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Late last year, Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville opened their doors, and began serving delicious Mexican cuisine in the former location of El Parian Taqueria and Cantina. Roseville is home to 120,000 people, and it seems nearly that many Mexican restaurants, so what sets apart one restaurant from another? Many things... including most of all, great food, but also friendly service, a great salsa bar, and atmosphere. Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville has all of the aforementioned, but definitely has an "ace in the hole," as the restaurants fresh, in-house-made corn tortillas, made before your eyes, and served by a tortilla lady hot off the griddle! As with all restaurant reviews I publish, I have no affiliation with the restaurant reviewed, and there is no monetary gain on my part, as I am simply a person who likes to eat, and I love to write-up, and publish my dining experiences.
Photo: Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville is located in a small, upscale strip mall, on the northeast side of Roseville. You enjoy lots of easy, safe, and free parking. I love the location, as it's directly across the street from a major "big box" home improvement store, when I spend a lot of time and money. It's just a little after noon on Saturday, April 06, 2019, and I'm ready to enjoy a delicious Mexican brunch at Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville.
Photo: As you enter the restaurant, you'll notice the menu above the counter, and the kitchen directly behind the cashier. The restaurant doesn't have printed menus. Note how open, spacious and airy the dining room appears, as it's been completely remodeled since Taqueria Garibaldi came to Roseville.
Photo: The restaurant operates on what I call the "taqueria formula," as you make your selection from the menu board, above the cashier, pay for your order, receive a receipt and a number, and sit anywhere that's open. When your order is ready it will be brought to your table. As in most Mexican restaurants, the kitchen is directly behind the cashiers, and you can get a peek at the chefs at work.
Photo: From the many reviews posted on the web, many consider Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville to have the best salsa bar in town. I don't know about the best, as I'm not a good judge of "the best" of anything, but this salsa bar has everything, and a lot more, than you could ever ask for. Everything is fresh and made in-house. I didn't get a chance to try the white condiment; I assume it's crema? Chips are kept in a heated box, to the right of the salsa bar, mostly not visible in the photo. Small boxes are placed on top of the salsa bar for your chips. The chip and salsa bar is included with your meal, and it's all-you-can eat and enjoy! I went with the green avocado salsa, and the smoky chipotle salsa, which I find make for perfect tortilla chip dipping.
Photo: From my seat at the bar, I got a good view across the moderately busy dining room. The dining room floor plan is very open, and the furniture is tables with four places. If you have a larger group, tables can be pushed together, as there's lots of room in the large dining room.
Photo: Meet Janet, my friendly server, who brings my large Coors beer to me, at my seat at the bar, with a smile.
Photo: Looking across the dining room, with the bar, and a big screen television monitor - with a soccer game playing - in the background. I sat at the bar, which offered me a great view in order to watch this busy restaurant in action. When you're enjoying a meal alone, the bar is always a great place to relax. The bar is a new addition, as back in 2012 during our visit, when this restaurant was El Parian, the bar didn't exist, and the space was used for additional dining. I prefer the bar, which has on tap many varieties of beer. It's early Saturday afternoon, and the couple in the lower right are enjoying large bowls of menudo, which is a popular breakfast food in northern Mexico, especially on Sunday mornings, as it's considered a cure for hangovers. North of the border, menudo is offered at finer Mexican restaurants, generally on weekends only. As I mentioned earlier, I had planned on menudo, but switched to birria when I noted it was on the menu.
Photo: Taqueria Garibaldi has a tortilla griddle at the end of the bar! I don't recall visiting another restaurant in western Placer County that offers freshly cooked corn tortillas, hot off the griddle. The tortilla lady makes the dough fresh in the kitchen, and keeps a large ball of it next to the griddle. You can't see it, but there is a hand tortilla press next to the griddle, where balls of masa are pressed into tortillas and cooked on the griddle. The corn tortillas are brought hot to your table! To my taste, there is nothing finer than a freshly baked corn tortilla!
Photo: This gal brought out my bowl of birria, and removed my number before I was really able to chat with her. She seemed to be in a hurry and very busy.
Photo: My cheerful server, Janet, brought my brunch to me with a smile. I certainly appreciated her friendly hospitality, along with great service. I gave her a compliment, telling her "The only thing better than the delicious food is your fine service and cheerful demeanor" which she appreciated. Tips are not expected, but in her case, I left her a generous tip, as I believe in rewarding staff who are friendly, and provide great service.
Photo: Thanks, Janet, for snapping my photo, as I prepare to enjoy a delicious lunch at Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville. Note the colorful paintings on the wall at the rear of the room, which add to the festive atmosphere.
Photo: My authentic Mexican brunch of a bowl of birria, garnishes, chips, salsa, corn tortillas - hot off the griddle - and a tall Coors beer. Delicious!! I didn't plan to order birria, as I'd planned to enjoy a large bowl of menudo, but when I noticed that birria was served on weekends - along with menudo - I switched gears and went for a bowl of birria, as I hadn't enjoyed birria for a long time, and there aren't many restaurants that serve it. In case you're not familiar with birria, it's a goat stew, that's a very popular dish in much or northern Mexico, and south along the Rio Grande river, north of Texas. Don't get me wrong, as I LOVE menudo, but when you're in Roseville, and birria is offered, you just go with the flow... The birria was absolutely delicious, as the meat was marinated, tender, and already cut into bite size pieces. True to form, the meat was served in a flavorful, rich broth, and had carrots, onion and a bay leaf or two to enhance the flavor. The stew was spicy, but very flavorful and not at all hot. If you have issues with spicy food, rest assured, as you'll simply enjoy the birria served at Taqueria Garibaldi. Although there is a lot of broth, a fork works, as you sop up the broth with the corn tortillas, just the way its done in Mexico. If your stack runs low, the tortilla lady will gladly bring you another stack of tortillas, fresh, and hot off the griddle. I added the onion and cilantro from the small plate, and used the slice of lime in my beer, which made my lunch even more elegant. The little bowl of red sauce was runny chili sauce, which didn't seem to add anything except for heat, so I just left it. I absolutely adored the bowl of birria, along with the exciting vibes and atmosphere in this fine restaurant. The fresh, hot-off-the-griddle corn tortillas are a "deal breaker" in favor of this amazing restaurant, as I've never seen a restaurant in town that has a griddle, with a tortilla lady in attendance. Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville is fairly new to the Roseville dining scene, but when it comes to delicious Mexican cuisine, they have already have made quite a name for themselves. Taqueria Garibaldi de Roseville Copyright(c) 2019 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. We've been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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