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Agewise, I'm way over "the hill," so to keep the pounds off of my body, which desiress to be obese, I walk four to eight miles a day, depending on my mood swings, my very busy schedule, and the weather. ( I don' like to walk in the rain!) The other day I was on a five mile hike, and I spotted a new Mexican restaurant, or at least one that I'd never seen before, a place called Taquería Lacosta, located in a shopping center, in Roseville, CA, at the corner of Pleasant Grove Blvd., and Foothills Blvd. It was sort of early in the morning, and they weren't open, but I noticed that they open at 10:00 AM on weekday mornings, and an hour earlier on weekends, and I knew that I just had to pay them a visit, as I'm always interested in checking out a new taquería that opens in our area.
Photo: Taqueria La Costa is located at the extreme end of the strip mall, and actually offers outdoor dining, facing North Pleasant Grove Creek. Wow! ... such a regal name for a small creek... only in Roseville! Friday, July 20, 2007, I was at the restaurant, a little after 10 in the morning, with an appetite, and I was their first customer of the day. Taquería Lacosta had just opened for business when I walked in, so I looked at the menu, located on the wall to my right, placed my order of a taco de lengua, and a taco de cane asada, paid for my order, and sat down at a table. The beautiful, but shy counter girl who waits takes orders, suggested that I help myself to the full-service salsa bar near the rear of the restaurant, where they offer six types of in-house made salsa, made fresh at their store, and their delicious tortilla chips. You take yourself over to the salsa bar and help yourself to the delicious, fresh tortilla chips, and the six different types of salsa, including pico de gallo, smokey chipotle salsa, and a whole lot more.
Photo: You walk in, and the counter girl is at the cash register, ready to take your order. Taquería Lacosta is staffed by two women, a young, beautiful girl who greets you, takes your order, and takes your money. However, her shy smile makes me not have a problem when she takes my money, as I love beautiful Latino women. The other gal, an older women, works in the kitchen and prepares the food, and seems rather stoic when you attempt to engage her in conversation. By the way the counter girl speaks excellent, although somewhat accented, English, which is a rarity in may small taquerias that I've seen in the great state of California. If you're looking for authentic Mexican decour, go elsewhere, as Taquería Lacosta is modern, super clean, sterile, and could almost pass as a Starbucks, except for the small Mexican flags that decorate the windows, and a few token pictures on the wall. Advice to Gringos: If you want to try out your broken Spanish, this place will work, as the two women that worked there during my visit were happy to accomodate my in Spanish.
Photo: The girl working the counter was quite surprised that I was snapping photos. The kitchen is behind her, and the cook is preparing my tacos. Note the selection of condiment... mmmmmmmm. I asked the counter girl how long the restaurant had been in business, and she said about six months. I love to patronize a place like Taquería Lacosta, as all you have to do is walk up to the order counter, place your order, relax for a few minutes, and your order is ready. If you choose to dine in their spacious dining room, there are plenty of tables to choose from, or if you prefer the great outdoors, you can take your delicious meal outside and sit under their covered patio, and savor your delicious meal, and the sight of oak-covered Pleasant Grove Creek. If you don't care to dine at Taquería Lacosta's modern and spotlessly-clean facilities, you always have the option of ordering your meal, para llavar... or, to go. Check out the photos... are you more interested in my tacos, or the friendly girl who took my order? Whatever you interest, the tacos that Taquería Lacosta serves are delicious, although a little on the pricey side. Both of my tacos arrived on one small, CD-sized corn tortilla, yes, unlike in Mexico where you always get two tortillas. Each tortilla was topped with a generous portion of meat, diced onions, and cut cilantro. I had ordered "con todo" and when I asked where the "todo" was, the counter girl suggested that I top off my taco at the salad bar. Granted, at the salad bar, there is just about every condiment available, including salsa verde, but I noted one exception, which was a HUGE blunder, in my book, as Taquería Lacosta's salsa bar didn't contain any avocado-based salsa. Him... I chose to enjoy my tacos seated at one of three outdoor tables, which look out to the shady oak trees which line the banks of South Branch Pleasant Grove Creek. With a light breeze and temperatures in the low 70's, it was a perfect time to enjoy a late-morning lunch of a couple of delicious tacos.
Photo: Carne asada taco on the right, taco de lengua on the right, with chips, salsa de pico de gallo, and freshly-made chipotle salsa. I enjoyed my delihtful meal on one of their outdoor tables. My lunch bill came to the total of $4.29 for two tacos, including tax, and all of the chips and salsa that I could bring with me. The lengua and carne asada tacos were good, but not great, and somewhat overpriced, as I thought that the small taco should have included a second tortilla, and that the salad bar should have included an avocado-based condiment, similar to the taco stands found in Mexico. However I had to slap myself in the face, look myself in the mirror, and realize a couple of things: 1) I'm not in Mexico; this is Roseville, Ca 2) Tacos cost way, way more... 3) Taquería Lacosta's tacos are priced reasonably by American standards. Hey Californians, enjoy the high prices, as you're living in the world's eighth largest economy. Update: March 31, 2011... Sadly, Taquería Lacosta, like much of the world, is out of business... so this web article is just another part of Roseville history. Taquería Lacosta Copyright(c) 2007 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. This site has been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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