You forgot the Lake St. strip near 25th Ave. There's about dozen more within a few blocks of there.

Cogito wrote:You forgot the Lake St. strip near 25th Ave. There's about dozen more within a few blocks of there.

Thanks for the heads up!

I did another map thing and on the stretch between 1st and Mannheim and came up with another 19 places.

We might have to save those for another a-Thon.

Wholly Frijoles! Love the place. I don't like carne asada tacos in general and that's all I get at WF. They are excellent!
Plus they have the best tortilla soup ever.

Wholly Frijoles
3908 W Touhy Ave
Lincolnwood, IL 60712
(847) 329-9810

Panther in the Den wrote:Boo! He grabbed the tortilla and reached into the bottom of the 'Bucket of Grease' to fill and to make matters worse he popped it in the microwave to put a bit of extra heat on it (causing the outer tortilla to stick to the paper)...

..The meat was rubbery but the 'Bucket of Grease' managed not to wash off too much of the char flavor..

...My conclusion? Most of these places will char-grill the meat but after cooking it will end up in the infamous 'Bucket of Grease' dumbing down the char flavor and if the heat is high enough, boiling the meat to bring out the rubber texture. Not a rubbery-ness of gristle or fat but of a meat incorrectly cooked (or in these cases, held).

In most cases it will be a matter of timing. How much time spent in the 'Bucket of Grease'.

We should be seeking out places that grill the meat fresh to order.

As soon as I read this post, a light went on in my head explaining my recent experience at Carnicerias Guanajuato. Like PitD, I had been moved by this thread to explore new venues for char-grilled carne asado tacos and made my way to this little taqueria ensconced within the midst of a grocery story. Guanajuato has garnered a great deal of praise over the years on this board as well as many others.

I really wasn't impressed. I timed my arrival to coincide with the heat of the lunchtime rush, which in retrospect, may have been a poor decision. Once inside the grocery store, I paid for a six-pack of Bohemia, marched over to the taco counter, and placed an order for 2 carne asada and 1 carnitas tacos dressed only in cilantro and onions with limes on the side. Since I'm not as versed as others, namely PitD, in noting the details of taco preparation, I didn't pay attention as to where my tacos came from, especially as I was soaking in the atmosphere of a new destination. There was also a sizable line of blue-collar workers patiently waiting in line behind me, so I scarpered out of the way after ordering.

The tacos were alright, nicely flavored, not overly chewy and finely chopped, but totally without any evidence of char. The carnitas were dry and a total loss. The salsa might have been Old El Paso, it was so unremarkable. Both came on a double layer of corn tortillas that were more coarsely ground than I am used to (though this is not necessarily a bad thing by itself). This can't be right, I thought, Guanajuato has a better rep than this. And so, I ordered 2 more carne asadas plus a lengua taco to get a larger sampling size. It was then that I noticed the grill man upending a pail of meat on the griddle top to accomodate a large group of workers who had just placed orders. Not surprisingly, my second order of tacos were similarly underwhelming and the lengua taco, I found to be too greasy to boot.

So thank you PitD for teaching me about the 'bucket o' grease' technique. It's certainly something I'll have to watch out for in the future. BTW, one of the countermen noticed me sucking down a Bohemia and sadly shook his head, murmuring "no bebidas." I resigned myself to finishing only one bottle and ordering a 16 oz. carrot juice for $2 (just an FYI to all the guys out there like me who find tacos and beer irresistible).

The next day, I marched over to Taqueria Asadero for lunch, determined to wash the taste of boring, greasy tacos out of my mouth. I'm deeply grateful to the members of this board for introducing me to Asadero. I've been so many times in the past few months that I'm a little embarrassed every time I show up now. I have never gotten anything but a freshly prepared taco from there that wasn't both flavorful and chock full o' char. It was the first place I ordered a chicken taco that blew me away. Unlike the ones Seebee mentions from Ino's, these seem to be primarily white meat, but they are always juicy and crispy at the same time. I'm always torn between how many to order of those as opposed to the superb carne asadas they offer. Plus, the tomatillo-based salsa has plenty of zing and I can guzzle the beer I bring in with nary an eyelash batted.

I've also tried the al pastor and chorizo with less success. The al pastor was so char-grilled that it was a mass of crunchy bits, but the marinated flavor had been masked behind a layer of carbon. Definitely not on a level with Mi Tierra Caliente, but still very good nonethess. The chorizo was alright though a bit salty, but I was a tad put off by the amount of orange grease it exuded (I thought it was on par with a slice of NY pizza). Chorizo tacos are probably not my game anyway.

These are minor quibbles however. I will always return for the carne asada and chicken tacos. El Asadero never fails to put a smile on my face.

Carnicerias Guanajuato #3
3140 N. California Ave (off Belmont)
(773) 267-7739‎

Taqueria El Asadero
2213 W. Montrose Ave (& Lincoln)
(773) 583-5563
Mon. - Thu., 10 am - 10 pm
Fri. - Sun., 10 am - 12 am

* BTW, I always make sure to tip the cashier before paying -- I seem to end up with bigger tacos.

titus wong wrote:As soon as I read this post, a light went on in my head explaining my recent experience at Carnicerias Guanajuato . . .
I really wasn't impressed.

Ah, this is too bad. I've found Guanajuato #3 to be wonderful, but inconsistent. My sample size, though, given how close I live to #3, is pretty large.

RAB and I usually go for the carne asada burritos. And, when they're great, they're great - - delicious, charred meat, with little to no gristle. A schmear of refried beans, ample avocado slices, tomatoes, onions. At under $4 and quite large, it's a steal.

I think your guess is right - - they were so busy that they couldn't keep their standards up and feed the crowds. We've also had bad luck going late in the day. Before or after the lunch rush is probably the way to go. I hope you'll try it again if you're in the neighborhood. We've tasted our fair share of carne asada burritos and have found these to be among the best.

We've also enjoyed #3's carnitas - - but we bought by the pound and got to pick out the pieces we wanted. Btw, #3 will sell just about anything by the pound. We recently had a small party and bought two pounds of carnitas, a pound of carne asada, and a bunch of salsa. From the grocery section, we bought avocados, limes, cilantro, fresh tortillas, etc. We set up a little taco bar. Gotta tell you, I was surprised how well the meats reheated in the microwave. The taco bar was a huge hit with the crowd - - they couldn't believe their good luck. We couldn't believe we fed ten people for under $25.

Ronna

titus wong wrote:I'm deeply grateful to the members of this board for introducing me to Asadero.[/b] . . . The al pastor was so char-grilled that it was a mass of crunchy bits, but the marinated flavor had been masked behind a layer of carbon.]

If I happened to be one of the folks who guided you Asadero, you're welcome. The only thing preventing their tacos from achieving Platonic Taco Ideal (PTI) status is the tortillas. They are perfectly fine, but nothing compared to the handmade ones they serve at Taqueria Uptown or Taqueria Tayahua, for example. I understand how one might not love the high level of char on the al pastor, but I disagree that it masks the flavor. I snapped a picture of the taco I had there on Sunday:



There are a few highly regarded taquerias in town that I haven't tried yet, but for now El Asadero is at the top of my list.

Whilst roaming Bridgeview and environs for my piece on the middle eastern food in that obscure suburb in this week's Time Out, I spotted a highly promising sign:



The fact that it was on a former Pizza Hut might not be taken as so promising. What was promising was the promise of "real charcoal." A taco made of truly charcoal-cooked meat is a wonderful thing, full of charred edges and smoky beefy flavor, but I don't know of any such place in Chicago, indeed one of the things I pine for here is a place like the one I visited in Playa del Carmen:



where incredibly fresh arrachera, skirt steak, was grilled over coals and served up by the ton.



This place may or may not be related to other places called Arturo's around town, notably one near Milwaukee & Western, which I've never had a burning need to try, belonging somewhere in the middle, apparently, of local chains. I suppose that's an oversight, but there's a lot of Mexican out there and Arturo's gave off a Los Dos Sombreros vibe, seemed aimed squarely at the need-a-gutbomb-at-2-am crowd.

But we went in, and I ordered tacos, two steak and one pastor:



We can dispose of the pastor instantly, it sucked and certainly never came anywhere near a pastor cone. The tacos tasted pretty good... I could almost believe in the charcoal cooking, there was definitely char and a smoky taste, but I kept waiting for it go beyond what you could produce on a good gas grill with juices dripping down and sizzling back up... and it just didn't do it. Maybe, I thought, it's been reheated, which would be a major error with freshly grilled beef, but could dampen the flavor. There was flank steak on the menu, maybe that would stand a better chance of being freshly cooked.

But I took the opportunity of visiting the bathroom so I could snoop on the kitchen. And all I saw back there was a standard gas grill, no signs of charcoal grilling like actual flame, ashen grates, serious internal smoke ventilation systems, big bags labeled "hardwood lump," whatever. I tasted little and saw nothing to support the claims of the banner on the top of the building. Maybe they're grilling it out back on a barbecue and then holding it; that would reconcile the taste with the signage and with what I observed. But I just don't know.

Arturo's isn't bad by any means, but it isn't the place I'd hoped it would be—and more importantly, that they said they were. That's a sin that makes it hard for me to want to go back, much as I'd love to have my suspicions overturned.

Arturo's Mexican Restaurant
7260 W 79th St
Bridgeview, IL 60455
(708) 458-8004

I happened to need some gas today and was at the corner of Lake and 1st in Maywood.



Mmmm... Tacos?



Sharing a building with a gas station my hopes were not high but I had a few hours until dinner.

I placed and order for a steak taco and checked out the cooking area. No flame broiling, no El Pastor spit. A steam table (IE: Bucket O Grease) and a griddle.



A little light on the meat. A little heavy on the onion and cilantro.



The meat was tender (!) and no hint of char. Not that I expected any. Lightly seasoned.

Meh.

Carnitas Don Alfredo and Citgo Gas Station
15 N 1st Ave, Maywood
(708) 343-3351‎

Panther, are those steak tacos, or what?

Cogito wrote:Panther, are those steak tacos, or what?

Yup! I have updated my post to reflect. Thanks for the heads up!

One thing (maybe) to the positive... They did advertise that their speciality was 'Fried Pork' IE: Carnitas which is menitoned to be made freshly daily.

Maybe if in the area again, need gas and have a few hours before dinner...

Yeah, they really specialize in carnitas. I haven't tried the one you visited, but the carnitas at their place on 25th & Lake is pretty good.

The best of the three close Don Alfredo locations in my experience is the "little" one (on the corner) on 25th and Lake. There is another giant industrial one just set back from the corner to the west of the freestanding one, the facilities of which apparently allow them to have carnitas most every day (they used to have them just a few days a week). But the little one's griddle, cooks, methods, whatever, just seem to produce a slightly better product out of whatever's brought over from the big one. Steak at that one is as suggested - tender and relatively flavorful but poorly charred and therefore not as texturally interesting.

Cemitas Puebla!!!

Authentic, FRESH, best cheap eats Mexican in the city! I'll even put Chef Tony's food up against Bayless and Satkoff--it's that good!

3619 W North Ave
http://www.cemitaspuebla.com
773.772.8435

LoveMeSomeGrub wrote:Cemitas Puebla!!!

Authentic, FRESH, best cheap eats Mexican in the city! I'll even put Chef Tony's food up against Bayless and Satkoff--it's that good!

3619 W North Ave
http://www.cemitaspuebla.com
773.772.8435

Shout it out!

I agree that this is one of the best hidden gems in the city.

Welcome to LTH!

Share your love here.

Santander wrote:The best of the three close Don Alfredo locations in my experience is the "little" one (on the corner) on 25th and Lake. There is another giant industrial one just set back from the corner to the west of the freestanding one, the facilities of which apparently allow them to have carnitas most every day (they used to have them just a few days a week). But the little one's griddle, cooks, methods, whatever, just seem to produce a slightly better product out of whatever's brought over from the big one. Steak at that one is as suggested - tender and relatively flavorful but poorly charred and therefore not as texturally interesting.

I was talking to one of the employees about their operation at 25th & Lake. I was told that eventually they plan to phase out the food sales at the small place on the corner in order to expand the kitchen area, so that they can make more/different items. The restaurant at the end of the strip mall apparently does not have a real kitchen, and most of the serious food is cooked on the corner and then transported to the other store. Any differences in the food between them is probably just the result of something being more freshly made at the corner store. I suspect that the employees at the smaller place are probably more experienced too.

Mike G wrote:A taco made of truly charcoal-cooked meat is a wonderful thing, full of charred edges and smoky beefy flavor, but I don't know of any such place in Chicago,

Mike,

Have you not been reading this thread?

Are you saying someone besides Maxwell Street one day a week, and similar weekend stands outside groceries or the like (ie the carniceria near Pulaski on Diversey whose name escapes me at the moment), is using actual charcoal? It seems to me that most if not all of the time, when someone starts out saying charcoal, they turn out to mean gas grill (as in this example where it was changed). This is precisely the confusion I'm trying to fight by attempting to make visual confirmation of the means of cooking.

What places in this thread are confirmed as truly burning real hardwood charcoal? Any (besides Maxwell Street?)

Mike G wrote:What was promising was the promise of "real charcoal." A taco made of truly charcoal-cooked meat is a wonderful thing, full of charred edges and smoky beefy flavor, but I don't know of any such place in Chicago, indeed one of the things I pine for here is a place like the one I visited in Playa del Carmen:

I think he is referring to meat cooked over charcoal. Also his statement qualifying link was broken (I fixed it in the quote above).

Thanks, Panther. Exactly, not that you can't make damn good tacos using a gas grill, just as you can burgers, but one actually burning charcoal 7 days a week would be really special. I have not observed one that does, however, and so far as I can tell, this thread does not indicate one beyond the weekend-only setups here and there.

I was curious and Googled and found this on Google Maps...

Taco Burrito King‎
811 W Jackson Blvd, Chicago, IL‎ - (312) 831-0633‎

"Anything grilled is the way to go here. They've got a real charcoal grill going in the restaurant, which really does improve the food compared to, say, ..."

... but clicking on the links and even trying to track down the Yelp review proved fruitless (charless? ). Further Googling produced nada. It might be worth checking out though as they have several locations throughout Chicago.

Probably too good to be true.

El Pollo Giro in Aurora also uses charcoal but that is not Chicago.

It shouldn't be that much of a stretch for a Mexican restaurant to do this as there are a few Italian Beef stands that use charcoal for their sausage.

Well. The Cermak Steak Taco-a-Thon is posted in the Events Calendar thread.

Sounds like fun!

Dropped by Las Asadas yesterday at noon, on my quest to devour the best carne asada tacos Chicago has to offer. Like I remembered them to be, they were dripping with juice, and as tender as one can expect skirt steak could be. I only noticed a little char, but there was no doubt that these succulent creations had come off a live grill with no intervening time spent languishing in the dreaded bucket o' grease. The first two were wrapped in paper only but the last two were also sheathed in tin foil. From the occasional "ding" I noticed between chews, a microwave was in operation, which would explain why my final 2 tacos' coarsely ground tortillas had melded with the paper. Still, very good and well worth the visit. I noticed 5 or 6 Streets and San workers crowding the cramped counter space when I walked in, which is always a good sign.

I also had a chicken taco, and although I thought the portion generous, the breast meat was chopped a little too large for my liking, lightly seared, and a bit dry. The green salsa on offer only had a modicum of heat. For the beer drinkers out there, I know from past visits that BYOB is not allowed, though the cashier kindly permitted me to finish the tallboy I had smuggled in. No public washroom is in evidence, yet the same cashier let me use one in the prep area with only a little cajoling (it might help to tip beforehand).

They're still at the address below for the next few weeks before they move a block south across the street to Western and Dickens.

2072 N. Western Ave.
(773) 235-5538

One last shout out to Tapler: at your urging, I ordered a few more al pastor tacos from El Asadero. These were less carbonized than my previous sampling, but still very crispy, and I have to admit, pretty damn good. They may make it yet into my regular rotation.

titus wong wrote:One last shout out to Tapler: at your urging, I ordered a few more al pastor tacos from El Asadero. These were less carbonized than my previous sampling, but still very crispy, and I have to admit, pretty damn good. They may make it yet into my regular rotation.

Good to hear. Just curious, do you ask for lime with those? I am a bit of a lime addict, but I think it goes particularly well with these tacos.

titus wong wrote:Dropped by Las Asadas yesterday at noon, on my quest to devour the best carne asada tacos Chicago has to offer. Like I remembered them to be, they were dripping with juice, and as tender as one can expect skirt steak could be. I only noticed a little char, but there was no doubt that these succulent creations had come off a live grill with no intervening time spent languishing in the dreaded bucket o' grease. I also had a chicken taco, and although I thought the portion generous, the breast meat was chopped a little too large for my liking, lightly seared, and a bit dry. The green salsa on offer only had a modicum of heat.

While I also have much love for Asadero, when Asadas is on, it's the one I point ppl to the most. Of course, char levels can vary, but I've had taco perfection there more often than any other spots that I 've been to. The salsa also varies widely. Sometimes, it SEARS you, while other times, it's just green, limey, salty, water. When the meat is on, and the salsa is burnin, the microwave tortilla method is easily forgiven imo. The chicken, is really not the star here, and I don't think I've gotten it more than twice. They do a decent barbacoa, however, and while I'm not a lengua fan, a lot of their clientele get it as well as the asada. The platillo de carne asada is a pretty decent bargain if you're hungry.

titus wong wrote:One last shout out to Tapler: at your urging, I ordered a few more al pastor tacos from El Asadero. These were less carbonized than my previous sampling, but still very crispy, and I have to admit, pretty damn good. They may make it yet into my regular rotation.

If you are looking for some awesome al pastor and isn't all that far away give Burrito Amigo a try.

Burrito Amigo
5238 W. Grand

Please be aware that they have the spit going only from 5:00pm to 9:00pm otherwise it is the old Bucket-o-Grease.

Panther in the Den wrote:

titus wong wrote:One last shout out to Tapler: at your urging, I ordered a few more al pastor tacos from El Asadero. These were less carbonized than my previous sampling, but still very crispy, and I have to admit, pretty damn good. They may make it yet into my regular rotation.

If you are looking for some awesome al pastor and isn't all that far away give Burrito Amigo a try.

Burrito Amigo
5238 W. Grand

Please be aware that they have the spit going only from 5:00pm to 9:00pm otherwise it is the old Bucket-o-Grease.

Just hope they don't drip horchata in your tacos. I have not been back since this adventure.

tapler wrote:Good to hear. Just curious, do you ask for lime with those? I am a bit of a lime addict, but I think it goes particularly well with these tacos.

Limes absolutely, and I agree that that the citrus draws out the flavor of the marinade. The tartness is still fresh in my mind, having just returned from lunch there a scant hour ago .

El Milagro on Blue Island is also really great for carne asada, although I have to admit I almost always get the Milenesa Tacos.

I can vouch for Tio Luis as well. Great taste, no salsa really needed.

Since we're on the topic of Tio Luis, does anyone know of any good places to procure beer nearby? Googling brings up Liquorama (which seems to have a promising selection of microbrews) but it's about a mile away so it would be sort of a hassle, especially as I will be arriving by bus. A nearby bodega hawking tallboys would be ideal. TIA.