A couple weeks ago, I got a craving for Mexican food. Not the kind of Mexican food someone who grew up with an abuela who’d spend three days making massive batches of mole should crave. I wanted Texican, if you will. I figured the craving was fleeting — something I could snuff out with a little queso dip, maybe some nachos. Nope. Instead it turned into a four-day, ITP shame spiral.

I’ve always managed to avoid Taqueria del Sol (2165 Cheshire Bridge Road, 404-321-1118) because we live so close to Buford Highway. This time, my craving and proximity conspired against me. We happened upon the restaurant during one of its lulls, although a line of 20 quickly formed behind us. I get what owner Eddie Hernandez has done by muting Mexican flavors, adding booze and up-charging the hell out of the menu. While I think the salsas are excellent, the taco fillings were so intensely overseasoned (read: salty) that I couldn’t get past two bites. The cheese enchilada wrapped in a corn tortilla and smothered in pork chili verde, however, was an excellent pile of gooey, sinful goodness.

The next night, we found ourselves at Big Tex Cantina (308 W. Ponce de Leon Ave., Decatur, 404-377-3939) late in the evening. Despite the fact that it opened so recently (or, perhaps, because it opened so recently) the wait at Big Tex — even at 8:45 — was around 30 minutes. Not much to review, but the menu and vibe are dramatically different from the owners’ other restaurant, Fox Brothers Bar-B-Q. Look for a Texas-inspired poutine dish using the brothers’ stepmom’s red chili sauce recipe, a fully vegetarian version of stacked enchiladas topped with a fried egg, and flour (or corn) tortilla based tacos made with brisket from Fox Brothers.

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El Pastor was a sketchy-looking, albeit beloved, Buford Highway restaurant and one of the only spots in Atlanta with a trompo, the revolving spit normally used for al pastor or shawarma. My father, who’s from Mexico City (the epicenter of tacos al pastor), loved it. I was never a fan, mostly because local health regulations required that they cook the meat after slicing it off the trompo. After much time as a fixture, El Pastor closed and a new restaurant, El Chisme Mexican Grill (5091 Buford Highway, Doraville), was born in its place. Much of the same ambiance-free décor remains, but there’s a fresh coat of garish neon paint in the hallway leading to the bathrooms. As one of my friends said, all they need to really induce an acid flashback is a black light. A disco ball hangs from the ceiling and it’s easy to imagine the tables being cleared out for a late-night dance party fueled by Mexican beer and a jukebox loaded with old-school Latin standards and, of course, Enrique Iglesias.

Non-Spanish speakers be forewarned: The staff speaks little English. However, our waitress — a friendly Mexican girl in her mid-20s — reminded me how enthusiastic service can enliven even the slowest of meals. Really, though, a long wait can be a reassuring sign. And how can you possibly fault a lone cook making everything from scratch?

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Tucked into the same Buford Highway strip mall that’s home to cult favorites Cóm Vietnamese Grill and Lee’s Bakery, El Señor Taco (4005 Buford Highway, 404-982-0777) is poised to become just as much of a classic. The dining room is bare-bones except for flat screen televisions, and table décor in the form of a fresh floral arrangements and the odd whole pineapple. When he’s not busy behind the scenes in the kitchen, owner David Romero works his customers with the same amount of friendly grace you’d find in a more upscale establishment.

Despite a substantial Mexican population, there’s an odd absence of fish tacos in Atlanta. Leave it to someone from Ensenada, Baja California, to fill the void. Romero moved to Atlanta just to open El Señor Taco after many of his friends told him how well a fish taco place would do here. Romero was no stranger to the business; he learned the ins and outs while working in his family’s wildly popular restaurants, El Taco Nazo and Señor Baja, back in California. The former has been open for an astounding 30 years.

You’ll be tempted to try the nonseafood items — pastor, carnitas, menudo (tripe stew), etc. — from El Señor’s small menu, but don’t bother. This place is all about the fish. If someone along for the ride is completely anti-fish, the chicken nachos made with crunchy, thick El Milagro tortilla chips draped in gooey white cheese and all the other accoutrements will pass muster.

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It’s a Sunday afternoon and there’s a short wait at Mega Taco Taqueria y Marisqueria (2055 Beaver Ruin Road, Norcross, 770-248-0097). A corner of the restaurant is crammed with boisterous young Mexican guys wearing their green soccer jerseys and cleats. Every one of them is drinking a 10-inch tall frosty mug full of Mexico’s favorite beer-based drink: the Michelada, a mixture of beer, fresh lime juice, Clamato, and Valentina hot sauce. Every region of Mexico makes a slightly different version. They’re a great way to ease into a lazy Sunday — and a bona fide hangover killer.

Those of you who were fans of Gorditas La Rancherita will recognize many of the now-defunct restaurant’s dishes — pambazos, gorditas and huaraches — on Mega Taco’s immense menu; Gorditas’ cooks migrated to Mega after the former restaurant’s closing. The restaurant’s centerpiece is the tortilla station where a woman churns out an endless stream of tortillas hecho a mano (handmade). The tortillas, which accompany virtually every order, are slightly thicker than their machine-made cousins, but the thickness provides that telltale layer of creamy masa that lets you know they were made with love. Palm-sized “mini” tortillas serve as the vehicle for Mega’s excellent taco fillings. Look for gamey shreds of cabeza (cow’s head) coated in sumptuous grease, tender chunks of carnitas that break apart with minimal prodding, and chopped up pieces of griddle-cooked carne asada encrusted in sweet bits of caramelization.

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Last and certainly not least, the fish tacos.

We got one fish taco and one shrimp taco. The batter was light and practically greaseless. The fish (guy said they use pollock) and shrimp tasted fresh and I appreciate the use of smaller corn tortillas. They are also served with chopped cabbage, tomato, onion, and a drizzle of cream. Some of the best Baja-style tacos I’ve had in our fish taco starved town.


Innards.

Goodies from the salsa bar.

Verdict: Already a big fan of this place with just one visit under my belt. Will be coming back again and again. Can’t wait to try more of the menu including the sopes, which are handmade on the premises.

You can use fresh masa to make a variety of things: tortillas, sopes, huaraches, and tamales. The store is now selling its own tortillas made with the house-ground masa for only 79 cents/package. Look for them in a cooler, marked with a sign, in front of the steam tables.
Jennifer Zyman’s quesadilla recipe

In Mexico, quesadillas come in many forms. In Mexico City, the most popular version resembles an empanada and is not made with prepared tortillas. Instead, these quesadillas use fresh masa or masa harina. This style of quesadilla is a versatile antojitos Mexicano (street snacks often served as an appetizer) that you can fill with cheese and anything else your heart desires — crumbled chorizo, refried beans, huitlacoche (corn fungus), poblano chilies, fresh corn, and more. Start out simple with this basic recipe and don’t be afraid to experiment!

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Christiane Lauterbach is reporting on Atlanta Food Carts that Hankook Taqueria is rolling out their very own taco truck. I wasn’t blown away by my many meals at Hankook, but am excited to give this awesome concept a shot and show some support.

You can follow on Twitter to find its whereabouts.

Mole is notoriously labor-intensive. When prepared correctly, however, mole is one of the most satisfying sauces in Mexican cuisine. Most people use family recipes handed down from generation to generation. Others – some restaurants included – resort to pre-made pastes such as the ubiquitous brand Dona Maria. So finding a homemade version from the folks at Zocalo is a true treasure for those of us who want to prepare classic mole dishes at home.The 15-year-old restaurant sells the red and green versions of its mole along with other homemade salsas – such as salsa verde and arbol salsa – at local farmers markets and select gourmet food stores. Owners Luis and Sonia Martinez prepare the moles and the other salsas according to an old family recipe using fresh ingredients and no preservatives. The mole has all the right hints of heat, earth and sweetness.

Continue Reading “Food Finds: Zocalo’s homemade mole”

(Photo by Jennifer Zyman)

One of the main draws for me at the Peachtree Road Farmers’ Market is the H&F Bakery stand where I got this AWESOME pimento cheese, which we used as a dip for these farm fresh breakfast radishes.

We also used the pimento cheese to top some burgers I made using Holeman’s famous hamburger buns and some grass-fed beef from Riverview Farm.

The King of Pops has continued to build its fan base. The little cart is located on the corner of N. Highland and North Avenue on most days.

The King told me the original plans for a shop may be put off, which makes sense since you can find his pops at so many places–like Cabbagetown Market and Irwin Street Market–now. You can find the King on Twitter to follow his schedule and flavors of the day.

Moon and I paid a visit to Iron Age with some of our good friends for a night of barbecue and fun. My review comes out next week in Creative Loafing, but I had to tell you guys about this new beverage our friend, Gene, introduced us to. It’s a rice beer called Draft Makkoli from Korea and it is delicious. It’s slightly fizzy and has a little tang. The restaurant sells each bottle for around $16, but you can get it at Super H Mart for $4.99, which is a steal considering how easily this stuff goes down.

Well, I finally got around to visiting Farm Burger in Decatur. I kept my expectations low because I’m a little sick of the burger fad even though I do suffer from crazy burger lust. The place was bumping. I’m going to withhold judgment until I visit again, but here is a little burger porn for those of you who are curious about the new eatery.

Pickled eggs

Fries and onions rings

My friend’s burger

I paid a visit to Chef Liu with Moon because the dumpling craving was strong. As I was leaving, I noticed Don Pepe’s–the little taco shack in the same shopping center–has moved into Chef Liu’s former space.

I’ve never thought much of Pepe’s tacos, but I’ll give them another try because more space sometimes translates into improved food. Developing….

My husband and I are seated in the back of Cuerna-Vaca Supermarket (5000 Roswell Road, Sandy Springs. 404-236-0022) waiting on our order. A group of Mexicans on their lunch break take a seat behind us. Soon after, I hear one say to the other in Spanish, “check out that girl in the yellow dress” (yours truly), followed by a few other remarks regarding my, uh…assets that are unfit to print. This isn’t the first time my fair complexion has landed me in the gringa box even though I’m Mexican.

When our waitress returns with the first of our dishes I order another tamale in Spanish—D.F. (Distrito Federal), slang and all. I hear one of them silently say “shit…sorry” under his breath.

“Boys will be boys,” I chirp happily without turning around. They all let out a nervous laugh and move onto other subjects like work, their families in Mexico, and, most importantly, what to eat.

Read “Ethnic City: Cuerna-Vaca Supermarket”

(Photo by Jennifer Zyman)