Some cities have wine trails or artwork trails. In Harmony, the place one out of each three residents is Latino, there’s a Taco Path.
Designated in 2020, the Taco Path contains practically 40 taquerias and different eateries that serve Mexican meals together with, sure, tacos. Most of them are small, family-run operations — “hole in the wall” is an effective descriptor — although some get fairly fancy with lobster and Mexican wine.
The town’s annual Taco Path Problem dares folks to go to as many taquerias as doable every fall, with winners receiving a Golden Taco Trophy. However for newbies, the place to start? Which kitchen serves the very best birria and which excels at carnitas or lengua or vegetarian tacos? How do you say en Español, “Please no, if I eat one more taco, I will surely perish”?
Listed below are 5 glorious stop-offs on the Taco Path. And when you’re exploring, you’ll little question hit upon different nice locations to attempt. Buen provecho!
Papi Clary’s Kitchen
Probably the greatest renditions of birria within the East Bay comes from a younger prepare dinner, Claryzza Abille, who truly focuses on Filipino delicacies. The chef ran a buzzy yard pop-up earlier than opening a restaurant with a pared-down menu of slow-cooked beef, spicy fried hen and specials like lumpia nachos and pork-belly sisig fries.
The birria taco is deeply spiced, meltingly tender and doused in a savory broth that dyes the corn tortilla brick-red ($3.50). For $1.50 extra, you’ll be able to add Monterey Jack pressed right into a crispy wafer on the grill – it’s an umami bomb. Even higher than the taco is the mulita, a little bit sandwich of birria, guacamole and smooth white cheese between two crunchy tortillas. Sprinkle it with the tomatillo salsa, an orange concoction that packs warmth, and wash all the things down with purple-ube horchata.
Particulars: Open 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday at 2186 Solano Approach, Harmony; 925-222-7786, instagram.com/papiclaryskitchen
Mercado del Sol
The very first thing that hits you upon coming into this strip-mall eatery is a cloud of piquant wooden smoke. They prepare dinner their very own barbecue right here, and it’s like a manufacturing unit line of fantastic meats pouring from the kitchen – mahogany baby-back ribs, entire chickens with lacquered skins and the restaurant’s specialty, lamb barbacoa.
That slow-cooked lamb piled onto a taco ($4.25) is a luscious, juicy chunk, made all the higher when spiked with the kicked-up salsa roja or milder tomatillo salsa verde. Lamb isn’t one thing you usually discover at Bay Space taquerias, and should you hold following the unconventional path, you’ll be rewarded. Mercado del Sol does a wide range of offal, and it’s invariably scrumptious.
The buche or pig abdomen ($3.50) is tender and deeply porky, and you may order pig pores and skin in two types – the crispier chicharron or the superior cueritos, gelatinous pork rinds each chewy and satisfying. For a dessert as stick-to-your-ribs as these tacos, attempt the champurrado, which is sort of a comforting sizzling chocolate constituted of masa and spices.
Particulars: Open every day for lunch and dinner at 1450 Monument Blvd., Harmony; 925-676-8837
Tortilleria el Molino
Molino is like your on a regular basis taqueria with one distinction. They’ve a large-scale operation for making their very own corn tortillas — and a silkier, fresher-tasting tortilla you’ll not discover within the Bay. It’s no marvel they ship them throughout to grocery shops, the place consumers snatch them up, nonetheless heat and steaming within the baggage.
The tortilleria has a second outpost within the grocery retailer across the nook, which is ok however not as common because the restaurant. You’ll know you’re on the proper place by the road out the door of individuals ordering tacos, tortillas and large bowls of white pozole and hen soup.
The tacos are practically twice the scale of most locations and anointed merely with onion, cilantro and salsa verde that comes portioned in baggage. The cabeza or beef head is tender and properly spiced, whereas the carnitas ($3.65) are well-cooked and flecked with tasty bits of pork fats. A shock hit on the menu are the tacos dorados ($2.69), smooth potatoes and floor beef with contemporary veggies sandwiched in crispy tortillas. Steak and taters in taco kind, who can argue with that?
Particulars: Open 7 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Saturday and seven a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday at 1500 Monument Blvd., Harmony; tortillaselmolino.com
Puesto
Puesto was co-founded by San Diego native Eric Adler, whose dad and mom hail from Guadalajara and Monterrey, Mexico, and the unique restaurant has since grown into a serious California operation. There are areas in San Diego, La Jolla, Anaheim, Santa Clara and even Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara – and this one in The Veranda buying complicated in Harmony.
It looks like an upscale restaurant you’d discover in Mexico Metropolis, with vibrant murals and fresh-fruit margaritas which can be artworks in their very own proper. One taco is full of Maine lobster ($17), black-bean sauce and crisp-fried onions, and one other with filet mignon ($12) and pistachio-serrano salsa.
A incredible chunk – whether or not you eat meat or not – are the Verduras vegetarian tacos ($9), made with nopales and seasonal veggies like zucchini, which include an entire squash blossom with the bracing style of a zesty lime. The tortillas are made with blue corn and made decadent with a layer of melted-to-a-crisp cheese. Pair it with a few of the Mexican-terroir wine the restaurant imports, a Straus ice cream horchata or an agua fresca with a cooling slice of watermelon. Professional tip: Tacos and drinks are discounted on Taco Tuesdays.
Particulars: Open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday at 2035 Diamond Blvd., Harmony; eatpuesto.com.
Los Tacos de Pancho
This small eatery within the Harmony Terminal Buying Middle has a number of choices. There are fajitas, grilled-fish plates, tortas, prawn enchiladas, moist burritos and one thing referred to as a “tamal burrito” – after which tacos, in fact, in each taste of the meat rainbow.
Free chips and salsa are a pleasant solution to start conflict towards a flotilla of tacos. The specialty at Pancho is the Baja fish ($5.25), with wild-caught cod fried in beer batter so mild and candy, it’s nearly like funnel cake. The large taco is completed with herby crema, shredded purple cabbage and pico de gallo. Seafood lovers even have the choice of grilled tilapia tacos or shrimp tacos drenched in spicy diabla sauce.
Among the many typical road tacos ($3.75), a standout is the lengua or beef tongue, cooked till smooth and succulent with flavors of clove and allspice. The al pastor and carnitas tacos are respectable, too, and pair effectively with a Jarritos from the fridge. Bonus: On Saturday evenings, the parking zone fills up with basic vehicles from the native cruising membership.
Particulars: Open 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Saturday at 2699 Clayton Street, Harmony; lostacosdepancho.com.
