Redeye gets its food on

I don't normally read those youth-oriented free papers the big papers put out, but yesterday my wife brought home Redeye and what should I find but a big picture of Honey 1's Robert Sr. in an article on how to make different kinds of grilled food and where to get it if you don't want to make it. (Considering that his fellows on the page are such luminaries as Shawn McClain, it's pretty cool that he's the one they showed a picture of.)

So today I was probably more inclined to note what was on their front, and sure enough there was a piece on Chicago's Best Tacos! Which, happily, does not suck and limit itself to Lincoln Park. In fact, generated by reader suggestions and then narrowed down by a tasting panel, the list uncovers a couple of promising spots, mostly on the south side, that have not been discussed anywhere before that I know of, including here:

1. Tio Luis, 3856 S. Archer
2. La Pasadita, 1132 N. Ashland location
3. La Rosita, Crystal Lake
4. Valentina's, 4506 W. 63rd
5. Zacataco's (good thing they didn't try to take a picture there!), 6224 Cermak, Berwyn
Honorable mentions: El Cid #2 (cough, cough) and La Casa de Campo (Bensenville)

Check it out-- it's free! (Looks, incidentally, like roughly the same piece is or has been in the non-free Trib.)

That list also included Jalepeno Grille on Rte. 31 in St. Charles which I drive by frequently but have never stopped. I noticed Monday that they have a sign up that said "authentica comida" so I'll have to try sometime, last stop there about 3 years ago it was still a hot dog/burger/beef kind of a place. Not too far away, and worthy of mention, is Mike & Miguel's on Anderson Blvd. in Geneva, also a mix of things (beefs/burgers, etc) but if you try their tacos ask for them "Mexican style", they have a pretty good al pastor without smothering it in yellow cheese and lettuce.

Jalepeno Grille
602 Geneva Road (Rte. 31)
St. Charles
630-587-1918

Mike & Miguel's
308 Anderson Blvd.
Geneva
630-262-1651

The same article was published in the Trib's pre-weekend section (whose name escapes me).

They limited themselves to steak tacos, and it also included a short article by Steve Dahl about how much he loves tacos, a trick for eating them without spilling and that his favorite spot is still off the radar.

Lastly, they said that "tacos de ojo" refer to being as good looking as a taco... which seems like faint praise, and ignorant of the Maxwell Street delicacy.

I saw this in the trib and I was pleased with this article for the simple reason that it's nice to see major media outlets recognizing that the food landscape in Chicago is well-defined by the plethora of taquerias that blanket the city and not simply by pizza, hot dogs, and steaks.

I was also pleased that they described the proper garnish for a taco.

JoelF wrote:They limited themselves to steak tacos...

This was my biggest disappointment with the article.

If I wanted to find the best sandwich in Chicago and just went around trying roast beef sandwiches, all I would find would be the best roast beef sandwich. If you want to find the best taco in town, rather than the best steak taco, you've got to try some other fillings.

Best,
Michael

eatchicago wrote:

JoelF wrote:They limited themselves to steak tacos...

This was my biggest disappointment with the article.

You're right. Other varieties should have at least meritted a sidebar.

But steak does provide an excellent middle-of-the-road, approachable taco for the uninitiated. Even with Chipotle offering a "barbacoa" variety (which is exceedingly bland and pasty), that and birria can seem scarier. Similarly, chicken, with those little shreds -- let alone strange charred bits on al pastor -- may seem less appetizing or safe than a grilled piece of beef. And that doesn't count the fact that most pollo tastes like, well, chicken, and not the boneless, skinnless chicken shmoo most Americans are used to.

They don't even get into the varieties of steak, be it hacked bits on a griddle, a fajitas-like al carbon like Frontera's been serving for decades, or a thin, chewy cecina.

In my brief read I also did not see any mention made of whether any of these places made their own tortillas. There also seemed to be a mixing of Taquerias and Mexican restaurants both of which serve tacos, of course, but they really are quite different beasts.

A perfect taco is on a homemade tortilla, soft and corn of course, with a mound of rich, flavorful meat, and a sprinkling of cilantro and onions. Good, hot salsa is also necessary, but the meat and taco should stand up well even without the extra kick. A couple of weeks ago, I would have said my preferred filling is pastor, or maybe carnitas, but ByBys tinga and El Pulpo's chicken were both very good and have caused me to re-evaluate my assumptions. Steak can be good, but is not as flavorful and interesting as these other fillings. It relies more on the garnishes and hot sauce.

Not sure if I like Lomo and Cesina tacos - the slab of meat in the tortilla does not work as well. And barbacoa and birria work better as stews with good tortillas on the side - they do not have the right texture for tacos, being a little too soft. My opinion, anyway, as I work through my version of the LTH Taqueria project.

The Tribune made a completely valid assumption as to what would be most interesting to their readers, I think and proceeded accordingly. But it would not be my choice, and I do think they missed the boat in not taking into account the tortillas. Having said that, it was a nice piece of reporting.

Does the tortilla really have to be corn, though? I'm quite fond of the tacos de sabinas at Nuevo Leon that are made on their warm, handmade flour tortillas.

Sure, corn is easier to find in Chicago, but I'm not sure it's inherently superior

dicksond wrote:A perfect taco is on a homemade tortilla, soft and corn of course...

d,

As a personal conception of the perfect taco, sure -- there's no arguing with personal preferences and I will readily and heartily agree that a fresh, expertly made corn tortilla is sublime, but I've noticed that there is a sort of anti-flour tortilla prejudice among some folks these days which doesn't make sense to me. Maybe that's not the case here but the inclusion of the phrase "of course" above seems to express an assumption of a recognised universal superiority of the one type over the other to which I do not subscribe.

Over a very large part of Mexican territory, flour tortillas are used on a regular basis and in norteño cooking, they are the appropriate tortilla to be used in a vast array of traditional dishes. Even beyond the real norteño zone, flour tortillas are made and have their special place in the cuisine -- I remember a good friend of mine whose family was from Jalisco telling me of what a treat it was when his mother would make homemade flour tortillas.

Of course, just as is the case with corn tortillas, the quality of flour tortillas varies a lot and a bad flour tortilla can be quite a sad thing. But if I'm eating a plate of carne adovada or making a taco with New Mexican style carnitas (not the same thing as the pork product of Michoacan), I want a good flour tortilla. And the aforementioned tacos de Sabinas with a corn tortilla would just be weird...

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?p=73158#73158

As with fresh pasta vs. dried pasta vs. polenta, there is no 'better' to my mind; they all have their appropriate places within their traditional culinary context.

Antonius