Tacos have long been a staple of the London street food dinner scene. But for owner Michael Hulse, tacos are a sunrise-to-sunset sort of meal with breakfast, lunch, dinner and even dessert on the menu at Taco Taco.
His menu works in two ways – you can choose from preset classics which are made fresh in front of you, or you can create your own in a Subway-style menu that allows you to choose your soft tortilla, filling, toppings and sauce. Straight into the classics, we tried the guacamole side which was fresh, tangy and just what you would hope for in a guac. The sweet corn elite salsa, or Mexican sweet corn, is corn in a creamy mayo with a chilli, cheese and lime crumb sprinkled on top and also works well as a side.
The Peruvian anticucho smoked chicken with pico do Gallo, sour cream and spring onion was tasty – not authentic, but then again that is kind of the point at Taco Taco where the motto is “anything you can Taco”. The stand-out however was the Prawn Star – smoked prawns, ancho chilli sauce, spring onion, fresh mango and lime mayo. Citrus and seafood will always be a winning combination with the mango and lime cutting through the prawns and creating a really delicious bite. In fact, where Taco Taco really shone was with its seafood offerings – the teriyaki salmon is freshly cured in-house by the chefs and definitely one to return for.
We didn’t try the dessert tacos which had sold out by the time we arrived (arguably a good sign) but with mascarpone and vanilla mouse topped with roasted bananas, this is sure to be a winner.
Established around three months ago, business has admittedly been slow so far, with Hulse extending the opening hours recently until 2am to account for the night-time trade. This may be down to the location – with bustling Spitalfields markets minutes down the road, there are a whole host of food and drink locations to choose from that may stop people before they venture further on to Taco Taco’s location. However the food is good, the staff are friendly and the setting is comfortable so I’m sure that Taco Taco will continue to grow!
Related: Greggs launches first ‘fine dining’ bistro in Newcastle