Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Yucatan Taco Stand Tequila Bar & Grill ~


As of 11/29/24, Yucatan Taco Stand only exists in Oklahoma City.

First visit: Nov 2011 (Southlake - closed)

In the early days of the RJG blog, Yucatan was the most requested place for us to visit. This place was all the rage in 2008. A quick check over to the excellent Fort Worth Hole in the Wall blog shows that no less than 38 comments were left for his post. I don't think the RJG has seen 38 comments combined. We never did make it over to the Ft. Worth location on Magnolia, and dallied around long enough for one to show up right here in NE Tarrant. Typical RJG - always a day late and a dollar short. We're sooooooooooo not hip.

This trip represents our second visit, the first was earlier this year. Yucatan is a relatively new "Taco Stand" concept along the lines of Fuzzy's Taco Shop and the various "Baja" designated places. These are gussied up taco trucks, and when you get the final tally, you realize that this isn't your typical Tio Juan's Taco Hut. But it's an easy out to say this place is just for yuppies, and if you want real tacos, you need to hit the bricks in the barrio. There's room for both kinds, and for what Yucatan does, they do it very well.

So high end tacos are the order of the day (they also have burritos and specialty Mexican platters). I think their Tempura fish is outstanding. A large crispy crusted slab of delicious fried batter lay in the layered flour tortillas with cabbage, onions, and a few other goodies. The Tequila Lime chicken is also quite good - all white meat chicken shredded very finely. We had the ground beef on our first visit, but it was kind of bland to be honest. Their tacos are quite large, especially compared to a place like Fuzzy's, so two is plenty if you also get chips and salsa. The chips are lightly dusted with chili powder, and the roasted salsa is delicious with a mild kick. Of course, the RJG insisted on having the "stupid sauce" (habanero) on the side for his tacos. I like that it comes out heated (temperature) - though it's debatable how spicy it really is. It's hot, but hardly "stupid" hot. Believe me, no one knows stupid like the RJG... both figuratively and literally. I also had a frozen margarita to wash it down with. A very potent mixture, and a good deal at $6 (on this front, they destroy Taco Diner).

The downside is this: Yucatan isn't cheap. For the meal I described above (wife had the same two kind of tacos but with a water), it was $25. That's without tip. I mean seriously, it's only a fast food place. A QSR in restaurant speak. I feel funny paying $25 for two at the cash register. I guess I spent a wasted youth at Taco Bell, pulling dollar bills out of my front pocket to cover the $3.50 it cost for 6 tacos and a soft drink. I know, it's hardly the same, but it has a surreal effect when the lady says "That'll be $25". Really? Now to be fair, it's more expensive than Fuzzy's because the tacos are much larger. Are they double the size, like they are in price? No. But they are very good, and dare I say, worth the money.

Maybe Yucatan is not the kind of place we'd go on a regular basis, but it's worth stopping by a few times a year.

11/23/11 (new entry)

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