Ain't No Taco (Like the One I Got)

Some girls at work were ordering take out at a Bagel shop mind you that had a menu the size of a respectable Greek deli. The orders ranged from burgers to some fruit dessert and tacos. Of course I was all ears when I heard tacos. I needed to see what lurked. So the food came and one by one the girls ate lunch from this shared bag of mystery treats. I followed my coworker who ordered the tacos, got my salad from the staff caf' and began my inspection. She opened the box, three soft chicken tacos, thickly packed with pico and a side of salsa verde, looked appetizing to me. I would have been satisfied. She right away claimed they were way too dry to eat. This girl is from Trinidad and said the tacos from Yummy Taco were 'much better'. I scowled. Yummy Taco? Was she serious? These are the Asian run 'Tex-Mex' joints that existed before Mexicans came pouring into NYC years and years ago. The food is okay but certainly nothing to aspire to. But I could see liking it I guess. I'm not a food snob. I've been known to secretly enjoy an Olive Garden lunch. It is plenty different though really but then again so is a lot of the types of Mexican you get in the real restaurants here as much is mixed with other Latin cultures.

And then there is the sort of irony that there are tons of Chinese folks making Mexican fast food when you go to almost any other type of restaurant 99% of the time its Mexicans in the kitchen.

But there is definitely a good batch of new places on the rise. Mexicans now claim the 3rd largest Latin numbers in NYC. They say many of the people are coming from the rural vicinity of Mexico City. But most of the restaurants I notice are featuring Oaxacan fare.

Well, I forgot to mention Z, my coworker ended up putting yes, ketchup on her tacos to 'give them some moisture' she said, which I felt was almost sacrilegious. I couldn't look. I immediately raced home to undo the dirty deed by making some homemade ground pork soft tacos with fresh pico de gallo and avocado chunks in lime. I made my mom's Mexican rice too which I haven't always gotten right, but this time was off the charts, yo! I took my time. Seasoned the meat with just the right amounts of whole cumin seeds, onions and a touch of cayenne. Adding a bit of water really blends the spices and helps moisturize the meat. Made some cheesy doctored up refried beans from a can to serve alongside and there it was. What I needed to see and taste. A delicious properly done soft pork taco (albeit my own midwestern, 3rd generation Mexican memory take on 'right'). Every bite brought me sweet retribution.