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Tacos El Chiapas is located in Tijuana's Zona Centro, downtown, at the corner of Calle 3 and Av. Martinez, across from the imposing Banco Azteca building. On Friday afternoon, October 15, 2010, I had the pleasure of meeting the crew at Tacos El Chiapas, and enjoy two delicious, perfectly prepared carne asada tacos, with all the trimmings. 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: Tacos El Chiapas is located in the white building, with the brightly lit fluorescent light, and like most small restaurants in Mexico, it's completely open to the street. They own the lot next door, surrounded by a chain link fence, and future plans include turning it into a restaurant the specializes in mariscos. At MEX $5.00 per taco, Tacos El Chiapas is beyond a bargain - that's less than US $1.00 for two delicious tacos - with all the fixin's...
Photo: The "kitchen," if you want to call it that, is a street vendor cart with a flat tire, that has been moved inside the building, and serves as the main kitchen, order counter, and pay station of the restaurant. There is a "compact" menu posted on the wall, but if you want something different, all you have to do is ask, and these guys will do their best to prepare your order, depending on what they have on hand.
Photo: This guy seemed to be in charge of the vertical rotisserie - trompa in Spanish - used to cook pork for tacos adobadas. In front of the trompa there's a griddle, where he was toasting tortillas. The rotisserie and the griddle are propane fired. Check out the flame behind the grill and the onion that is basting the meat.
Photo: The "compact" menu is posted on the wall. If you're interested in something that's not on the menu, just ask one of the friendly staff, and if they have the ingredients, they'll custom make it for you. Note besides carne asada tacos, the menu offers adobada. pescado, camaron, chorizo and tripa tacos, along with quesadillas, mulitas and tortas. Delicious!
Photo: The tall, skinny older guy, sporting a gold tooth, is making my order of two carne asada tacos. Note the wide variety of salsa and other condiments that Tacos El Chiapas offers to garnish their MEX $5.00 tacos.
Photo: My order of two carne asada tacos, and corn tortillas, is being cooked on the griddle. Check out how much meat these guys include in their tacos... the meat is marinated and cooked to perfection... these guys know what they're doing. In addition to great food, all three guys working the restaurant were very friendly, and didn't object to my many questions and the many photos that I took. Tacos El Chiapas is the kind of restaurant that I love!
Photo: With one swift movement, the chef takes two toasted corn tortillas off the griddle, places them into a small sheet of butcher paper, and then fills the taco with carne asada. That completed, he hands the taco to his sous- chef, who adds chopped cilantro, diced white onion, along with a generous helping of creamy guacamole, Mexican style.
Photo: Like most small Mexican diners in Tijuana, Tacos El Chiapas is open to the street. As I look into the restaurant, I can see the sous chef working on cutting meat from the pastor, roasting on the vertical rotisserie.
Photo: All three of the guys working the restaurant are characters, and kept me laughing the whole time. The staff is very friendly, and will treat you well. The sous chef seems to get a kick out of cutting meat from the pastor. Note the stack of toasted corn tortillas on the griddle. If you look behind the chef, you can look outside on to the activity on Calle 3, which is a major east/west street in downtown Tijuana.
Photo: The sous chef, working the trompa and toasting corn tortillas on the griddle was a master at cutting meat, and a master with his knives! "Mr. Sharp Knives" was also was a stand-up comedian wannabee, as he kept me laughing by his antics and he loved all of the attention that I gave him. Actually, all three guys that were working at the restaurant on this early October evening were funny and very friendly, and my visit to Tacos El Chiapas was a lot of fun.
Photo: The skinny, older sous chef was performing cooking duties on the stove, and he seemed a little surprised when I snapped his photo, and being the friendly guy he is, he took in stride. I'm standing in the rear of the small restaurant, looking toward the open store front, that looks out to busy Calle 3.
Photo: My order of two delicious carne asada tacos is ready, and the chef hands them to me. Note the sign in the background that warns that alcoholic beverages aren't allowed, as Tacos El Chiapas doesn't have a license to serve beer, wine or booze. They do have the typical refrigerator filled with soft drinks, to quench your thirst.
Photo: I'm not shy behind, or in front of the camera, so I got "Mr. Sharp Knives" to snap my photo as I was about to get down to enjoying two very delicious carne asada tacos.
Photo: I enjoyed a snack of two of the best carne asada tacos that you'll find in Zona Centro, at a bargain price. Each taco included a generous portion of marinated carne asada - marinated steak - perfectly cooked on the griddle and placed on a bed of two toasted corn tortillas. The steak is juicy, tender, and is spiced just right for my taste. I might add that these aren't small, "street tacos," as the corn tortillas were much larger, so you get a taco that's more than just a snack. Garnishes included diced onion, chopped cilantro, along with lots of creamy, in-house-made guacamole, the sort of guacamole that makes Tijuana famous. If you care to pile other garnishes on your tacos, there are more available at the condiment bar, but these tacos are so good they don't need anything else. One bite into one of these tacos, and you'll be a forever believer in Tacos El Chiapas, as the tacos are juicy, amazing, and feature the perfect balance between meat, tortilla and garnishes. These tacos are amazing! When you're in the mood for amazing tacos, and you're taking the hike into downtown Tijuana, take a little detour onto Calle 3, and stop by Tacos El Chiapas, for some of the best tacos in Tijuana. Tacos El Chiapas Copyright(c) 2010 eRench Productions. All rights reserved. We've been on the web since December 22, 2002.
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