NYC TACO escaped from a freezing January day and grabbed some tasty tacos at PINCHE TAQUERIA, with a very discerning taco guest: a young New Yorker who’s a former inhabitant of Tucson, Arizona.

Pinche Taqueria is a thin sliver of real estate (we’re talking three to six feet across in the seating area) between Lafayette and Mulberry street in Noho, and it’s known to be the go-to taco place in the neighborhood.  A lone space heater on the floor couldn’t keep the cold from creeping in, so we hoped our order of Taco de Carne Asada, Taco de Pollo Asado, and Yuca Fries would warm us up.

One word to describe their Yuca Fries: Yummy.  Yuca’s a root cultivated in South America for the last ten thousand years, and yuca fries are a lighter and richer tasting alternative to French fries.  You get a large basket for $4.50, with dipping sides of cilantro mayonnaise and roasted jalopena ketchup.  You will eat them all, but won’t feel guilty about it.

The chicken tacos were fresh and tasty, but to Tucson Girl, the toppings were disappointing: a paltry smattering of guacamole, with a few small pieces of lettuce and tomato.  No pico de gallo, but you can purchase a tiny (TINY) side for a dollar.  ”A dollar for pico de gallo?”, she exclaims.  And a bland pico de gallo at that.  Perhaps Pinche wants to keep their tacos “pure” by not smothering the meat?

NYCTACO had the steak taco – but unlike the chicken it was a bit rubbery, and a little cold.  The waiter’s walk from the kitchen to our table probably lowered its temperature a few dozen degrees.  (It was cold in there, people.)

Tucson Girl’s final assessment?  Pinche Taqueria is her favorite taco place in NYC.  Although it doesn’t reach the quality of mexican or southwest tacos, for Gotham it’s “pretty good.”

For NYCTACO, the jury’s still out.  Stay tuned…

The ENDLESS SUMMER taco truck’s still sitting on Williamsburg’s Bedford Avenue and it’s not going nowhere.  We ate some corn with its mastermind Jeff Jensen at the NYCTACO offices and chatted a spell.

Hey Jeff, how did you start Endless Summer?

Basically, we started out of necessity. Curtis and I were both completely broke and needed a way to earn a living. So in about 3 or 4 months we learned everything we could about street vending and concentrated all our energies on creating the best recipes for Mexican street food. Obtaining all the proper permits and licenses is nearly impossible. You have to be obsessed with making it happen because there are innumerable legal obstacles in starting a business like this. Once we cleared the city and Health department hurdles we embarked on the even more painful process of figuring out how to make it work on a day to day basis.

Why North 3rd and Bedford?

I’ve lived in Williamsburg since 1993. When trying to pick a location for the truck, I scouted LeFrak City pretty hard (housing development in Queens – ed.) but the convenience of operating in the neighborhood where I actually live was too alluring.

Why put chunks of lime in tacos?

Initially, we experimented with wedges of frozen semen but found the flavors too tempting.  It also made us feel kind of gay, so we stuck with the traditional lime.

The Endless Summer is extending into fall. Will the van be able to brave the cold NYC winter?

First off, it’s a truck not a van.

Sorry bro, that’s what I meant – truck.

But to answer your question… yes, we will be open 12-midnight even in the most bitter conditions. After all we opened last year in December so we’re prepared.

What is 2nd favorite taco place in the city?

I like De Mole in Sunnyside.

Thanks bro!

www.endlesssummertacos.com

Punjabi Grocery Deli~ 114 E. 1st St. New York, NY  10009 ~ (212) 533-9048

I’ve eaten my way through a big part of New York’s cheap and fine dining establishments, and if I was gonna have my last meal catered by anyone in the Manzana Grande, I’d pick Punjabi. It is my favorite spot in New York and I love it, mostly as Mr. Cooke put it, “for sentimental reasons.”

I’ve been coming to this small North Indian deli/takeout restaurant/cassette tape dispensary/taxi driver hangout for at least eleven years (the dreads introduced me) and stood by its side through staff changes, price adjustments, and even 9/11, wherein NYC TACO stood firmly against the challenges of U.S. ignorance colliding with the normal haberdashery of our brave Sikh brothers, of which this particular Punjabi crew belongs.

This homie has been here for years now. He is awesome, though one time, back in the days when he was sorta new, he sneaked a minute pepper in my food that nearly killed me. He’s behind a slew of Indian snack foods and in front of the numerous, multi-colored covers of mix-tapes sung in Punjabi, Marathi, Urdu and Hindi and whatnot. Below him are a picture-shy assortment of curries that change daily and are served with basmati and nuked for your convenience. There are usually about 6 curries and breads and samosas available. The curries taste homemade and are very good. The chai is also really sweet and a nice treat on them freezing Gotham days.

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