reviewed by Marcus Scott
LaTapatia Restaurant is a hole in the wall sort of a place. It is easyto miss the fact that this little restaurant exists. If a friend ofmine had not told me about this place, I would have never found it. Now I am telling you about it so you can sample the great food foryourself. Tucked away at the back of a Mexican Grocery Store on thesouth side of “downtown” Phoenix, right next to Roscoes BBQ, is afamily run restaurant pumping out some of the most authentic andconsistently excellent tacos in the valley.
Ihave made it into a hobby of sorts to personally seek out the besttacos and burritos in the Rogue Valley. I have sampled tacosthroughout all of Mexico and have my favorites all over the country,from Mexico City to Guadalajara, from Tijuana to La Penita, Nayarit. Ialways go to the place that seems most frequented by the locals. Youwait longer in line, but you get what you wait for, and are less likelyto have an unpleasant experience. With that said, you could say myyears of street taco sampling has made me into something of anauthority when it comes to tacos.
So,back to our little restaurant. La Tapatia is located at 125 South MainSt. in Phoenix, on Highway 99 going south on the left. It is familyowned and operated. These wonderful folks hail originally fromGuadalajara, hence the name of the establishment. La Tapatia means“the woman from Guadalajara”. The restaurant is open 6 days a week,closed on Tuesday. Monday is referred to in my family as “Taco Monday”because tacos are just a buck. Normally they are just $1.25 and abargain -- 4 or 5 is a decent meal. The place is only open till about7pm so it is more of a lunch, or early dinner place. The 12:00 o’clockhour can be jam packed so you are best to get there early afternoon orjust before 12 noon to beat the rush.
Thekey to a great taco is fresh quality meats, proper spices, and homemadetortillas. You are guaranteed all these at La Tapatia. As you makeyour way to the back of the store, you walk by 20 feet of glass encasedmeats freshly prepared by the butcher who also coincidently runs therestaurant -- guaranteed freshness. The spices are outstanding and addto the authentic nature of the meal. A small salsa bar offers varioussalsas ranging from mild to “take your head off” hot. The brightestcolored salsa is HOT!, but very tasty. And the tortillas are fresh offthe grill, not reheated.
Ifyou are not a meat eater then the Chili Relleno plate is outstanding,and they also offer a vegetarian burrito. The Relleno comes with beansand rice with small salad and as many handmade tortillas as you caneat. South Beach dieters beware. The cheese stuffed anaheim chilisare smoothered in a nice red sauce and they hit the spot without themeat. If you are a meat eater, you are in for a treat. It is allgood. I usually grab a mixed plate of tacos with Carne Asada (BeefSteak), Adobada (seasoned pork), and Pollo (chicken) being myfavorites. The Carnitas is dry but good, especially with a couplespoons of fresh salsa. The Chorizo (Mexican sausage) is especiallyexcellent and prepared fresh in the aforementioned Carniceria (MeatStore). Lengua (Cow tongue) is the only thing I have not tried, justnot my style, but if you feel daring give it a go. By the way, I canfeed my family of four with two growing boys for about $25 with drinks.
Ifyou are looking for a place to impress a date with fancy digs and ahigh price tag, this is not the place for you. There is nothing fancyabout this place, and that is part of the charm. You order at theregister and they bring you your food. Lots of great items to choosefrom and everything I have tried has been outstanding. Every time Iwalk into this place I feel like I have gone back to Mexico and I neverwalk out dissatisfied. La Tapatia is a place for good quality food thatis prepared with pride and authenticity. Don’t feel bad if your tabfor two comes to no more than $12 or $15 bucks, you can always leave anice tip in the tip jar. Viva Mexico! Buen Provecho!
