Lake Anne's Market, Reston, VA

How do I even start.  Haven't really written in a bit.  I have been working non stop.  Busy, busy, busy.  I didn't even get from Miami to Virginia, I'm in the Reston/Fairfax/Herndon area, and my phone was blowing up from some great folks about Tacoteering.  Yeah, it made life that much better.  How could I not?  How was I not leaving work, getting tacos and going back to finish the night?  This place did have it all.  Aside from the tacos for dinner, I bought food for tomorrow and the next day.  Nice to get a little one stop shop like this.  So the tacos are in the back.

Yeah, this place was pretty busy.  We were there for a while, service was slow.  We had World Cup on which was great.  The passion of everyone there watching.  Brazil got some bad calls they may not have deserved, but they still pulled it out.  Pretty mixed emotions in this place.

The passion was awesome.  The wait, not so much.  We had work to do!  We couldn't watch the entire game.  It really did take way too long to get our food.  To the point that I would not come here very often, and no, not just because it is on the other side of the country from where I live.  It is also a bit pricey.  Not horrible, but not the normal, affordable taco that we are looking for.

This is part of the BOH.  Yes, the food is out, they are cutting the meat fresh, doing so many things right.  They even have their open bottle of wine just to make sure that they have something to drink, celebrate with and use when needed.  I admire this.  The best part about this place is the flavors.  They really do know how to cook.  They make the tortillas by hand, the pupusas were on point.  They take the time to do it right, they should probably work on a balance, but still, they make the food from scratch.

There is the rest of the kitchen.  They are really going at it.  Making the food, working the masa.  Impressive.  It reminds me a bit of a place that is in California that I have yet to blog about.  Equipment is pretty well maintained, ladies were working hard, really hard.  Their tortillas were a little thick.  I think if the pressed them just a little thinner, it might make for a bit of a better taco, but they did not double wrap and the flavor on them is good.  A little hint of sweetness, not too salty.

RATINGS:
CHICHARRON: 3, this might have been a 4 if it was properly labeled.  It was more of a pork that was cooked like carnitas meets chicharron meets almost an adobada.  Good, tender, slightly over-seasoned.
POLLO: 5, yes, I wrote a 5 on chicken.  Well seasoned, so tender, so good.  Really happy with this.  Really happy that I tried the chicken.  If you are there, get the chicken, they know what they are doing.
LENGUA: 4, I like what they are doing here.  Cut into bigger chunks then I normally like, but they for sure made it work and work well.  Really tender, not over seasoned, well cooked.
ASADA: 3, this was good.  Nothing that will blow you away, but nothing that you will be disappointed by ordering.  It is solid.
SPECIAL?: 4, the guy talked me into it. It was a mixture of their chorizo, asada and chicharron all in one taco.  It was awesome, nice mix of flavors, not too much, very good and worth ordering.  Just tell them the tacos with the different meats in it.
PUPUSA: 3, the masa is good, but the filling was just not enough.  They kind of shorted you there, their curtido to put on top is just OK, but overall their stuff is really good.
SALSA VERDE: 4, oh I want to bathe in this.  It is good, spicy, thick, nice.  A little more balance in flavor could have brought on a 5.
SALSA ROJO: 3, by no means is it bad, but it was a bit watery and nothing special.

We got the food back to The Counter and they could not wait to attack.  Matt and Ashley are becoming some pretty amazing Tacoteers.  Yeah, I just had to share this photo.  It is way too entertaining for me.  For those who don't remember Matt, he opened The Counter in Clifton, NJ, which you should go eat at when you are in Jersey, and has been on some adventures.  We were reunited and had to grab a photo together.

I know, the look of excitement, the pearly whites, how can you not love him?  I do have another target for the trip, but don't know if I will be able to hit it.  If I don't make it there, I will be back and I will go!  You will hear all about the adventure.  Very glad we have a great spot here in the Reston area for tacos.  Very glad that I have such great people that I work with that love Tacoteering, once they were introduced to it!  The Taco Legends grow, I do love it.

It's been too long since I've written one of these, I've just been really busy with work, so I will try to get some more out soon!  Who knows where work and Tacoteering will take me next???  I might be coming to your city or a city near you.  With that being said, thanks for reading, re-posting, re-tweeting, and "liking" what we are doing.  The good-bye picture is one I caught of Matt working, well sort of...love you Matt!

Stay Excellent!

Huraches al Pastor, Southern California Local Farmer's Markets

The relentless pursuit of taco excellence has found me at the Farmer's Market.  I've tried this place a few dozen times.  They are over at the Northridge Mall on Wednesday nights, they hit a few of the Farmer's Markets in the Los Angeles area.  They were over on Victory this morning.

These guys do a few things.  They are big into catering, they will tell you that when you are ordering.  I don't know how they do catering, but I'm sure it is not bad.  I will say that they are a bit pricey for catering.  We tried some tacos and of course hooked up their huraches.  They make the tortillas, which is pretty cool  This is a pretty awesome hurache.  The tortilla is a bit thick, but it doesn't overpower the flavorful meat that they have.  They really do add to the ambiance of the Farmer's Market.  You can smell the grill the whole way around.  They have some pretty decent salsas and their grilled onions are on point.  They accompany everything with a nice cilantro and onions with diced tomatoes and cactus.  Pretty cool.  It really gives a nice texture, especially with the huraches.

RATINGS:

ASADA: 3, it is solid.  A little too much salt some days, but consistently good and they did a nice job today.
PASTOR: 3, this is no cone.  It is good though.  They do a nice job of getting all the right flavors and cook it very well.  You won't be blown away here, but you sure won't be disappointed.
POLLO: 2, it isn't bad, don't get me wrong.  It is just really bland.  It doesn't look like it will be, but it is.  They need to add a bit more flavor to get up to solid and next to the rest of their stuff, this is for sure not their best.
RED: 3, good, not amazing, but solid.  I like it.  Not too smoky, they do well with it.
GREEN: 2, too sweet.  Just not great.  Worst of their salsas.
BRIGHT GREEN: 4, this is an avocado salsa that is great.  I call it bright green so that they lay person can decipher when they walk up.  Great flavor, nice spice.  This is a for sure, you don't want to miss.
TACOS: 2, the meat is good, but they are just ok as far as tacos go.  They won't wow you and make you crave them late night.  Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't keep walking.
HURACHES: 4, this is the real deal folks.  This is almost gooey goodness.  The thick but light tortilla grilled to perfection, cheese that is soft and melted nicely into the meat and tortilla.  Couple it with solid meat and some of that great avocado salsa, yeah, this is a winner.
SERRANO: 5, these are the best.  Really, let me tell you...so, they have these fried serranos, with a touch of salt, yum yum, give me some.

The taco score suffered because the hurache is that much better.  I would say go by get one of each to try more meat and together they will fill you up for at least a meal and a half, if not two!  The folks that work there are really nice and pretty darn cool.  I like chatting with them and talking about food.  They know what they are talking about.

Whatever today has for you, enjoy.
Whether it's your birthday, I have a few friends with birthdays today, sorry I'm not celebrating with you.
Working a festival, some close friends are selling Gyro's in downtown LA, sorry I'm not there to help.
Enjoying football in a bar or on your couch, I'm jealous.
Or if you are working, I feel your pain today!

As always, I'm trying to find the traditional and non traditional places and hope you are enjoying the reads.  Please tell your friends, and don't forget, I still haven't decided on a logo design yet, looking for some help there!  Thanks so much for reading, Stay Excellent!!!