favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

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AJoD
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by AJoD »

alpha_glamourina wrote: Oh, and I said I liked their carnita tacos when I meant to say carne asada tacos!  I've not tried carnita tacos there yet, but they might be good since everything else there is.   :)
Glad to hear that, I'm still looking for a good fresh carne asada.  Their carnitas tacos are tasty enough, as pulled pork is tasty, but without the richness and textural contrasts of the best carnitas.
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by loftguy »

Does anyone know of a place in KC that serves a New Mexico style green chile'?
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by chrizow »

AJoD wrote: Is there anyone here who gets to Topeka regularly (PumpkinStalker?) that his tried Carniceria Camecuaro?  This guy says the al pastor is way better than El Camino Real, which I have a hard time believing, but I'm almost tempted to drive out there and give it a shot.
http://blogs.pitch.com/fatcity/2009/08/ ... queria.php

looks like you can eat these delicious tacos in KCK.
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by AJoD »

chrizow wrote: http://blogs.pitch.com/fatcity/2009/08/ ... queria.php

looks like you can eat these delicious tacos in KCK.
Yeah, turns out there are five of them in all, but the 7th St location is the only one that has a full restaurant set-up.  I tried carnitas tacos at the Orville location, okay, but not great.  It was a weekday when I visited 7th and the spit wasn't up and running, nor did the carnitas look too fresh.  Keep meaning to go on a weekend but haven't made it yet.

More: http://lthforum.com/kc/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=98
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by mayor_of_waldo »

I have two that I have been enjoying lately.

El Taco nazo, 624 Kansas Ave, Kansas City, KS (we call it the Taco Nazi and when you see him you will understand)
Its a buffet, but still out of this world, with caldo, menudo, chili relleno, chicken mole and much more. The down side is the auto shop next door painted a car and the smell of paint made us high.

Bonito Michoacan 1150 Minnesota Ave, Kansas City, KS
The best taco in town. This is a grocery store, so be sure to check out the meat counter in the back, they make their own chorizo. If you don't know Spanish, you should brush up a little. Tuesday is $.99 tacos, and 5 is an order.
Last edited by mayor_of_waldo on Wed Oct 28, 2009 7:43 am, edited 1 time in total.
loftguy
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by loftguy »

mayor_of_waldo wrote: I have two that I have been enjoying lately.

El Taco nazo, 624 Kansas Ave, Kansas City, KS (we call it the Taco Nazi and when you see him you will understand)
Its a buffet, but still out of this world, with caldo, menudo, chili relleno, chicken mole and much more. The down side is the auto shop next door painted a car and the smell of paint made us high.

Bonito Michoacan 1150 Minnesota Ave, Kansas City, KS
The best taco in town. This is a grocery store, so be sure to check out the meat counter in the back, they make their own chorizo. If you don't know Spanish, you should brush up a little. Tuesday is $.99 tacos, and 5 is an order.
Is El Taco Nazo a buffet in the evening, too, or just at lunch?
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by mayor_of_waldo »

I don't know will  ask next time im in
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by ChandraNH »

KCLofts wrote: Not really strict Mexican, but El Pollo Rey at 1101 Kansas Ave makes a mean grilled chicken.  You pretty much either get a half or whole grilled chicken served with tortillas, rice and beans.

Ability to converse in Spanish is a definite plus.  When going down Kansas Ave, look for the building with all of the smoke billowing out the side.
went here and grabbed dinner today and must say, this is some of the best chicken I've ever had.  I was hoping for something "el pollo loco'esque" and got something much better (though I prefer El Pollo Loco's beans).

I found the place easily enough (down the street from Ninfa's).  I was the only person there besides the two employees, one manning the fire, the other handling the money, etc.  There are about 4 tables inside and a grill behind the counter with rows of chickens grilling over a wood fire.  In fact, driving up Kansas, you can see the smoke billowing from the building.

I ordered a whole chicken dinner.  As noted above, you can get a whole chicken or a half chicken dinner or six chicken wings!

The meal was ready to go instantly.  The order taker put together the sides and the grill-master plopped the chicken in a Styrofoam box.  It smelled incredible on the ride home. 

Got it home and opened the bag and box and here's what i found:

a whole (I mean whole, including the back and neck) chicken with crispy grilled skin.  the chicken was cut into 8 rough pieces with the breast cut crosswise.  Whole pinto beans with sausage and bacon, "mexican" rice, tortillas (corn) and salsa.  Oh, and a bag of pickled onions.

Now the sides are small, though you do get about 7 tortillas with the chicken.  The salsa was very good and reminds me of Ninfa's.  I'd have preferred Ninfa's tortillas with the meal.

The chicken, oh the chicken...smoky, crispy skin, tender, juicy and black in spots from being grilled.  Not burned.  I don't normally like thigh meat, but this was so good that I had some.  Along with a drumstick and a wing and some back meat.  Good enough for me to anticipate taking it for my lunch tomorrow (and I don't like leftovers). 

I wound up piling chicken and onions in a tortilla and topping with salsa.  The onions are spectacular, which is notable for me because I don't care for raw onions and only recently came to appreciate caramelized onions.

The total for the feast:  $12.00.  That's right, a whole chicken (enough for 2-3 people, this is a normal sized chicken, not a super-sized growth hormone chicken) and sides (though they should double up on the sides when you order a whole chicken dinner) for $12.00.

Get thee to El Pollo Rey as soon as you can
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by TrevorA »

What, no mention of Rico's next to La Fonda? $1 tacos on Tuesdays. Very good street style tacos. Nothing but meat, cilantro and onions plus a choice of three kick-ass sauces all on double corn tortillas. They've also got Mexican coke. The taco's are so good, I haven't tried any other food. Meats include all the standards but they've also got brains on the menu - if you as so bold to try.

I love to sit outside this place on First Fridays. Probably be there tonight....
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by kcmetro »

Jalapenos
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by bbqboy »

ricos?
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by loftguy »

bbqboy wrote: ricos?
streetside eats from a carneceria.  2nd door from Summit on the north side of SW blvd.
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by TrevorA »

loftguy wrote: streetside eats from a carneceria.  2nd door from Summit on the north side of SW blvd.
Exactly.

You can't find it online, I've tried. Not even Google Maps.
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by chrizow »

TrevorA wrote: What, no mention of Rico's next to La Fonda? $1 tacos on Tuesdays. Very good street style tacos. Nothing but meat, cilantro and onions plus a choice of three kick-ass sauces all on double corn tortillas. They've also got Mexican coke. The taco's are so good, I haven't tried any other food. Meats include all the standards but they've also got brains on the menu - if you as so bold to try.
dude.  we just ate at this place tonight.  i had never noticed it before!  it's AWESOME.

we had tacos al pastor and chorizo tacos.  A+.  the three sauces they give you are the three best salsas in town, bar none.  this is the new favorite place i think.  the pastor meat was not as awesome by itself as el camino real, but with the sauce and the great tortillas, i felt like it was a more tasty taco overall. 
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by mean »

Well, now it's definitely on the list. Thanks for the heads-up, Trevor!
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by aknowledgeableperson »

Guicho's Mexican Grill in Belton.

Almost every menu item can be ordered with either ground beef, pork, chicken, etc.  Meat seasoned good, chips and salsa good.  Service could be improved though.
I may be right.  I may be wrong.  But there is a lot of gray area in-between.
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

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chrizow wrote: dude.  we just ate at this place tonight.  i had never noticed it before!  it's AWESOME.

we had tacos al pastor and chorizo tacos.  A+.  the three sauces they give you are the three best salsas in town, bar none.  this is the new favorite place i think.  the pastor meat was not as awesome by itself as el camino real, but with the sauce and the great tortillas, i felt like it was a more tasty taco overall. 
we went back last night for "taco tuesday" - $1 tacos.  awesome.  i'm already fantasizing about our next trip.  the chorizo wasn't as flavorful this time, but i still liked it a lot.  the green salsa is just killer.  i think it's just pureed jalepeno, green pepper, and maybe lime. 
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by LenexatoKCMO »

chrizow wrote: we went back last night for "taco tuesday" - $1 tacos. 
We were next door at Pueblito - would have steered clear had I known there was such a sketchy crowd on the block.  :lol:
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by ThaMexican »

Tacos on Wheels on KCK, it is located on 10th St  south of Central St and  north of I-75. East side of 10th about a block south of the school. Great place, love it.
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Re: favorite under-the-radar mexican places in the kansas city area?

Post by staubio »

chrizow wrote: dude.  we just ate at this place tonight.  i had never noticed it before!  it's AWESOME.

we had tacos al pastor and chorizo tacos.  A+.  the three sauces they give you are the three best salsas in town, bar none.  this is the new favorite place i think.  the pastor meat was not as awesome by itself as el camino real, but with the sauce and the great tortillas, i felt like it was a more tasty taco overall. 
Okay, with a review like this, I had to try it. It was really good and the salsa is the best ever, but the tacos don't really compete with El Camino Real in my book. Small pebbles of pork instead of the big slices from the spit at ECR. I tried a chicken taco as well, though, and that was excellent and better than ECR's dry, uninteresting chicken taco.

It won't keep me from going to ECR but great stuff. Another great tip from the Rag.
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