Taco Trucks Rock

Nueva York: The Complete Guide to Latino Life in the Five Boroughs tells me, among many other things, where to find delicious treats like cubanos and tacos. Last night I hit the best taco stand documented via the printing press. It's a truck parked (usually) at 96th Street and Broadway on the Upper West Side.

I was not disappointed by my taco truck dinner adventure. I arrived next to five others standing alongside the truck intently devouring their tacos y tamales. The gentlemen next to me was having a foodgasm over a cheese tamale. I was so moved by his adoration for the tamale--clearly the final chapter in his life-long quest to eat the perfect tamale--that I also added a pork tamale to my order. Having recently acquired symptoms of the strain of germophobia indigenous to New York City, I decided to take my order to go. Complete with fresh lime wedges and a fresh salsa verde to drizzle atop the steak, onion, and cilantro taco, I enjoyed every juicy, soft bite of this super cheap ($2/taco), super delicioso meal.

I talked up the tacos so much this afternoon to my cohort during class, that I gathered 6 orders for tacos, brought a convert with me on the train during lunch, and found the downside to the taco truck venue. Sure the overhead cost of a truck is passed onto the consumer in the form of super cheap prices for superior food, but equally true is that some days the truck may just not be there. It was rainy and there was no truck to be found this afternoon. Sadness and deep disappointment ensued, until of course we realized the gyro stand was sitting kitty-corner across the street from where the tacos should have been. It turns out there is plenty of fresh, inexpensive, tasty hot food to go around in New York.