Mission Taqueria

1516 Sansom Street
Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 383-1200
Website

I have been to Mission Taqueria a few times, specifically for Happy Hour, and I have yet to be disappointed. Located near my favorite Center City watering hole, Oscar's Tavern, and newcomer falafel/tahini shake spot Goldie, this upstairs eatery is easy to walk past if you are not paying attention. The discount offerings make this a fantastic place for after work boozing, and the snacks are all on point as well.

$2 tacos include carnitas and chicken, and they are each a steal.

The carnitas touts pulled pork, salsa verde, and pickled red onion on a small, well made corn tortilla. Simple taco heaven.

The chicken is garnished with guajillo-garlic glaze, salsa fresca, and cotija cheese. Tender, smoky chicken, and cool cotija mix well. Another $2 winner.

The wings have a pineapple habanero glaze, and are only $5 for the 5-7pm drinking slot. A very reasonable price for the complex and well rendered wings.

Likely my favorite of the lot was the fresh fried chicharron with spicy queso seasoning. Like eating the best cheeto you have ever tasted. Hot, light, extremely crispy. and salty, the ultimate drinking snack. $4 and worth every cent. Seriously addictive. However be careful, as it IS possible to have too many of these, but it will cost you about $12.

La Peña Mexicana

609 W Cypress St
Kennett Square, PA 19348
(610) 925-2651
Facebook

Kennett Square is widely known (at least in this region) as the mushroom capital of the world. What is also well known (if you have spent any time there) is that some/most of the the labor that leads to that throne is done by migrant workers. Which leads to amazing food opportunities for visitors to the area. Mexican food is well represented in Kennett Square, but La Peña may just be my favorite.

The striped building is hard to miss, and located across from the Victory brewery down there.

Chips and guacamole to start is always a good bet, and they did not disappoint. The pico was fresh, tart, and crisp. The guac was creamy and went nicely with the fresh fried chips. The smokey chipotle sauce brought the fire, and was a great contrast to the other more tame varietals.

The carnitas burrito was calling my name, so I decided that would be my next order. It was brought out quite quickly, and came packed with tender, crispy pork that was braised until rendered out and then fried to add some crunch and texture, the way carnitas is supposed to be served.

The seasoning and tenderness on this pork was perfection. It came simply filled with rice, beans, pork, cilantro and onions. They gave a couple of sauce options as well. I opted for spicy. It did not disappoint.

Look at the perfect shreds of meat. No chewy fatty gristle to be found.

I also felt the need for a deep fried burrito – so chimichanga it was. This version I ordered with chicken and green sauce. Again it had rice, beans, cilantro, onion, but also had a cotija cheese topper and a sour cream drizzle. Jalapeno slices lined the top like stripes on a delicious flag.

It was a great presentation. And somehow I even managed to finish it.

Love me some beans and rice sides for the old mouth shovel.

The tender chicken was again very well stewed and packed with flavor. Peppy tomatillo sauce gave it some tang, and the cheese and crema added extra luxuriousness to this deep fried indulgence.

When you come here, expect an authentic experience – none of that bullshit Tex-Mex – and some fantastic Mexican food. And you will be back. 

Fiesta Maya

1178 Baltimore Pike
Springfield, PA 19064
(610) 604-9599
Website

Fiesta Maya recently opened in Springfield near Swarthmore. I had heard of the original in Exton, but never been there. It's a fast-casual type place that is also a BYOB. At least no one said anything when I brought in some Modelo's.

They have the line set up like their corporate competitors. Although there are some significant differences. Most importantly, instead of picking your items as you go, you have to order them from the register. This creates additional stress if you are ordering more than one item (or making any additions to standard offerings) as you have to remember everything from the somewhat extensive menu.

I much prefer the visual approach letting you pick your items based on sight. You are also charged for all "add-ons" over three. Which is a difficult transition to make from the "all-in" approach (minus guacamole) at the chain places.

The carnitas burrito and chicken al pastor nachos were calling me, and it was quite a bit of food.

The nachos were pretty good, with a healthy serving size, and loaded with toppings. I could have used some more meat, but that is almost always the case with me.

The carnitas burrito was also just good, notably the mayo chipotle dressing (as an add-on) gave it a nice smack of rich heat. The rice was well seasoned, the shredded meat was tender. It's too bad that burritos aren't more photogenic, in general...

I liked the salsa served on the side of the chips quite a bit, and the burrito with chips and salsa alone was a very good deal at about $9. Just have your order memorized, and watch out for those "add-ons".

California Tortilla

200 Town Centre Dr #3
Glen Mills, PA 19342
(610) 358-5880
Website

Here we are again, traveling the Philadelphia suburbs, searching for delicious and reasonably priced food. I prefer the kind I can eat with my hands, as you already know, so in addition to sandwiches and hoagies, I'm always on the look out for a great burrito.

Can't have suburbs without strip malls. Or kids. I mean, I felt like I had just walked into a Chuck E Cheese's.

But I didn't let that get me. Too much. I had to look beyond the little people that were running into my legs so that I could start to enjoy what was coming next.

It's your usual build-a-burrito bar, but you don't get to walk down the strip and tell them item-by-item what to add. You have to tell them your fixin's order at the register, before you even get to see the fixin's, which isn't my favorite way to order a burrito. I need to really see what's offered before I tell them to just add everything. So I choked a little and got two of their "chef-inspired creations" that already has the insides chosen for you.

On the way to my seat, I spotted their 'wall of flame.' They've got seventy five (75!) different kinds of hot sauce up there at your disposal. It looks like more than that, but I'm not splitting hairs. I had to try at least a few while I waited for my number to be called.

I ordered their signature California Screamin' Burrito, with blackened chicken, rice, queso, fajita veggies, their house-made California Screamin’ hot sauce and salsa. When asked if I wanted to make it a combo, I couldn't say no to a side of chips and queso.

I'm pretty sure they use Velveeta here, which is a sign of true quality in any liquid cheese application. It wasn't bursting with salsa flavor, but it was better than your usual nacho cheese pump-action distributor. But I wasn't here for the sides.

Now, I realize that burritos do not photograph very well - they never do - but that doesn't mean I won't keep trying to capture their inner beauty. The chicken was tender, juicy and packed with blackened flavor and the screamin' hot sauce had a really nice chipotle heat to it. The burrito was very well made with a perfect distribution of ingredients throughout, every bite was made of equal parts. Better than Chipotle? Hell yes. Way better. And I love me some Chipotle.

Second up was the Korean BBQ Burrito and I chose to get the pork/carnitas on this one. Served with rice, fajita veggies, sweet and spicy Korean BBQ sauce, crisp slaw, Sriracha chili sauce and cilantro, this one was the sure-fire winner. I couldn't believe a place like this managed to get their Korean flavors so accurate. It was spot on with the hot and sweet, with the gochujang flavor mingling with the gingery garlic of the traditional BBQ sauce. Simply delicious. The fresh crunch of the cabbage slaw was a pleasing surprise in every bite.

All in all, California Tortilla does a really great job with the food. Not so much on the atmosphere, but who am I to judge? (minus one cheesesteak for Chuck E Cheese likeness.)

¿Porque no?

4635 SE Hawthorne Blvd.
Portland, OR 97215
(503) 954 - 3138
Website

Who would have thought one of the best taco places ever would be in...Portland. Not me. But once again, I was mistaken. ¿Porque No? has some of the tastiest tacos anywhere. I have eaten tacos all over the US and Mexico, so I was a bit skeptical, but everything about this place was amazing.


They offer unique cocktails such as the Michelada: Tecate with lime juice & a dash of Worcestershire served in a chile & salt rimmed pint glass over ice. Amazing. Salty, spicy and refreshing, I could drink these all day. They also offer a horchata that is spiked with barbancourt rum. I would have never thought to make a cocktail with horchata. They did. And it was awesome. The best way to describe this place is "unique." They focus on sustainability, and deliciousness.


Below is the chorizo taco and the camerones. I love chorizo. Really, really love chorizo. But this was hands down the best I have had. They make it in-house from Rainshadow El Rancho pork and top it with queso fresco, onions, cilantro & crema. The real magic comes, however, in the preparation. They serve it crispy, and in shreds. Which is exactly how it should be served. It was magic. The camerones included wild shrimp sautéed with chili seasoning & served with crema, cabbage, salsa verde, onion, cilantro & pineapple. These were some awesome shrimp tacos. Among the best around - and they were stuffed, as I was. As if that wasn't enough, I proceeded to eat four more tacos.


The Pollo Asado was spicy chipotle-rubbed grilled Draper Valley chicken topped with
crema, salsa roja & pico de gallo. A great taco to be sure, but nothing life changing.


Below is another chorizo taco, and the porque tinga. The tinga was shredded Cascade Natural Beef in a smoky pasilla chile sauce, topped with onions, cilantro, salsa roja & queso fresco from
Ochoa Cheese in Eugene. Messy, drippy, packed with flavor and delicious. The smokiness really shone through and delivered. I was a fan.


If you are already beyond full, what's the only reasonable thing to do? Order three carnitas tacos, of course. The carnitas were my second favorite of the day. Crisp & juicy braised Carlton Farms pork served with salsa verde, onions, cilantro & queso fresco from Ochoa Cheese in Eugene. Once again, the crispy texture of the pork was what won me over.


Below is the ceviche with cucumber slices. Line caught snapper & wild shrimp marinated in seasoned lime and served in a little glass cup with guacamole, salsa roja, cabbage, and sliced avocado. How do you think this one turned out? If you notice, we couldn't even resist the first slice of cucumber before taking the picture.


This place is unique, funky and delicious. A "must visit" in my book, and conveniently, only a 20 minute walk from Pine State Biscuits. After indulging in the delicious traditional Mexican cuisine, if you think you can stand to eat more, stop at a bar and a couple of the little shops in between and then hit up Pine State for some biscuits. Let's just say that I can stand to eat more, and I did. A great day of eating.



Outdoor seating in the rain, anyone?