Taqueria Guanajuato
5210 West Pike Plaza Road
Indianapolis, IN 46254

I always forget that Taqueria Guanjuato has three Indy locations, as I frequently visit the one at 31^st and Shadeland any time that I am on the east side of the city.  It is so freaking good and I am not sure where to start.

I was excited when I had the opportunity to try a different location and wondered if it could keep the same quality.  This grocery store is huge and a lot nicer than the one on Shadeland.  Plus, they have an expanded menu and table service.  This location’s menu has rabbit and quail and a lot of seafood.   The one on Shadeland is just tacos, burritos and tortas.  Pike Plaza has alcohol too.  I decided to play it safe and stick with my normal order.

What I Got: Carne Asada Burrito;  $4.50 (don’t quote me on that, but it is under $5).

When you order the burrito, order it with everything.  Refried beans, avocado, lettuce, sour cream, tomato and cheese.   I can’t imagine it is any less than 1,300 calories.  Quite simply, this is my favorite cheap grab and go burrito that I have ever had.   It is pure fat and meat, but oh so tasty.  I usually grab one of the bottles of red salsa and paint a strip on my burrito, eat that layer and then repeat.  One burrito is probably more than enough for most people, but I usually add a sidecar of a chorizo taco (or two).  Those are the bomb as well.

Recently, I went there three times in one week and I had the Carne Asada, Al Pastor and Carnitas (available on the weekends only) and all meats were top shelf.  However, I once had a chicken burrito and it was horrible, so I can’t vouch for chicken here.

Would I Buy it Again??  HELL YEAH!!! I can guarantee you that I have been to 90% of Taquerias in Indianapolis and this is my favorite – and by quite a bit.   Their tacos, tortas and burritos are all lights out.

Recently, my cousin from Arizona came to Indy for Christmas and I mentioned going to the taqueria.  She curled her lip and said “Mexican in Indy?”  I reassured her that I have had burritos from coast to coast and one of my favorite burritos is here in Indy.   We went and she loved it.

Ok, stop reading my blog, go for lunch and report back. 

-wibia

The Burrito Joint
3359 W Morris St
Indianapolis, IN
317-243-8516

First review is here:  The Burrito Joint Review.

In my first review, I really liked The Burrito Joint.   A lot of good things going on here and I had one of the better Al Pastor burritos that I have ever tried.   On my revisit, I had to have a burrito again.  Based on a reader recommendation, I tried the Carne Asada.

Honestly, it was good, but not as good as the Al Pastor.   I found the meat to be a little bland.  It could’ve used a little salt, lime, pepper…something!  The quality is still on par and it is a huge burrito, but they have not perfected the Carne Asada preparation.   Still an awesome value for $4.50 for that huge of a burrito.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes, and adding it to our Recommended: Independent List. This burrito was solid, A+ on value and it was pretty tasty.  On my 3rd visit, I am either going to go back to the Pastor, or they have steak milanesa as an option (Pretty rare to find around here on a burrito.  Basically, it’s country fried steak and it could be tasty).

-WIBIA

El Taco Torro
79^th and Michigan
Indianapolis, IN

The WIBIA inbox is a pretty funny place (btw, thanks for all the e-mails).  One e-mail trend that is consistent is that people seem to really dig the taco joints.  The good news is…I do too.

I have passed this place up a few times and always wondered about it until I ran into this now defunct Indianapolis blog that had a review.   It looked good, so I gave it a try.

More of a seated restaurant with the server and chips/salsa setup.  Menu has tacos, burritos, tortas and a few other items as well but is mostly a standard taqueria.  El Taco Torro has a little more selection of meats than normal, tongue or intestine, etc.

What I Got: Taco Carnitas, Taco Al Pastor $1.50 each.  Carne Asada Burrito $4.99.

The tacos were stuffed full and I could barely fold them.  The Carnitas was a big miss.  There were a number of really fatty pieces that were inedible.  They were about the size of a piece of Trident and never should’ve made it to the plate.

Taco Al Pastor was a let down as well.   Instead a flavorful marinade carrying the taste, it reminded me of a seasoning packet that you would mix with water.  Plus there was no sign of a gyro spit (usually you can see all the meat staked and then sliced like a gyro)…bad sign there.   What was I thinking?  Both tacos were a little heavy handed on the sour cream, but since it was not a normal taqueria setup where you only got cilantro and onions, it was a nice bonus, especially at the price point.

Carne Asada Burrito

The carne asada burrito was pretty good actually.  The best quality of meat out of the three items I tried.  It was a good size and packed with beans, rice and a little too much sour cream. Really nice, no complaints here.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes/No.  No because the tacos were huge, but not very good.  The chef was heavy handed on sour cream and the red salsa with the chips was not to my liking (my guess, chilie de arbol based.)  Yes, because service was friendly, had a solid burrito, wide range of meats on the menu and the green salsa was good.

Bottom line…I need a re-visit.  I think there could be a couple of winners here, but I am not 100% convinced to sign my name to giving it a YES without reservations.

-WIBIA

Taqueria Guanajuato
Inside of Carniceria Guanajuatoin grocery store.
3110 N. Shadeland Ave
Indianapolis, IN 46226

Not to spoil my review, but this is about my sixth time visiting this place.  I live about 12 miles away and there is nothing close to it that I visit.  But when I am on the Eastside, I have to stop.

I love Mexican grocery stores by themselves and then add a Taqueria?!  Get out…great idea.  It’s like having a burger place attached to a butcher.

Before I start the review, I have to tell you that I know very little Spanish and my first two times here, the lady at the Taqueria didn’t speak English.  I ordered a Diet Coke, but got an orange soda.  My third time going, I fumbled through ordering in Spanish and when I was done she said “I know English” about as clear as if she just came off the Mayflower.  I felt like an asshole.

What I Ate: 2 Chorizo Tacos $1.75 each, 1 Chicken Taco $1.75 each and a Carne Asada Burrito $4.00.

Burrito

I usually stick to eating tacos here, but I tried the burrito.  OH MAMA was this good!  It was huge and loaded with some of the best Asada that I have had.  It had sour cream, cheese and a little bit of lettuce.  I find that Mexican sour cream is very different than at the normal grocery.  Buy some, do a taste test and you will get it.  I added some of the homemade red sauce from the random bottle on the counter and it brought a nice heat and flavor.  This was so good and I am not sure how to describe it.  For $4.00, this was a meal, no need for the tacos but…

Chorizo Tacos

The chorizo tacos here also rock.  Great flavor and the chorizo has a big time kick to it.  Tacos are served with lime, onion and cilantro on a corn tortilla.  I add a little green and red sauce like in the pic and that puts it over the top.

The chicken tacos were a let down compared to the rest of the meal.  They were good, but a touch dry.  The star of the show is the Asada.

Would I Buy It Again?  Yes and HALL OF FAME. I love this place.  I always take people  here that I know would freak (like my Mom).  It is out of some people’s comfort zone, but who cares?!  Old school Mexican-Polka music is blasting at 125 decibels, the place is usually packed, the guys behind the taco counter always flirt with my wife, but when you are serving up grub like this, all the other stuff just doesn’t matter.

I know that some of you think that I am full of shit on reviews, but I know my tacos inside and out and I have had them coast to coast and these are some of the best.

-WIBIA