What is a true neighborhood taquería?
In Tijuana, they are the taquerías that you grow up going to. The taquerías manned by taqueros that have the power to uplift you with their banter and jokes while they serve you happiness on a flimsy plate. In our search for T.J.'s deeper taquerías, Ed Calderón vouched for Tacos Chava, a longstanding taco stand embedded deep in the hills of La Libertad neighborhood where Calderón grew up in. "I used to ride my skateboard down these steep hills!" The combat-hardened Calderón tells L.A. TACO with a smirk.
For that brief moment, as we rolled up to the second to last taco stand of the day, the awkwardness of meeting each other for the first time and talking about narco culture in a place known for disappearing people had worn off. We weren't hungry anymore, but that is beside the point when you're in Mexico and are always within reach of tacos that are worlds better than anything you can find stateside.
The taco of desire at Chava's is their truly "grocero" (naughty) tacos made with both a soft-toasted corn tortilla on a flat-top grill and a mesquite-grilled corn tortilla crisped up with beef drippings, stuffed with velvety frijoles guisados (refried beans). Each crispy bean taco is split-open and stuffed with juicy, smokey asada, chorizo, or crispy tripitas (intestine). And of course, the Tijuana works in the form of an unwatered-down smear of guacamole and fresh tomato salsa.
Tacos Chava
Catorceava 720, Libertad, 22400 Tijuana, B.C., Mexico
Check out the video below.
