Thanks to the recommendation of a friend, this week the search for the best tacos in Chatt Town had me chowing down at Taqueria Azteca.
If you don’t take the time to stop and look for it, you might drive by this little Mexican food paradise. Located in the Village in East Ridge shopping plaza, this small diner packs one heck of a flavor punch when it comes to their tacos and menu.
The diner is small with table and countertop seating and painted a bright yellow inside.
They’ve got authentic street tacos and the Americanized version. On Tuesdays the street tacos are $2 each!
I ordered a shrimp taco, pork rind taco, and a taco asada.
If you like Huddle House and Waffle House because you can watch the line cooks make your meal, then you’ll love Taqueria Azteca. Just across from their countertop seating is their flat-top grill. Not only can you hear the sizzle, but you can smell the aroma of the marinated meats and chiles. It makes your mouth water!
They don’t bring chips and salsa to the table, which is okay by me. I tend to overdo it and then feel stuffed when my meal comes. You can order chips and salsa from the menu. I went for the guacamole, without the chips instead.
I watched them slice the avocado and scoop it out into a small bowl where they lightly mashed and mixed it with lots of cilantro and tomatoes.
Some places use small tortillas shells, so when they make your taco, they often serve the proteins over two shells. Here they serve one slightly larger shell, tossed on the flat-top and grilled until soft, yet sturdy.
When your meal is served, they’ll bring out their red-hot sauce and their green tomatillo sauce (salsa verde) to the table.
Their pork rind taco (de Chicharron) was like the one I first tasted at Tacos el Cuñao, except the pork rinds were not thinly sliced. They were left whole, chunky, but they were soft and chewy. Leaving them whole gave the taco a better mouthfeel. It had a little more chew but still the flavor of the pork rind stood out.
The shrimp taco was delicious. I added some salsa verde and a squeeze or two of lime. Their salsa verde is not hot, in fact very mild, so the flavors of the tomatillos and lime enhanced the flavor of the shrimp.
The asada (steak) taco was tender. I squeezed some red-hot sauce on it and a spoonful of the guacamole, which was packed with cilantro. The mix of intense spiciness from the hot sauce was balanced with the freshness of the guacamole, toning down the heat and making each bite palatable.
On a subsequent visit I ordered a taco al pastor (marinated pork) and a Gordita barbacoa (shredded beef). The taco came out first. The pork had great flavor. I didn’t get to ask my server, but I am willing to bet it sat in the marinade for quite some time before being prepared and cooked. The flavor was so good, no sauces or lime was needed.
Then it was on to the Gordita. Truth be told, the only Gordita I’ve ever eaten was one from Taco Bell. No bueno!
This one was fantastic!
The base is a thick tortilla shell. They carefully peeled back a layer of the shell and used it as the topper for the Gordita.
It was like a crispy phyllo dough topping!
The chunks of shredded steak were grilled on the flat-top and served with beans, lettuce, tomatoes, queso fresco, sour cream and guacamole salsa.
I ordered a side of Pico de gallo.
WOW - It was spicy, loaded with jalapenos, yet not enough to burn my mouth or tongue. I carefully lifted that light crusty top and tossed in a few forkfuls of Pico on my Gordita. On top of that I added some salsa verde. I took my fork and slid it into the crunchy shell, scooped the fork all the way down and wiggled the bottom to get a nice bite of all the goodness.
The only reason I didn’t stand up and dance the Mexican hat dance (Tapatio) was because the diner was filled with local workers enjoying their lunch (well that, and the fact that I don’t know the dance). Everything came together in that one bite, followed by another and another.
I honestly think I found a new favorite with the Gordita.
This place has a hefty menu, with all your favorites and a few different items like the Milanesa de pollo (thin chicken breast battered and fried), Bisteck (steak) a la Mexicana and a super spicy Camarones a la Diabla (spicy shrimp). They have a kid’s menu, and they recently added new iced coffee flavors to their beverage list. They are open Sunday through Thursday from 11-9, Friday and Saturday from 11-10.
Taqueria Azteca
- 3920 Ringgold Road, Suite H
- Chattanooga, TN 37412
- (423)-541-6685
- Facebook: facebook.com/taqueriaazteca20
- $-$$
What’s your favorite taco place and why? Send me an email at Pattyl@brewermediagroup.com