Taco Turf Wars
(614)'s street meat banditos battle over their favorites
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Photo by Chris Casella Junior's is the Best Taco Truck in Town. No, Seriously. Seriously.
By Eric Pacella
In the great taco truck battle for Fifth Avenue, it seems that the North has won again, just like we did during The Great Unpleasantness, and just like we certainly will if the South ever does rise again (it won't). Junior's offers a superior selection of meats for your consumption, and of superior quality as well.
Tacos ($1.50) are offered with chicken, carne asada steak, lengua (beef tongue), carnitas (plain pork), al pastor (marinated pork), and chorizo (Mexican-style pork sausage). The pulled chicken is tender and juicy; the carne asada is rich and flavorful. The real star of the show, however, is the al pastor. This shepherd's style pork absolutely bursts with chile flavor to a point that seems impossible, as if the Junior's crew had somehow managed to consolidate the marinated pork flavor from two pigs into the space where one had formerly occupied - I daresay it's the best in town. (Insider tip: ask for Junior's secret seventh meat, barbacoa. Absent from the menu but available more days than not, Junior's barbacoa is beef, seasoned in the same way as the al pastor pork. I like to eat the two side-by-side, or if I'm feeling wild, I break the laws of nature and mix the two together. Amazing.)
More adventurous eaters shouldn't miss out on the lengua; Junior's beef tongue tastes much like the carne asada steak, with a slightly more palatable texture, and a bit juicer to boot.
Not to be forgotten are the tortas ($5). Tortas can be ordered with any of the meats listed above - yes, even the secret seventh - and consist of a large soft roll adorned with tomatoes, lettuce, onion, sour cream, and mayonnaise. Tortas can be ordered vegetarian as well, with sauteed zucchini instead of meat, giving a bit more body to the sandwich. If your girlfriend is vegetarian and you aren't, you can even order your torta with half veggies and half the real way. Wash it all down with a Jarritos soda ($1.50) or get your food to go and grab a sixer of Tecate from the convenience store next door.
Cafe Davanne Whips Junior's Asada
By David S. Lewis
Eric needs to unscrew his too-tight jeans and try some real tacos - and the good news is that he won't even have to clip his shoes in the pedals of his fixie, because it's just across the street.
On the south side of West Fifth Avenue, right next to Las Maravillas Mexican Market, you can get the most authentic Mexican tacos this side of the border, and proprietor Angel prepares every salsa fresh every day: from chipotle-based heat masters to refreshing and tangy pico with fresh jalapenos, lime and cilantro, evoking seaside playas equatorial sol. Lengua? Is that the best you got, Junior? My boy Angel is smoking chivo (goat) until it's so tender it melts in the double-layered corn tortilla shell ($1.50 each, weekly special). I have known a few goats, and I even dated a chupacabra for a little while, yet I have never experienced the ovid prepared half so well.
Or is your mood stuck on la playa? Try the tostada de ceviche ($3.50), a masterfully prepared cold tilapia salad served on a fried corn tostada. Firm chunks of the light fish soak in the juices of the aforementioned limes and jalapenos, with the tart tang of cilantro delivering a punch that is both refresco y caliente.
Tough to eat on the go, Cafe Davanne provides a table and umbrella next to the cart, and when you are finished, head inside the market and get yourself a big-ass belt buckle, a pair of boots, and a Chalino Sanchez CD, and one of Sergio's wife's tamales for a midnight snack. They're in the igloo cooler. You wouldn't know nothing about that, would you, Eric?
Originally Published: July 1, 2010
