Austin Daily Photo: Torchy's Tacos In The Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Of Austin, Texas

May 4

posted by RL Reeves Jr in Austin Daily Photo

I'm doing a lot of legwork right now on the "Barbacoa Trail Of Austin Texas" app for iphone and android. Winnowing the list down from 50 or so places in Travis County down to a manageable ten has been part of my daily routine for the past few weeks.

With all the recent controversy over Torchy's Tacos, I figured it would be a good idea to run by there and see about including them in the project.

Torchy's barbacoa taco is called the Democrat. It's a plump taco, pricey at over $4, but you could deconstruct it and make two tacos out of it if you chose to do so.

It's good. Sprinkled with Cotija cheese and white onions, it comes with a side of salsa verde and a wedge of lime. Downside? Commercial tortillas, but I doubt that's a deal breaker for many people.

Torchy's will never be on my permanent rotation of taquerias but as a once in a blue moon treat, it's a fine rendition.

Torchy's controversy part one: http://www.scrumptiouschef.com/food/index.cfm/2012/4/29

and, Torchy's fires back http://www.scrumptiouschef.com/food/index.cfm/2012/5/1/

3 Comments

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This entry was posted on May 4, 2012 at 12:45 PM. There are currently 3 comments. Print this entry. Download attachment.

     

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• #1 by George Leake on 5/5/12 - 3:25 PM

  

  the best Barbacoa on South 1st (especially that particular part of it) is, hands down, at La Mexicana Bakery--I found the Torchy's Barbacoa kind of average, perhaps a notch below Taco Cabana, of all places

• #2 by David on 5/6/12 - 6:00 PM

  

  Who are you and what have you done with RL Reeves Jr? I didn't think the day when Scrumptious would start to cut Torchy's any slack at all. Now he's willing to eat at Torchy's (while in Kentucky) and call the Barbacoa is "good".
  
  I admit, I'm a semi-regular Torchy's Democrat fan. I work way up near 2222 and 360 (aka "might as well be Kentucky"), and the Torchy's on Spicewood has been an office godsend. I find their Barbacoa a little dry, but enjoyable. I agree on the tortillas - that would help them so much and agree the likely reason is that it is a PITA (although not a real PITA, I make them at home all the time).
  
  One place for you to check out is Flores, a small shack outside a pipe and metal dealer, hwy 290 on just past Dripping on the right. They also had a trailer down the road in the TSC parking lot for a while.

• #3 by rl reeves jr on 5/6/12 - 9:34 PM

  

  Wonders never cease. I hit the Torchy's for the research part of the Austin Barbacoa Trail. Strict reportage going on here. I figured with a couple thousand people reading my two previous Torchy's articles I needed to get by there and see what all the fuss was.