Breakfast tacos from La Estrella.
Hey Wiseguy,
I just moved here from up north cuz Denton seems awesome. Anyway, I keep hearing about how good the tacos here are from people. Like they're better than cheeseburgers or something crazy like that. Even the Little Guys Movers dudes who helped me move in made a series of catchy videos where they smashed tacos into their faces. Then yesterday, I saw this girl on campus wearing this taco-cat shirt. Am I missing something? When did tacos become a thing? Maybe this is just a dumb question, but are tacos actually culinarily advanced enough to be a cultural phenomena? Normally, I just grab some lunch tacos from Taco Bell or Del Taco, or some breakfast tacos from Taco Cabana if I wake up early enough, but with all the talk of tacos going around, I feel like I might be missing out. I don’t know, though, I can’t see tacos getting much better than that.
Sincerely,
No-Taco Terry
No question is a dumb question, Terry. Aside from your taste in you tube videos, however, you’re pretty much a gigantic doofus (no offense - my friend-base primarily consists of doofuses and idiots). You have no clue about the wild world of taco-dom that exists all around you. Before we delve into that, however, we need to address something. You said the phrase “lunch tacos.” That’s not a thing. Sure, there are breakfast tacos. We all know them, love them and eat them any chance we get, but aside from the “breakfast” variety of tacos, all other tacos are just “tacos.” Chocotacos don’t count. Still not getting it? When you receive a taco, ask yourself this question, “Does my taco have egg in it?” If it does, you are about to chow down on a breakfast taco. If not, it is just your general, garden-variety taco and there’s not a damned thing wrong with that. If we hear about you using the term “lunch taco” again, though, we’re gonna have a problem, buddy.
Anyway, back to what you’re missing out on. There are multiple levels of tacos that exist in Denton. You have the authentic tacos, the gringo tacos and the cheap fast food tacos you’re already used to. Don’t eat those anymore. Your new diet should be primarily composed of authentic, Mexican tacos with the occasional gringo taco thrown into the mix every now and then. Let’s hit those two up and expound upon that a bit.
Denton has it’s share of authentic, Mexican taco places. McKinney St. is lousy with them. Hit up La Estrella over there for some life-changing breakfast tacos. If you’re buying what I’m saying, I’d also encourage you to stop by Taco Lady and try something you’re afraid of such as lengua (tongue) or chicharrón (some tasty part of a pig - maybe pork groin?). La Sabrocita on Dallas Dr. is also delicious and open very late. Start with those. Eventually, you’ll start to notice these taquerias more and more and your smeller will sniff them out when you drive by one.
As far as gringo tacos go, Denton only has a couple spots from which to sample. These fancy, interestingly-filled taco places are a (mostly) recent development in the taco world. Denton is usually pretty far behind the curve as far as trends and crazes go, though. After all, we got cupcakes after everybody was already tired of eating Sprinkles and our frozen yogurt places showed up long after the name Pinkberry was laughable. Fancy-ass tacos will be no different. They’ll be here eventually. While Dallas already has it’s fair share of taco-centric restaurants in Velvet Taco, Good 2 Go Taco, Torchy’s, etc... we basically just have Fuzzy’s and Rusty’s. God, what we would give for a Good 2 Go Taco to open up here. Digg’s Tacos was going to open up a storefront last year, but they were scared away by the likes of Scott Brown Properties. That’s our loss because that place is wonderful, too. Oh well, though. Time will change things. In the meantime, go eat at Rusty’s and avoid Fuzzy’s like the plague. Some people will swear by it, but canned chicken, salad-filled guacamole and red-tinted vinegar will never make be the basis of a great gringo taco facility (I will admit to a once-a-year craving for their nachos, though). Rusty’s is more bang for your flavor-buck. Their fried chicken taco and their brisket taco are both righteous. Throw one of their specialty margaritas with ‘em and you’ve got a great meal to take out on their patio.
We hope that helps you in your taco journey, Terry. While nothing really compares to the feeling of smearing some Taco Bell hot sauce on a quesadilla at two in the morning, that isn’t something you should be doing to your body. Nothing good happens after midnight, after all. Now, I’m must go and prepare for the onslaught of the taste bud-impaired Fuzzy’s defenders. See ya in the taco wrappers!
Wiseguy fields questions whenever he can. Sometimes he answers questions, sometimes he just rants and rambles. Maybe you'll get lucky. If you have a question you'd like to ask "Hey Wiseguy," please send him an email.