La Marqueza Taco Truck

Last week, Chau was talking smack on the Garces Guapos Tacos truck, so perfect timing to come across this real taco truck parked near the Art Museum.


I was on the drive home from a failed pre-memorial day Tomato Pie/Hoagie mission, pretty bummed and hungry (place was closed) but this brightly colored soccer ball and skull covered taco truck saved the day.


The carnitas were delicious and tender and unlike some in these parts pleasantly free of gristle. Although the lettuce and sour cream is less than authentic ( "Lettuce?!?" groans my outraged friend from San Diego, who insists there's "no good Mexican food in Philadelphia") it tasted great as did the orange carnita grease dripping out of the end of the taco mixed with sour cream.


And a complimentary bag of homemade tortilla chips. Awesome.


This place gets my vote for real deal Philadelphia taco truck made by real Mexicans. A notch above Taco Loco, but not quite as good as the unlicensed tamale/taco car that used to park on Moravian street every saturday.

No twitter or internet presence I can find (unless it goes by a different name?) but it was parked on 22nd & the Parkway on the weekend, and word is they set up near Phila Community College (15th and Spring Garden-ish) during the week.

New Prints!

New hot dog prints!!

•Yesterdog
Super cool hot dog place in Grand Rapids, Michigan that's been there since the 70's. No burgers and trying to order a "plain hot dog" might get you kicked out. Big thanks to photographer Mike Donk for tipping me off and sending awesome photos.

• Blackie's
Old School Connecticut hot dog joint, one of many featured in the documentary A Connecticut Hot Dog Tour. Blackie's will also be selling these prints at the restaurant in a few weeks!

• Rolf's Pork Store
Mind blowing traditional German sausage shop in the middle of Albany. Hand made frankfurters, kielbasa, ring bologna, everything smoked in house. Amazing.




• Fricano's Deli
Awesome sandwich spot in Austin, Texas. Great sandwiches and a bunch of signature dogs including Chicago style and the Reuben Dog. They also do specials every once in a while like a pretty damn authentic Venezuelan Dog. The Reuben dog as well as a few of my other prints are available for sale at the Deli itself, thanks guys! My buddy Garrett Morlan has also done some awesome posters for them, which I'm fairly sure are also available to purchase.

All of these and more are available at hawkkrall.net.


•Taco Prints
Also - these limited edition prints are only available at LATACO.COM! Only a few left!
lataco.bigcartel.com

Los Gallos

Tipped off by some friends, we stopped here on the way to the Phillies game this weekend. A few tables in the back of a Mexican grocery that opened recently. Clean place, great service, and some of the best authentic tacos I've had in south philly.


Super affordable at 5.50 for three, plain or with cheese (soft mexican white cheese - no tex-mex cheddar nonsense) with the red and creamy (avocados?) green salsa on the side and a roasted jalapeno.


We also tried the huitlacoche quesadilla which was terrific. Great place to check out the "mexican truffle" without breaking the bank. If you want to spend the big bucks, for 10 dollars you can get a bit more exotic with tacos a la plancha with your choice of meats including smoked pork and short ribs, cactus and avacado on the side.

They do tortas as well which I'll have to check out soon. If this place served beer it would be perfect, although this pineapple cider was awesome.



Los Gallos
10th & Wolf
Philadelphia

Mexico on the Square

Tim had invited me to check out the University of the Arts Senior Illustration Show, which made me feel awkward, but was also inspiring. It also made me feel old because no one puts up originals anymore, its all computer compiled and printed out.

Tim told me we should get tacos around the corner on 15th and Pine. Hawk had tipped Tim off about this new taco place from the same people who owned the Savoy Flower shop ( Hawk you can correct me if I'm wrong)

The tacos were delicious, so were the sopes. My favorite the Al Pastor was spicy and the hidden pineapples were cooked down so they were extra sweet. The potato flautas were good, but I like my potato in the flautas to be more mashed inside, this was kind of like a potato wedge wrapped and fried. The kicker that made this place super awesome, was the green salsa. It was really thick and creamy. The cook asked us how our food was and we said it was awesome, and I inquired about the creamy green salsa.

He said "When I blend the salsa, not all Mexican people do it, but I add avocado so its more like guacamole."

Confirmed. Awesome.

Mexico on the Square
1511 Pine Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 732-1907

East Oakland/ Fruitvale/ 4 Caminos

We went to visit my old printmaking professor and good friend Jack Ford. We kind of surprised Jack before he had lunch, so we tagged along for his lunch routine. Which is a quick drive to East Oakland, to 4 Caminos, where he get's the "Jack Special". Or as the waitresses who know him well, call him, "Hack" or "Hackie!". The Jack Special turns out to be what he get's for lunch quite often, just one shrimp taco and one carnitas taco. The tortillas are fresh handmade corn tortillas which were fluffy and the shrimp was only dressed in limes onions and cilantro. It was amazing. The carnitas were salty and had a few crunchy bits thrown in with the soft parts. They came with a side of fresh spicy pickled vegetables.

Super Awesome, just like Jack.





4 Caminos
3800 San Leandro St
(between 38th Ave & 39th Ave)
Oakland, CA 94601
(510) 533-4441

Sunset Park 4am Tacos

Used to be middle eastern but now Mexican bodega with a full kitchen behind the counter. Super weird hours they open 7pm until 5 or 6 in the morning. Great for late night tacos after you stumble out of sketchy half empty Dominican bar where the waitress is giving a lap dance in the corner while a 60 year old guy sings karaoke (sorry no photos of that one).


Sunset Park is south, far far away from the hipster mess of Williamsburg and vicinity. If you like food, it's pretty amazing, with Sichuan, Malaysian, Ecuadorian, Mexican... sandwich shops, noodle stands, groceries and street vendors for 10 blocks in every direction. Sort of overwhelming. Nafa's 3901 deli grocery is by no means the best tacos in the neighborhood, just fresh simple and delicious. They were out of tongue so we just went for some beef tacos.


Good tamales too, although the torta was kind of boring and tasted like a mcdonald's chicken sandwich. Apparently the locals stick with the tacos which my friends told me to do but I just can't help myself. Place was packed at 4 am so you know it's the real deal. And a drunk guy just standing in the corner yelling at the TV.

3901 Deli Grocery
7th Ave & 39th St. Brooklyn

enjoy
•Tamale Underground
•El Jorocha
•Savoy Flower Shop Tacos

tacos at savoy flower shop

I've been noticing for at least 6 months the Savoy Deli & Produce Market on 18th st. below Rittenhouse square has had a board out advertising "mexican tacos, tortas, burritos, hoagies".

Now I stopped there once and uh.. it was sort of scary. The produce was in pretty bad shape and the place is always sort of dark and empty. Their main business seems to be selling flowers which look better than the brown rotting lettuce. And there's really no reason to go there as Sue's produce (one of the best in the city, love it) is 5 minutes away.

But I just couldn't ignore that sign. And good thing I didn't. My fear was at first reaffirmed as I walked in around lunchtime and it was empty again. The meats in the deli case looked kind of sketchy. I was presented with a crumpled menu and ordered 1 carnitas and 1 chorizo taco. The mexican gentleman who had been trimming flowers and unpacking carrots smiled and hurried to the back to whip up my tacos.

And wow, the food was much better than I expected.. all of the ingredients were fresh, the tacos were packed with meat, nice fresh tomatillo salsa- why aren't people lined up around the corner? I mean they weren't mind blowing, but as good as your average south philly taqueria, and it seems to be just the one guy that makes the food so it's probably consistent.

Don't be scared. Take out is the way to go.. rittenhouse square is right there so there's your dining room.

Savoy
262 S 18th st
Philadelphia

Alert: Southern California Style Tacos Found in Brooklyn!

Since I've moved from back from San Diego to New York I have been trying to find a place that serves the kind of Mexican food that I have become accustomed to on the West Coast.  After a little over a year  of searching I was ready to throw in the towel and call it a day.    

I live in a neighborhood that is brimming with Mexican restaurants.  Tortas, cemitas, and huaraches are everywhere but somehow they just aren't the same.  I really wanted the perfect, simple tacos that I had gotten so used to living ten minutes from the Tijuana border.  These tacos are nothing more than fantastically grilled meat on tiny (4-5-inch) tortillas, chopped cilantro and onions accompanied by some really great salsas.  

I'm overjoyed to say that today I found the tacos of my dreams.  

Tacos Ricos at 51st Street and 5th Avenue in Sunset Park serves the best tacos that I've eaten outside of Southern California. I had a feeling that it was going to be good and I ordered six tacos - al pastor, bisctec, pollo, enchilada, arabes and orientales.

All of the tacos were amazing. The al pastor, pollo and bistec are pretty standard, enchilada is just another term for spicy meat but the arabes and orientales are not that common. They are the Mexican version of shawarma, spit-roasted and spectacular, just the right ratio of meat to fat with the best smokey-sweet-spicy chile sauce. Everything was served with big wedges of lime, sliced radishes and the best Mexican Cokes.

Tacos Ricos
505 51st St.
Brooklyn, NY 11220

Potacos

Back from L.A., and there was good eating. But before I pass out and attempt to make it to work the next day I had to put a picture up of these potato tacos. It was after the opening, my good friend's Ako and Emi decided that they would take off and meet us back at the house. They arrive with 25 deep fried potato tacos covered in cheese and guacamole. The homemade green and red sauce was delicious and the deep friedness went well with our drunken whiskey state.

I have no idea where they came from, I didn't ask questions I just ate them before they got cold. I've decided I think this was the best thing I had ever had.