caters to the business workers, the college students, and the hospital staff. (The Lakewood location is more for the yuppies, so if you want to observe them in their natural habitat, check it out! ) With a packed restaurant that seats around 100 people, it can get noisy so be prepared to ask the person with you to repeat themselves several times. You may even find yourself sharing a table with a fellow patron, but this is Texas, strike up a friendly conversation. Even though they claim to be Tex-Mex, it doesn’t feel like a normal Tex-Mex place; honestly it feels more like a place in Austin that has a cool and unique vibe to it.
Chips & Salsa: 3 The Taco Joint offers several salsas to put on your tacos or dishes. The salsa rojo was ok and had a decent texture and taste to it. It was more on the mild side for me and didn’t have much spice/heat to it. Some feel like it may have a touch of Tabasco sauce in it that can be off-putting. The tomatillo sauce was also very good and paired well with different tacos. I was surprised it didn’t have more heat to it than it did, as it was also on the mild side. For an added pleasure, they also offer jalapeno ranch. So here is the deal, if you are a traditionalist/purist, you will not put anything ranch on a taco. That is a No-No. I will allow maybe a bite or two to see what it is all about, but in general don’t ruin a good taco with ranch, even if it does have jalapeno in it; in my opinion, the jalapeno ranch salsa was good and I could see it working with some tacos, but its not for me. The Taco Joint does a great job pairing their tacos and the salsas to enhance the flavors of them both.The chips on the other hand are too thin and often break. I didn’t find them to have much salt on them. That was a downside for me.
Margarita: N/A If you are looking for a margarita or beer option, visit the other locations. The Peak location does not offer alcohol.
Queso: 3 Those who know me, know I love queso. I am not going to lie, I am pretty critical of queso so I don’t give out 5’s that much. A lot of people seem to like The Taco Joint’s queso and they do offer a queso called “the Disaster,” which has beef, guacamole, and pico de gallo mixed in; as for me, the queso was average. I found myself wanting to give this a better score but I wasn’t in love with it. I liked the queso and found myself going back for more and more so it is addicting, but it isn’t anything special. It is more on the “thinner” side as quesos go, meaning that it isn’t a thick, coagulated glob of cheese that you can plaster a wall with, but it isn’t thin like a salsa. I don’t have a big problem with a “runnier” queso, but some like theirs thicker. As long as it sticks to the chip and coats it, that is all i need. The taste was decent. It had a lot of tomatoes and pepper and the spice level was pretty mild. It does cost about $5, but you get a healthy portion and is great for sharing. I would probably get it again but I would rather use the $5 to get an extra taco or two.
Tacos: 4 Finally, the good stuff! The fried fish fritter taco is very good–it is fish, cabbage, and a tortilla, so there isn’t much too it, but it paired with a nice creamy salsa. I was a little surprised the salsa is not with the rest of the filling, but this does allow for portion control; be sure to add enough of the salsa, otherwise the taste is somewhat dry. The spicy fried chicken tacos are also a delicious joy; it does offer a bit of spice but it isn’t so overpowering that you find yourself drinking extra to cover the spice. The chicken is well-fried yet still juicy. The taco itself is served dry but paired with the same creamy sauce as the fish, so use accordingly. The spicy pork taco was absolutely wonderful. The pork was juicy, tender, and well seasoned; it had definitely been slow roasted. The taco is served with pico and jack cheese. It pairs well with the tomatillo salsa but I don’t think a sauce/salsa is needed. I also had a chorizo taco with potato and egg and this brought back so many good memories for me (this is my favorite combo and always recommend it). The chorizo was fantastic and just like it should be: with some spice, and runny with all those juices and fat (you know, those juices that just go all over your hands and mouth and find their way onto your clothes, perfect!). If you can get their chorizo, try it, as it will speak well of The Taco Joint. Overall, the meat may not be as seasoned as one would like, but with the addition of the sauce/salsa the flavors really come through; be warned that you are not going to find a ton of ingredients in these tacos, The Taco Joint is really all about letting the taco, the meat, and other ingredients speak for themselves.
Enchiladas: N/A The Taco Joint offers them, but this is a taco place, get the tacos.
Service: 5 Those taking the orders and the staff were very nice and helpful. I have had good experiences even when they have been busy. The kitchen does a great job of getting the orders out as fast as possible.
Other notable items: They do offer traditional Tex-Mex dishes like migas or chilaquiles, which are good options if for some reason you don’t want a taco. The migas are even offered in taco format which is preferable. The Peak location offers several specials throughout the week, but one special to definitely try is the picoso burrito on Mondays. Parking at this location is especially difficult, so good luck finding a spot, but many patrons park along the street (parking is not an issue at the Lakewood location). There are multiple vegetarian (including the re-fried beans) and gluten free options so major bonus points for those with different dietary concerns. The prices are average for a taco place nowadays; generally I’d say it is less expensive ($3-5/taco) and while there are not as many menu options, it is a wonderful alternative and you get a really good taco. I like the menu, some may say it is simple with not many options, but to me they are trying to focus on doing things right; in my opinion they just make good tacos and provide great service.
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Disclaimer: for the Texans reading this, soda is synonymous with “pop” or “coke”; I know the exact terminology is debateable, but since we were in the North and it is associated with a label, we’re going to go with the local opinion on the matter.
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