Skip to main content

El Chapin ~ Colorado Springs, Colorado


food truck

Latest visit: Nov 2023

First visit: Nov 2021

As with Dr. Taco, our first encounter with El Chapin was their catering of the Colorado Springs Record Show. Mrs. RJG was helping me with the tables and ran outside to get us some tacos. We both thought they were delicious, but a little messy given the circumstances of handling records and customers (Dr. Taco is much better for this considering his fried chicken and fish). Even though they tasted great, I didn't feel I had a grasp on what their offering is. I never laid eyes on the truck itself since Mrs. RJG took care of the lunch for us. We vowed to visit him for a dedicated lunch or dinner. 

And that day finally happened, as we were seeking dinner on this relatively warm Thursday night. Bizarrely, as with Cogstone, my entire El Chapin experience has occurred during the first two weeks of November. El Chapin can be considered a "permanent" food truck, that is to say their location is mostly static. In fact they have something like a "food truck compound" with one dedicated to Mexican food and the other to hamburgers. And a third truck for catering which is no doubt what we experienced at the record show. You can find their location off of Fillmore not too far from El Paso. There's plenty of seating outside, as they built an awning on top of park benches and tables. Despite sitting in a parking lot, the whole setup is quite comfortable, as long as it's not too hot or cold outside. 

I tried three of their Street Tacos. And also grabbed a container of their hottest salsa. I thought the carne asada and grilled chicken were delicious, with the right amount of chopped onions and cilantro. They also throw chopped radishes and grilled onions on the side if so desired. The al pastor was a bit tough I thought. And while the sauce was blazing hot, it's a bit too thin to cover tacos and there's going to be runoff. Mrs. RJG had two street tacos (chicken and carne asada), rice, and beans. She enjoyed all of it. 

Bottom line: El Chapin goes into the RJG rotation. Many times I'm in this area around lunch time (as is Mrs. RJG), so this gives me/us another viable and tasty option. We also want to try their hamburgers.

11/13/21; 11/5/22; 11/2/23 (new entry)

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Five Guys Burgers and Fries ~ national chain : Colorado Springs, Colorado

Latest visit: Oct 2023 (Colorado Springs - Interquest) First visit: Jan 2007 (Reston, VA) Locations: 49 states + DC. Only Alaska is missing. There are 30 in Colorado (4 in the Springs). That's +3 from last year. Texas has 68 (our former locale of Southlake is closed, so Hurst would have been the closest). There are 123 in California which is their largest state presence. The original Reston location that I first went to is still going.  In what appears to be a recurring theme, I state each year this will be my last visit to Five Guys. Only to return anyway. This year's excuse is I wanted to try their new location, which very recently opened up close to our house. This is definitely the closest we've ever lived to a Five Guys - even the Reston location was further from my office at the time. And I thought maybe it would make a good choice for a weekday lunch while working from home, thus putting Five Guys back into the rotation. I put that idea to the test here this Saturda...
2 comments
Read more

Denver's Old School Italian Restaurants

I know, I know... I haven't posted anything in 6 months. You were checking back every week, then every month and now I've fallen completely off your radar. Sorry about that. My only lame excuse is that I've been "saving up" for a good one. I've been wanting to write about Denver's Italian restaurants since we returned part-time last year. And you all know how the RJG feels about this style of restaurant . As someone who grew up in Dallas, perhaps I've been more drawn to cities that embrace their history rather than completely demolish it. Only recently has Dallas become more acutely aware of their past. Previously, any buildings not in use have been razed as fast as possible, to make way for the next brand new shopping center - all in the latest architecture naturally. Contrarily you have cities like St. Louis that are 19th and 20th century industrial ghost towns - places frozen in time because for most everyone who could, they just up and left to ...
8 comments
Read more

Pietro's Italian ~ Dallas, Texas ***CLOSED***

Last visit: Feb 2016 First visit: Sometime in 1984 When Mr. Music told me this earlier in the year, my heart sunk. It was reason enough to stop talking and writing about restaurants. All I can say is this: We did give you advance notice. The below was published on  March 28, 2010 , so Pietro gave you a good 7 years to check it out. If you missed it, then I'm sorry to say there is no replacement. No other place like it. A part of me went with it too... January 2014 update: Pietro's is as magnificent as ever. Mrs RJG and I just had another exquisite meal here. It remains my all-time favorite restaurant even after 30 years of going here. I beg and urge you all to try it at least once if you have a hankering for Old School Italian food. I'm sure it will not be here forever. Pietro must be close to 80 now, and it's hard to imagine the restaurant without him. We try to go 3 to 4 times a year, almost always on a Saturday or Sunday because of the traffic to get to inner Dalla...
12 comments
Read more