Ok, I said my first review was going to be Urban Cafe. I changed my mind. Last night Ron and I took the train to Target to buy a hack saw. But on our way back down to the depths of the underground station I thought it would be a swell idea to go and get some gelato at
Paciugo in The West Village. The weather was fabulous and everyone was out. We had our ice cream and decided to take the M-Line Trolley back downtown. While waiting for the trolley we could smell the aromas from
Taco Diner. So we decided to have dinner there. I had never eaten there and was looking forward to it since all I ever hear are great things. The place was packed both inside and outside. One thing about Dallas....good weather=a packed patio. We ended up eating inside. Ron went in and ordered us margarita's on the rocks while we waited.
Our table was now ready. The inside of the restaurant was very simple and bright. White leather booths and white tables. The music was a bit loud but the tunes were great so I didn't really mind that much. Of course, chips and salsa were brought to the table. The chips were ok, I have had better. They were a bit thick with an uneasy crunch. My first reaction was that they had been sitting out way to long. Two different styles of salsa were available. A red salsa made from charred tomatoes, jalepeno's, and garlic. It was good. The second salsa was FABULOUS! Salsa Avocate is a pale green, room temperature salsa made from avocado's, lime juice, and chili's. I wish I had asked to take some home. It is not very spicy and has the consistency of a slightly thickened soup. Absolutely the best, non-texas style, salsa I had ever had the pleasure of consuming.
The Margarita's:
There are all kinds of different Margarita's available. In my opinion any Mexican or Tex-Mex establishment should focus on their house margarita instead of the froo-froo crap some places like to call their speciality. Taco Diner's house Rita on the rocks (with salt) was excellent. Served in a tall glass this Rita was so smooth and did not have that shock of acid with each sip. I think that a house Rita at $8 is a little steep but it was so good I didn't care. We both had two each!
The food:
Of course I wanted to try the tacos. For $9.45 you get four tacos and rice. The tacos come wrapped in corn tortillas. The meat is inside the tortilla and you put it together yourself. Let me tell ya.....this ain't Taco Bell! I ordered two Carne Bistec (grilled steak with olive oil and garlic) and two Puerco al Pastor (pork loin marinated in achiote citrus marinade). The Bistec was tender and cooked perfectly. Although I would liked to have tasted a skosh more garlic. The Puerco seemed a little overdone but still was tasty. The use of garlic and citrus though is perfect for pork.
The service:
The restaurant was PACKED! But our wait was only about 10 minutes. I would like to have sat outside but thought that it would have been a much longer wait. The service was good. Even thought the place was full the waiter answered my questions and was attentive. Most importantly...he left us alone.
Overall, Taco Diner was a great dinner. I will certainly be going back.
Food: 3.0 on a scale of 1-5
Service: 3.5
Atmosphere: 3.0
Health Score:* 90 (very good)
*Health scores are provided by the City of Dallas
I need to find some tiny fork symbols and yes I used the word skosh.
Taco Diner
3699 McKinney Avenue Suite 307
Dallas, Tx
