Saturday, January 21, 2012

Taco Punk, you can do better than this.

My husband and I were so excited to go to Taco Punk tonight.  We enjoyed their booth at the NuLu Festival and thought they had a great concept and potential, which made tonight's dining experience disappointing.

Service:
-I ordered the Lucky Ducky and the Taj Ma-hell and was answered with "I'm sorry, you are NOT lucky today!"  It's understandable that the specials can run out, but there was no sign indicating this... It was only 5 pm and they're open until 2 am!  So I decided to order the Yucatecan style fish and the smoked chicken mole instead. 
-I thought the process would run quickly and smoothly as it's an assembly line, but after I was asked three times what I had ordered, the process became neither.  
-The server inexplicably switched my tortilla out after putting chicken mole on it...and put it back in the bin.  I'm still confused about this.

Food:
-The homemade tortillas were cold, thick, and slightly brittle on the edges.
-The fish was well seasoned and freshly grilled.  I was pleasantly surprised that cod could taste so good.
-The chicken mole was slightly spicy and barely smoked; good but not memorable.
-Our favorite was the BarBEERcoa; the meat was moist, tender and well marinated.
-The adobo chicken was also freshly grilled, but there wasn't much of an adobo flavor in my opinion.
-Chorizo and potato tasted bland.  We are not sure where the potato went---perhaps it was pureed with the chorizo...
-Lime chili mayo is awesome.
-The free fillings (shredded cabbage, pickled onions, jalapeno peppers, and cilantro) all added distinct flavors and textures that I found creative, colorful and most importantly, very tasty.
-The saffron rice was overcooked and completely flavorless.  Black beans were well seasoned--but again, not memorable.  

Value:
-This is somewhat expensive---four small tacos, two small sides, 2 drinks and about 7 tortilla chips apiece cost $25.

And now for some pictures:


 Top: chicken mole; Bottom: Yucatecan style fish
 Close-up of the Yucatecan style fish
Top: chorizo and potato; Bottom: BarBEERcoa with lime chili mayo
Chicken adobo 
Black beans and rice

Bottom Line: Yes, I realize that this is only day 3 of this restaurant.  I would be willing to return, but I have multiple reservations.




Taco Punk (food truck) on Urbanspoon