It was a great day with some awesome food. Along the way some of the judges grabbed a few other interesting items to share with the group.

Cicero Ave was our turn around point and we made a visit to ...

Taqueria Aguascalientes
2106 S Cicero Ave, Cicero
(708) 656-8933‎



This is a big restaurant on Cicero Ave that was very busy during our visit. Not only did they have the main restaurant but two other smaller snack shops just down the street.

Inquiring about the El Carbon we were told they didn't serve it so we decided to check out some of their other wares. We did notice that they made the flat bread for the Gordita's fresh in-house. We might assume that the tortilla's might be fresh made as well.

Tacos El Pastor



No spit in sight these tacos were more stewed and sweet that we collectively would of preferred.

Liver Taco's



Yup! That was liver alright. Not a favorite of many in the group but a few managed to enjoy.

With the place doing a brisk business there sere a few solicitors inside making the rounds. One passed by dropping off a few religious items.



Another interesting stop along the way was to ...

Taqueria & Birreria Tototlan
5630 W Cermak Rd, Cicero
(708) 656-8984‎

A very nice and inviting, family owned restaurant. Comfortable seating and warm service.



The tacos here came in at the middle of the scoring but the weekend special Goat Stew was the star here.



Savory with a hint of gameyness that brought out a bit of discussion amongst the group. I think the final vote was the bit of game flavor reminded you that you were eating goat. If you want a smooth flavor, order pork.




While not a winner, the restaurant below scored above average in most categories and took top honors in the primary reason for our quest. Char Flavor.

Jardin Guadalajara
5503 W Cermak Rd, Cicero
(708) 780-0021‎

A full restaurant. We had the place to ourselves and the service was outstanding. Even though we were just hitting and running they brought out a full complement of sides. I seem to remember that also have a buffet during some times of the week.



Mmmm... That is a lot of Char!



All in all these places warrant another visit!

It had been a long day! Many taco's down the gullet and some awesome other dishes sampled. The sun was setting on the a-thon and it was time to clean up out palate.

This ice cream place came highly recommended and it was a great place to finish out the day...

Flamingos Ice Cream
6733 Cermak Rd, Berwyn
(708) 749-4287‎

A bright and clean place with a lot of color on the walls.



We were made to feel very welcome with the owner, Guadalupe Lopez, insisting that we take a try of many of her 120 different flavors of ice cream. Take that 31 flavors.



She had the gift of gab and was very excited to talk about her ice cream and the process of making it.

She also has some hot food items listed amongst the ice cream menu's on the wall. Curious, but they sound good.

Thanks again, Panther, for organizing everything. My wife and I had a great time and look forward to making future lthforum events after yesterday's experience And hey, in addition to finding some welcome new quick stops to revisit on Cermak, I discovered that Santander and I both used to live with the same man at varying times. Er, we have a mutual friend and former roommate. That is to say.... bah. It is a small world after all.

We didn't make it back to Family Foods yesterday due to timing (as it was, my first guest arrived 5 minutes before we got home, eep!), but we're both looking forward to stopping by later today if possible, or during the week if not, and picking up a considerable amount of produce. We're also looking forward to trying the well-rated Zacatacos, and Flamingos, both of which we were sorry to have missed.

Overall the results appear to have come out very close to what I expected. Interesting to see, and I hope to re-affirm some of the top placements over the next few weeks as yesterday's thon honestly left me craving more tacos rather than hoping to avoid them for a while.

Ucjames -

I REALLY think you guys would have enjoyed Zacatacos offering that day. Your lovely wife would have LOVED the salsa verde. It had quite the sizzle. Hopefully when you get around to it, they will have a good meat and salsa day when you get a chance to try it. They definitely had both goin on on Saturday.

Hey, here ya go. Cheap date night -
Zacatacos for dinner, Flamingo's for dessert, and a stroll through Familia Foods, and maybe even a stroll through Tony's too.

Wow, you were allowed to take photos at Flamingo's? A couple of years ago, I wasn't. But I don't see any photos of Zacataco's....

Once again, kudos to PitD, a very well-mannered and gracious gentleman, for organizing a splendid event. I had a fantastic time (my first LTH coming-out -- I felt like a debutante) meeting all the noted posters with whom I share a deep love of charred meat nestled between a double layer of tortillas. I look forward to seeing them again sometime in the future in pursuit of other delicacies...a sublime dish of birria...the crustiest Scotch egg...or Seebee's perfect ideal of the chicken taco realized at Ino's.

As for the final tally, I personally feel Zacatacos stood head and shoulders above the rest of the competition, though in all fairness, three of the judges had dropped out by that point and could not render their opinions. The steak was significantly charred, having been clearly fire-grilled, and displayed no tell-tale signs of a visit to the infamous Bucket 'o Grease. It was also chopped well, neither too small nor too large, similar in size to the versions I've had at El Asadero and Las Asadas, which represent my personal benchmarks. With the exception of the tortillas which were store-bought blancas, everything tasted absolutely fresh and homemade despite the well-known fact that the restaurant we visited was but an outpost in a blossoming chain. What really put Zacatacos over the top however, were the two salsas, red and green, available on every table-top in squeeze bottles. The red version was obviously adobo-infused and so, smoky, and quite hot. The green however, had a clean, light, searing burn that persisted afterwards and obviously required beer to ameliorate. PitD, Ms. PitD, and myself partook of a couple bottles of Negra Modelo while Seebee demurred. If there was an off-note, I would have to mention the strong taste of cilantro that permeated the taco. I don't know if soaking the cilantro beforehand would have mitigated the flavor or if it was just due to a particularly aromatic batch. The restaurant itself seems newish, brightly lit, and decorated in primary colors designed to whet the appetite. I estimated somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 - 40 four-tops of the bolted-to-the-ground, melamine-coated variety. As they serve alcohol, I assume no BYO is allowed.

Most of the other joints we hit were of the family restaurant-type while Zacatacos, was distinctly fast-foodish in appearance, as was Taqueria Aguascalientes. Like Zacatacos, it was fairly large and bustling with activity, occupying one end of a strip mall directly facing a supermercado. While we crossed Aguascalientes off the list because they did not fire-grill their carne asada, the variety of atypical offerings was impressive. Santander upthread, already noted the pork cheek gorditas (cool -- I must have missed this) while Seebee immediately latched onto the liver and onion tacos, which were only 75 cents each. Upon tasting the aforesaid, Ms. UCJames and Seebee declared themselves satisfied never to sample this novelty again, while Ms. PitD and myself allowed that they might grow on us (then again, I like the funky stuff). I thought the mushy al pastor tacos we had ordered were a miss. There was a tub of pickled vegetables (escabeche) on every table along with some unremarkable salsa. I was deeply enamored of the fact that they had a separate cooler in which they stored beer mugs, which were accordingly, nicely frosted when it came time to serve the beer. Plus, the Bohemias came out to only $3.50 apiece. If I lived in the neighborhood, I might never leave the premises. Once again, as they serve alcohol, I assume no BYO is allowed. They also seemed to be having a sale on their tacos, as they were listed in the menu as being $1.90 each, but actually came out to be $1.25 apiece, according to the handbills posted in the windows. As a result, Aguascalientes easily represented the best bang for the buck on this tasting. Count me in as a fan.

Also worthy of mention was Taqueria & Birreria Tototlan, which falls distinctly into the greasy spoon, lunch counter category, complete with wall menus listing cheese fries and hamburgers along with traditional taqueria fare. Although I espied a gas grill, it was never in operation while we there, and I found the tacos a bit greasy, which led me to suspect that they had been made beforehand and refried upon ordering. They were served on coarsely ground, griddled yellow tortillas. Up until Zacatacos, Tototlan had the hottest chipotle salsa we encountered, but as PitD mentioned, the birria stole the show, which I am grateful to Santander for ordering. I must admit to never having tried this dish before, but it made a deep impression on me, so much so that upon returning home, I immediately googled all the birrerias nearby. Having no previous experience with birria, I can't really give an educated opinion of this rendition, so someone, please feel free to chime in. Also, upon my asking, one of the counter persons initially replied that beer was not allowed, but did a double-take, and added that it might be okay if it were poured into a cup (so make of that information what you will). A tip beforehand would probably invoke a sudden case of amnesia over the policy. All in all, a decent find for refried steak tacos, though I would return for the birria alone (with some beer in my bag).

One more honorable mention must be awarded to La Lupita, a miniscule spot we visited early in the judging with 2 four-tops. From the gleaming white walls, it appeared relatively clean and new, with a prep area clearly visible behind some blackboards listing the daily specials, lending the air of a tiny bistro. Unfortunately, I can't find any reference in my notes as to the actual tacos other than they were griddled and served on soft, corn blancas, which leads me to think that they were not particularly noteworthy. The salsas though, were obviously very fresh -- a very good chipotle salsa with moderate heat, and a light creamy verde version made from avocados. Santander deviated from the agenda and ordered a tamal a la oaxaqueno (sp?) which the rest of us got to share. The pork and finely ground masa was suffused with the aroma of the banana leaf in which it was pristinely wrapped. I left with the distinct impression that they were trying to put out some higher-quality food than might be expected from a tiny taqueria, if that is indeed, how they perceive themselves. If I lived nearby, I would be willing to give them a shot given the quaint, clean ambiance. I asked the owner if BYO was allowed and he replied in the negative, but then later qualifed his response to say that they might look into acquiring a BYO permit in the future. I hope they do as it would only encourage business. At the time, we were the only patrons. No bathroom was visible, but the owner informed me that one could be accessed through the prep area.

As I mentioned earlier, I had to quash my inclination upon returning home to rush out again in search of birria, a particularly injudicious course of action given that I had gorged myself on steak tacos earlier. Obviously, I found several promising venues on the board the next day but given how freaking cold it was, I wanted to limit the search to my immediate environs, the Lakeview/Uptown area, involving a minimum of CTA transfers. From this thread and this thread, I resolved on El Rey Del Tacos in Rogers Park as it was a straight shot on the Clark Street bus, though they only offer Barbacoa de Chivo and not birria. El Rey is a small storefront with five or six tables and from some identical items on their menu, it seems as if they might share common ownership with Taqueria El Ranchito, which has plagued my neighborhood with a tsunami of delivery menus every year I have been in residence. I found their barbacoa to be extremely tender and quite good, but the gameyness which I relished in my first dish of birria, had been subdued considerably by the slightly sweet and tangy tomato-based sauce. From a phone call placed ahead of time however, they had no problem with my bringing in a six of Gumballheads, which frankly decided the question for me.

Afterwards, I skipped across the street to Supermercado Chapala, and the taqueria contained therein, for a pair of roasted chicken tacos. The restaurant area is located in the rear of the supermarket, next to the meat counter with an adjoining section displaying mouthwatering, glistening hunks of carnitas along with other roasted meats I failed to identify. All of the usual suspects were offered in taco form for the lowball price of $1.59 apiece which was a pleasant surprise. My tacos arrived dressed with cilantro and onions per my request, draped in roasted scallions, and topped off by a roasted serrano, which I thought quite generous for a sub-$5 ticket. Unfortunately, the chicken must have lingered overlong under the heat lamps as it was dry, but I managed to lubricate its passage by sneaking a beer.

So, thank you, everyone who participated in the Cermak Steak Taco el Carbon-a-Thon (CSTeCaT?), not only for your lively company, but for inspiring me to continue my food adventures the next day and hopefully, for many more days after. I look forward to sharing a beer with you at the Hopleaf, or to splitting a rack at Lems, and to furthering my knowledge of birria.

Great recap, Titus. I'll be back at Aguascalientes soon to figure out exactly what their "buche" is - the word means "cheek," but I discovered after some research today that in different regions of Mexico it can be applied to face, maw, esophagus, inner stomach (tripe) or outer belly. Some previous board speculation is here. Googling Aguascalientes carnitas buche seems to indicate it would be pork belly in this case - only one way to find out. I'm most enticed back to this place by the fact they were hand-forming their own masa cakes for the gorditas, had a great beer selection, and a steady, grateful clientele.

One thing I learned from this thon is that the tortilla distribution network is alive and well in the Near West - nobody's tortillas sucked, they were all fresh from whatever factory had recently delivered them. By the same token, even on the weekend, nobody had made them by hand. But that made a reasonable control for tasting the actual meat, which did really vary in size, shape, texture, and color. Even so, nothing was inedible (Z de Oro came close). I'd be able to get sustenance at any of these places.

In addition to Aguascalientes, the places I'll be going back to will be La Lupita and Tototlan. The former had a treasury of unexplored items, including tamales de elote (out of season at the moment, but impressive that they offer them), carne en su jugo, pozole, champurrado, any many other Guerrero specialties. They had both giant banana leaf (Oaxacan) and corn husk tamales with red and green sauce, a nice clean setup with chalkboards, and the family matriarch skillfully directing the grillwork. The latter was a surprise for the confidence of its handling and offerings off a very small griddle. The birria was stewier than seems customary and appropriately goaty - I'm on the fence between this level of gameyness and the light-bulb clarity and succulence of Reyes de Ocotlan. We saw a few other birria places down the street that will be worth further exploration. PitD's picks seem to reveal that central-southern Mexico dominates the culinary landscape along Cermak, probably reflecting the general immigration pattern as well. Just about everyplace was inland Guerrero or Jalisco (Guadalajara much more so than PV). Semantically, even when these places are following a Sonoran "al carbon" preparation over a flame, which seems to have permeated every state in Mexico the way "al pastor" has (originating from those arabes), the going term seems to be "carne asada," which is more accurate for the last stage of cooking anyway. I'll have to look up the right translation for "carne a la greasebucket."

All in all, some solid, proud, family-run places. It seems like every once in a while, many of us get an ultimate moment of carbon-karma at Tio Luis or La Pasadita, that was not quite reached on the thon (unless at Zacatacos), but even those places prove inconsistent. As best we can tell, having the steak right off of the flame, before holding in the greasebucket, is the way to go, but skillful resurrection on a hot griddle gets you close. Urban tacos al carbon / asada may never supplant a whole arrachera from a beachside firepit, but they fill a much-needed niche.

I have been visiting this site for a while, but this is my first post.

I just want to thank all those who took part in the Carbon-a-Thon for the write-ups and recommendations. My wife and I live in the semi-arid food desert (one "s") of Oak Park, and have long enjoyed the steak tacos at Zacatacos in Berwyn. Last night, after reading this post, we stopped by La Lupita instead. OMG!

The steak tacos were as advertised. But we also shared a chicken huarache stuffed with beans and a fried chicken and potato quesadilla. Both were excellent, the masa was terrific, and everything was fresh, fresh, fresh. I should also mention the tomatillo-avocado salsa that we had with everything. Total tab: $10.

So thanks again to everyone who participates on this site, and I look forward to all your future food recommendations!

kalnitz wrote:I have been visiting this site for a while, but this is my first post.
...

Welcome to posting on LTH! We look forward to you sharing your favorite places.

There has been a little talk about heading over to La Lupita in the next few weeks (on a weekend) to give it a good LTH once over. Maybe you might like to join us?

My Bride and I stopped by there earlier in the week and tried the Quesadillas and they were deep fried, puffy and delicious. The 'meatball' soup of the day was very good too! A rich, tomato and beef based sauce with some green beans, potato and a chunk of, what I believe to be, tomitillo. Not too spicy at all and a good 'warm me up' for these cold days.

I'm just about to start a separate post on La Lupita after a repeat visit and finally getting pictures uploaded; this was the find of the 'thon for me. Thanks again, Panther - you're a-ok!

Please do. I'm going to make my maiden post-thon voyage over there either tomorrow night or sometime this wknd.
I wanna try a whole buncha stuff from there. I'd love to hear highlights and low-lights. Seems like it has huge potential for some good old fashioned abuelita cooking.

I've actually had food from La Lupita twice since the thon, but I've stuck mainly to the steak tacos. A chorizo taco two nights ago proved worthwhile, but not as enjoyable to me. My wife was very happy with her torta on her sole trip back thus far, and I know she plans to go that route again in the future though I'll have to elicit more detailed feedback from her later.

It's worth noting that La Lupita sells Mexican Coke

While their steak tacos were really good, I plan on researching the other (for lack of a better term) homestyle foods like enchiladas, guisados (stews,) tamales, soups. Maybe some of the other masa dishes like huaraches, sopes etc. I vividly remember seeing at least two older women cooking back there which, while may be a little prejudicial on my part, might be a good sign for homestyle mexican cooking. Their steak tacos were good, but, they were better at Zacatacos down the street. While I LOVE me some good steak tacos, good Mexican stews are some REALLY good eats as well.

I definitely plan to dig deeper in the menu as well. My 2 post-thon "visits" were "ok, order quick and get the heck out so we don't miss kick-off" and a quick phone call from my wife saying, "Hey, I felt like trying La Lupita again, so I'm parking right now. What do you want?" So, I opted for the expediency of tried and true in both cases. Well, tried for a tamale or two when the wife stopped by but apparently those are available weekends only, so it was not to be.

At any rate, I do look forward to a true exploration of their menu when time permits.

Weekends are the time to visit as they do have a good list of weekend specials.

Looks like My Bride and I with a few friends (2, maybe 3) will be heading over there at about 1:30 pm on Sunday.

I am looking forward to having the tamales again and I love the red salsa plus exploring the rest of the menu.