Paco's Tacos

Does anyone have any thoughts on Paco's Tacos. I consider them some of the best around. Just a good ol fashioned taco stand. Hearty portions full of flavor. Also, it is held in high regards by many in my family and people i've taken there to visit. I would recommend the steak and carnitas tacos which what I mainly order. Two locations.

Pacos Taco's
4311 S Archer (might still be under construction, not sure)
6034 S Pulaski Rd

There used to be a Paco's at 47th and Hermitage. Is it still there? Is/Was it related to the other locations listed above?

=R=

Char grilled, or pan-fried steak?

Hands down the best tacos in the city. I live in Pilsen and have been to all the other faves like Tio Luis and LA Pasadita, but time and time again I ask myself why didn't I just go to Paco's. Never had a bad meal there and I love sitting at the counter and watching the action.

Paco's Tacos, oh how I love that place. The Archer Ave. location was still under renovation on Labor Day when I was there last so my brother and I hit up the Pulaski Rd. spot. The steak and barbacoa tacos were excellent. I wanna try a steak torta the next time I'm there.

Char grilled, or pan-fried steak?

seebee wrote:Char grilled, or pan-fried steak?

Defenitely char-grilled

chefmcone76 wrote:Hands down the best tacos in the city. I live in Pilsen and have been to all the other faves like Tio Luis and LA Pasadita, but time and time again I ask myself why didn't I just go to Paco's.

I feel the same way. I have tried a few of the other spots listed on here for tacos, but I have always wondered why Paco's Taco's never gets their due as some of the best in the city.

Count me as a fan of Paco's Tacos. Taking quantity, quality and price into account I think Paco's is among Chicago's better taquerias and certainly one of the best values. The serve-yourself carnitas and chicharron by the pound are good too.

surbano wrote:4311 S Archer (might still be under construction, not sure)

That Paco's is definitely open for business (and almost always crowded).

ronnie_suburban wrote:There used to be a Paco's at 47th and Hermitage. Is it still there? Is/Was it related to the other locations listed above?

I'm somewhat familiar with that corner but am drawing a complete blank on Paco's. I don't think it's still there. Do you remember about when it was around and which corner it was on? But there's another Paco's Tacos not far from there, in the back of Supermercado La Internacional on the northwest corner of Ashland & 46th.

The Paco's on Archer is a few doors south of Supermercado La Internacional #2, so I think there's some connection between the two businesses. Was Paco's inside SLI#2 before it moved to its current location at 4311?

Paco's Tacos
6034 S Pulaski Rd
Chicago
773-582-4244

Paco's Tacos
4311 S Archer Av
Chicago
773-247-1613

Paco's Tacos
in Supermercado La Internacional
4556 S Ashland Av
Chicago

Rene G wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:There used to be a Paco's at 47th and Hermitage. Is it still there? Is/Was it related to the other locations listed above?

I'm somewhat familiar with that corner but am drawing a complete blank on Paco's. I don't think it's still there. Do you remember about when it was around and which corner it was on? But there's another Paco's Tacos not far from there, in the back of Supermercado La Internacional on the northwest corner of Ashland & 46th.

This would have been early to mid '80's; SE corner, iirc.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:This would have been early to mid '80's; SE corner, iirc.

That was before I was very familiar with the neighborhood but the southeast corner makes sense. That's where Restaurant Bellas Fuentes is now. Before that (5 years ago?) it was Super Tacos. Before that maybe it was Paco's. I don't know if there is any connection between that old one and the new group of Paco's Tacos.

surbano wrote:

seebee wrote:Char grilled, or pan-fried steak?

Defenitely char-grilled

Are you sure about that? Twice now, at two different Paco's, I've seen them cooking what I'm pretty sure is steak. They have both a griddle and a grill, and use the grill for the steak. But the grill is covered with aluminum foil before the steak goes on, resulting in sort of a hybrid grill-griddle cooking method. The final product seems to lack the crispy charred edges characteristic of true grilled meat. It's not a bad taco at all (and the portions are huge, especially for $1.75) but I think I prefer the carnitas.

Carne Asada at Paco's on Pulaski

Hello everyone! My family owns Paco's Tacos and La Internacional. I will gladly provide any information anyone wishes to know. I will be as objective as I can when discussing our products. Feel free to ask any questions, as well as provide any comments/suggestions. We value our customers' feedback.

The following is the most current information regarding Paco's Tacos and La Internacional:

La Internacional Supermercado
4556 S. Ashland
773.523.9745

This is our original location. It is primarily a grocery store with a taco stand in the rear of the building. The taqueria is actually the busiest section of our establishment. There, unlike the Paco's Tacos establishments, we only serve TACOS. We also sell Carnitas, Barbacoa, and Chicharron by the pound. Menudo on weekends. Here is the most up-to-date menu:

TACOS $1.75
Carne Asada
Carnitas
Barbacoa
Chicharron (in red salsa)
Lengua
Pollo
Carne Deshebrada

Chile Relleno - $2.50 (very large portion and well worth it)

My Recommendation (as much as we try maintain uniformity with our products, every cook has a different style, thus creating subtle differences in our food): Taco de Carne Asada (the original and the best) and/or Taco de Barbacoa

Paco's Tacos #1
4311 S. Archer
773.247.1613

This is the second of the Paco's Tacos establishment. The first Paco's Tacos was opened in the early 1990's and was located on the corner of 47th and Hermitage. This place was later closed upon the opening of the current place on Archer. Paco's Tacos #1 features the same wonderful tacos featured at La Internacional. However, our menu at this location also includes TORTAS and BURRITOS. We also sell Carnitas, Barbacoa, and Chicharron by the pound. We sell Menudo on weekends.

Tortas $3.50
Carne Asada
Carnitas
Milanesa
Pollo
Jamon
(we will make tortas with other fillings upon request)

Burritos $4.50
Carne Asada
Carnitas
Pollo
(other fillings upon request)

My Recommendation: Taco de Chicharron and/or Torta de Carnitas

Paco's Tacos #2
6034 S. Pulaski
773.582.4244

This is the newest Paco's Tacos. We opened this location in May 2007, and it has been as successful as our other establishments. The menu is a carbon copy of Paco's Tacos #1. Please stop by!

My Recommendation: Torta de Milanesa and/or Taco de Asada

ENJOY!

Thank you for the very informative post, and for self-identifying as a proprietor / family member. A torta de milanesa is in my near future!

Thanks for the info! I've driven 2 hours for your tacos before, well worth it!

I'm really glad that you the owner, have identified yourself and have added a perspective we are all interested in hearing. When you started your restaurant whose idea was it? Who was the first cook? I'm sure that the awnsers might just be standard, but I just wonder if there is a good story behind Paco... oh, and is there a Paco? Or is the name just nice because it rhymes?

-Carlos

Thank you all for the warm welcome. When I learned about this forum, and that it contained a discussion about my family's restaurant, I proceeded with caution. It isn't always easy to be constructively criticized by anyone. However, I realized that it is in the best interest for our business to engage in discussions with our most loyal customers. You are, in fact, the people who keep us going!

I'm here to offer an insider's perspective on what I believe is Chicago's most hidden, perhaps even underrated, taqueria. We always hear about our competitors doing well in local surveys (such as the Tribune's "Chicago's Top Tacos") yet our customers vociferously claim we are the best. As I've illustrated before, I'm here to answer the questions and read the comments of which otherwise we would not be aware.

Carlitos, to answer your questions:

La Internacional was first opened by Roberto Garza, who is now the proprietor of a telecommunications company that produces and distributes phone cards, with "Car-Tel" being the predominant one. Mr. Garza employed several young men who would go on to become owners of stores such as "El Guero." Among these young men was Francisco Cervantes (hereinafter "Paco"). Paco worked really hard as a carnicero and eventually saved up enough cash to offer Mr. Garza for the store. A deal was made and La Internacional became Paco's.

Paco has always had a particular eye for food. He decided to add the small taqueria at the rear of the store. He met the first-ever taquero, Jose Hernandez (who is now in charge of making the Carnitas for the place on Archer). The small taqueria was an instant hit. Paco made sure our tacos were different from the competition's. As you all know, we use "El Milagro" tortillas while most other places use "Atotonilco" or some other similar tortilla. He really pushed the idea of serving generous portions of quality meat, not just the standard meat many places use. Our meat distributors frequently tell me about them trying to persuade Paco to use cheaper meat in order to make a hefty profit. He never bought it.

As the business grew, we all know Paco's Tacos came into fruition. The name just happened to rhyme. I hear stories of people who would walk into Paco's Tacos and claim that it had copied La Internacional's tacos, only to find out that it was in fact the same place. As in La Internacional, the tacos spoke for themselves, and the customers continued to come back for more.

So here we are, and nothing really has changed. We continue to offer only the best product we can possibly make. We continue to keep our prices as reasonable as the market allows. However, we have further committed ourselves to interacting with our customers, and continuously thanking all of you for your patronage.

Keep the questions/comments coming!

By the way, my name is Alex. It should be easier to refer to me as Alex rather than "pacostacos".

Quick preface: This is my first post here (finally decided to quit lurking and speak up)

Hi Alex! We are planning on stopping by the Pulaski location tomorrow night to sample your tacos for the first time. Thanks for taking the time to answer questions and read comments. I'll make sure to let you know what we think. My wife & I are huge fans of Mexican food and love to try new places all over town so we are really looking forward to our visit.

Question for everyone: Is there an "LTH effect" at restaurants mentioned on this forum? In other words, something similar to what Check Please! experiences after a show? I can't imagine we're the only ones rushing out to try these tacos after reading it here.

Cheers all!

Alex -

Out of curiosity, what made you pick the Pulaski location? Seems like a very competitive stretch of road, especially for with Zacatacos so nearby. Are we looking at a full-out carne asada taco war on the Southwest Side? At least it's not another seafood place (just how many Mexican seafood places could Archer Heights/West Lawn handle? ) I've been to your Archer location many times, but I have yet to drop by the Pulaski location. I've wanted to several times, but you close a little earlier than some of the surrouding taquerias. If the amount of business allows it, you should consider staying open a little longer, at least on weekends, so there's other choices in the neighborhood other than Zacatacos and Atotonilco.

Binko wrote:Alex -

Out of curiosity, what made you pick the Pulaski location? Seems like a very competitive stretch of road, especially for with Zacatacos so nearby. Are we looking at a full-out carne asada taco war on the Southwest Side? At least it's not another seafood place (just how many Mexican seafood places could Archer Heights/West Lawn handle? ) I've been to your Archer location many times, but I have yet to drop by the Pulaski location. I've wanted to several times, but you close a little earlier than some of the surrouding taquerias. If the amount of business allows it, you should consider staying open a little longer, at least on weekends, so there's other choices in the neighborhood other than Zacatacos and Atotonilco.

We never actually set out to open a location on Pulaski. However, we received an invitation to negotiate for the property. To say the least, we were able to acquire the property for a very reasonable price. I will be honest and say that the property was not automatically allocated for Paco's Tacos upon acquisition. My family considered several options regarding what to do with the property. In the end, we couldn't relinquish the temptation to open a new Paco's Tacos. We thought then, and continue to think, that our tacos are of the best quality, and that competition from Zaca Tacos and Los Comales would be welcome. These formidable competitors only made us work harder to improve our food. Competition creates efficiency and quality...at least is has for us!

If a taco war ensues...so be it! We are equipped with Carnitas, Barbacoa, and Chicharron to fend off any potential attacks! Best of all, we have loyal customers like you all who know where the taste and quality is at. Let the seafood people battle it out too...the owner of El Veneno is a frequent customer of ours!

As far as staying open a little longer, we have entertained that idea. At this time, nothing definitive has been decided. I will keep you all posted regarding any changes in hours of operation. Nevertheless, I'll use my law school-derived persuasive powers to persuade the decision-makers to extend our hours. We ARE here to accommodate you!

Hi Alex! We are planning on stopping by the Pulaski location tomorrow night to sample your tacos for the first time. Thanks for taking the time to answer questions and read comments. I'll make sure to let you know what we think. My wife & I are huge fans of Mexican food and love to try new places all over town so we are really looking forward to our visit.

You are very welcome to stop by! I'll try to make sure one of us is there so we can give you a tour. If you can, please let me know a time frame you plan on stopping by.

I have a general question about Mexican food, not specifically Paco's, but Alex may have a good answer. When I first started shopping at Mexican supermercados I was surprised to find that many of them also had a taqueria in the store. But it seems to me like the in-store taquerias are usually pretty quiet compared to regular standalone restaurants. So,
1. Do these store-restaurants really do much business, or is it just a way for the store owner to write off a bunch of meat and vegetable losses as tax deductions?
2. Why is this so prevalent only for Mexican food? I can't think of any other type of ethnic food that uses this technique to the extent that the Mexicans do. Are these in-store restaurants something that is common in Mexico?

Cogito wrote:But it seems to me like the in-store taquerias are usually pretty quiet compared to regular standalone restaurants.

I haven't really noticed this, of the two in-store taquerias I frequent Carniceria Leon/Tierra Caliente's taqueria seems busier than the grocery per se and Carnicerias Guanajuato's taqueria has a constant stream of customers.

Not to say, obviously, this is always the case, just so in the two with which I am most familiar.

Enjoy,
Gary

Carniceria Y Taqueria Tierra Caliente (Was Caniceria Leon)
1402 N Ashland
Chicago, IL
773-772-9804

Carnicerias Guanajuato
3140 N California
Chicago, IL

Cogito wrote:I have a general question about Mexican food, not specifically Paco's, but Alex may have a good answer. When I first started shopping at Mexican supermercados I was surprised to find that many of them also had a taqueria in the store. But it seems to me like the in-store taquerias are usually pretty quiet compared to regular standalone restaurants. So,
1. Do these store-restaurants really do much business, or is it just a way for the store owner to write off a bunch of meat and vegetable losses as tax deductions?
2. Why is this so prevalent only for Mexican food? I can't think of any other type of ethnic food that uses this technique to the extent that the Mexicans do. Are these in-store restaurants something that is common in Mexico?

I can speak for my family's business and say that the in-store taqueria is actually busier than the store. If you walk into La Internacional on a given day, you will usually find more patrons eating at the taqueria than patrons grocery shopping.

The idea behind having this in-store taqueria is fairly simple. In Mexico, when you go to a "mercado" to buy your daily groceries, you notice that there are several stands offering different types of goods. For example, you'll notice the dairy stand, the deli stand, the fruit stand, and so on. Furthermore, you also notice stands where ready-to-eat food is sold. These small stands will usually offer tortas, tacos, licuados (milk shakes), fresh fruit, and coffee (among other things). Our store is the American adaptation of this traditional way of shopping in Mexico. Customers frequently do their grocery shopping at La Internacional, and decide to have a quick meal at the taqueria in back. However, our tacos have earned such a high reputation that most people who walk into the store are there for the tacos, and happen to pick up a few groceries while they're there.

Interesting huh? I hope this answers your questions.

pacostacos/lainter/alex -
First off, thanks again for all of the info. I was planning on trying out the Archer location last night, but some things were running behind schedule, and I had to change plans. I have a Midway pick up tonight, so I will try again Anyway, I have questions.

1. Char grilled or griddle cooked steak for your carne asada? What kind of steak is used?

2. Pollo - what part (s) of the bird, and how is it cooked for tacos? I.E. - is it cooked in a sauce?

3. Salsa - house made? I'm going to guess you have the standard red/green offerings, BUT - is there also a house made pico de gallo for sale?

seebee wrote:pacostacos/lainter/alex -
First off, thanks again for all of the info. I was planning on trying out the Archer location last night, but some things were running behind schedule, and I had to change plans. I have a Midway pick up tonight, so I will try again Anyway, I have questions.

1. Char grilled or griddle cooked steak for your carne asada? What kind of steak is used?

2. Pollo - what part (s) of the bird, and how is it cooked for tacos? I.E. - is it cooked in a sauce?

3. Salsa - house made? I'm going to guess you have the standard red/green offerings, BUT - is there also a house made pico de gallo for sale?

You are very welcome!

1. Griddle cooked steak. We use USDA Choice Arrachera (Skirt Steak)

2. We use marinated chicken breast and bone-out thighs slowly cooked in our kitchen.

3. We make our own tomatillo (green) and chile de arbol (red) sauce. My favorite is the green sauce, which will make you forget about pico de gallo!

Stop by and enjoy!

I stopped for lunch toady at La Internacional Supermercado. This is an operation similar to, but larger than Carneceria Leon. There is a fairly large area in the back of the store that is set up with a couple of stainless steel counters where you can sit and eat your tacos, but they seem to do a huge carry out business as well; probably more carry out than eat in, judging by the enormous bags of tacos that were being picked up by the to go customers who were lined up waiting for their orders to be filled. I was there in time to see them make a batch of carne asada from scratch. They start out with a sort of aluminum foil "tray" that completely covers the top of a gas grill. A triple layer of raw skirt steak (or maybe flank steak) is placed on the grill then heavily salted. Once the salt is applied, a full bottle of Real-lemon lemon juice is poured over the top of the steaks. The meat is then left to stew in this juice until done. It is then chopped up for tacos.

I was a bit disappointed in the asada tacos because I prefer mine with a bit more char than this method provided. I also had a carnitas taco which was better, though not in the same league as Carnitas Urupan or some of the other dedicated carnitas providers in town.

So, how were the portions? In a word, huge. These tacos are made with medium sized tortillas rather than the small ones used in most places, and they are generously filled and topped with onion and cilantro. If you find yourself in the area, La Internacional Supermercado is certainly a good enough place to get a taco fix, but I don't think I'll be making another special trip just to go there any time soon.

P.S. Both the read and green salsas were very good!

stevez wrote:I stopped for lunch toady at La Internacional Supermercado. This is an operation similar to, but larger than Carneceria Leon. There is a fairly large area in the back of the store that is set up with a couple of stainless steel counters where you can sit and eat your tacos, but they seem to do a huge carry out business as well; probably more carry out than eat in, judging by the enormous bags of tacos that were being picked up by the to go customers who were lined up waiting for their orders to be filled. I was there in time to see them make a batch of carne asada from scratch. They start out with a sort of aluminum foil "tray" that completely covers the top of a gas grill. A triple layer of raw skirt steak (or maybe flank steak) is placed on the grill then heavily salted. Once the salt is applied, a full bottle of Real-lemon lemon juice is poured over the top of the steaks. The meat is then left to stew in this juice until done. It is then chopped up for tacos.

I was a bit disappointed in the asada tacos because I prefer mine with a bit more char than this method provided. I also had a carnitas taco which was better, though not in the same league as Carnitas Urupan or some of the other dedicated carnitas providers in town.

So, how were the portions? In a word, huge. These tacos are made with medium sized tortillas rather than the small ones used in most places, and they are generously filled and topped with onion and cilantro. If you find yourself in the area, La Internacional Supermercado is certainly a good enough place to get a taco fix, but I don't think I'll be making another special trip just to go there any time soon.

P.S. Both the read and green salsas were very good!

Thanks for stopping by! I'm glad you think favorably about our place. As far as the char-style meat, we prefer to serve juicy, succulent meat rather than the charred variety, which has a tendency of being somewhat dry if not properly cooked. It's simply a different style of cooking the meat, which is in fact skirt steak. We hope to see you there again sometime!

pacostacos/lainter wrote:Thanks for stopping by! I'm glad you think favorably about our place. As far as the char-style meat, we prefer to serve juicy, succulent meat rather than the charred variety, which has a tendency of being somewhat dry if not properly cooked. It's simply a different style of cooking the meat, which is in fact skirt steak. We hope to see you there again sometime!

You sure you didn't go to school for a career in marketing?

Although I generally limit myself to the char grilled carne asada purveyors, I still wanna give your place a try. I have been disappointed a myriad of times by claims of the "Best Taco In Chicago." You guys are obviously doing something right, however. I'll get there soon. Thanks again, and merry xmas to you.

pacostacos/lainter wrote:
You are very welcome to stop by! I'll try to make sure one of us is there so we can give you a tour. If you can, please let me know a time frame you plan on stopping by.

Hi Alex. I didn't catch this before. Thanks for the invitation, i may take you up on it next time

So we stopped by the Pulaski store last night. I was surprised to see that you are in the old Izzy Rizzy's store. I spent many a day in there and on that block (grew up down the street.)

We ordered Tacos de Asada, Chicharron and the Chile Relleno. The Taco de Asada were AMAZING. Probably the best taco i've ever had and i'm not just saying that. The meat was far and away the best i've ever had on a taco. Chicharron & Chile Relleno were excellent as well. The sauces were very fresh and spicy enough to please me. My wife was a bit disappointed that there were no chips & salsa but I didn't mind one bit. We sometimes have a tendency to fill up on chips prior to a meal and i'm glad I was able to savor every bite of this meal.

We will definitely be back Great job to you, your family and your staff.

huberman wrote:We ordered Tacos de Asada, Chicharron and the Chile Relleno. The Taco de Asada were AMAZING. Probably the best taco i've ever had and i'm not just saying that. The meat was far and away the best i've ever had on a taco.

I just gotta know to get some perspective here -

Up until Paco's last night, where was the best place you had been to get tacos de carne asada?

seebee wrote:

huberman wrote:We ordered Tacos de Asada, Chicharron and the Chile Relleno. The Taco de Asada were AMAZING. Probably the best taco i've ever had and i'm not just saying that. The meat was far and away the best i've ever had on a taco.

I just gotta know to get some perspective here -

Up until Paco's last night, where was the best place you had been to get tacos de carne asada?

I just wanted to add my impressions, as I've been to Paco's a lot and I just went the other night to see I still hold the same opinions. I have to be honest and say that Paco's is not my favorite carne asada tacos as, like you, I prefer the char and extra dimension of flavor a grilled taco brings.

However, they are solid tacos, very "pure" in flavor, I would say. They are not heavily seasoned (the meat, although apparently it has some citrus squeezed on it, tastes very "clean." The meat is certainly of very good quality.) I like the tortillas they use. Bang for buck is excellent but, if I'm in the mood for steak tacos near the Pulaski location, I have to admit I will go to the smaller Zacatacos where the meat is grilled and a little heavier on the citrus (plus they've got deep fried potato tacos, which I love). Just a matter of personal preference.