Perhaps the title is a bit confusing but the story shall all unravel nicely....
10:00pm- Monday Night in
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Taco Bell will never again be your only option when it comes to a late night Mexican food craving. After a long night at the dance studio, Jaime met up with me, who had recently failed miserably at my second attempt at "the lemonade diet". To lift our spirits and earn a spirit at the end of the evening, the
WONTONanators set out into Brooklyn's winter night in search of the perfect taco. Our prize, if we were to visit and consume 3 tacos..... a tequila sunrise and an instant wolf tattoo.
1. YOLA's Cafe Mexican Food524 Metropolitan Ave, Brooklyn NY 11211
With two small two-tops, a barely usable counter and stools,
Yola's leaves a little to be desired in atmosphere and the in-restaurant dining amenities. Locals took up all of the real estate, so luckily we were taking our order to go! Too many tacos, too little time! Even at 10:30pm, the
WONTONanators were kept good company with our fellow
Brooklynites. The high volume of to-go orders made our
WONTON SENSES say "Good Food". Speedy service was matched by the simplicity of our highly affordable tacos ($3 each). Two warm fresh tortillas, your choice of meat filling, and a heaping serving of onion heavy guacamole. That's it. I started my evening's venture with steak, perfectly cooked to order but lacked sodium and any special
Mexican spices. Jaime chose to stick with an all-night pork fest.
Yola's chorizo was flavorful but greasy. But the fresh guacamole was the winner of the evening, despite the
avocado being completely out of season.
INFO: Cash Only, Open daily til 1pm.
Yola's uses
styrofoam.... shame...
GRADE:
B2. The Taco Truck
South East Corner of N6th and Bedford Ave. Brooklyn, NY 11211
I've walked by this truck daily, on my way to the Metropolitan pool, where the line is always steady and manageable. The Taco Truck is simple in concept but their tacos are complexly, yet perfectly constructed. Jaime's
chorizo taco burst with flavor, obliterating the competition, served with delicate slices of fresh
avocado. With each taco ($3), including my fish taco, was served a slice of lime and fresh radish slices. Red cabbage, a dab of guacamole, hot sauce, and a sprinkle of traditional Mexican cheese, that I cannot remember how to pronounce or spell... resembled a
Parmigiana Reggiano... simply perfect. As it is a truck, there is no seating but on a warm spring afternoon, the
WONTONanators recommend a short walk north to
McCarren Park where there is usually hipster debauchery of some form. As it were, Jaime and I chose to stay close to the truck and admire the beautiful men who served us our taco. Delicious AND delicious.
INFO: Cash only, Open til 11:30pm or when they run out of supplies, stick around for the
hotties in the aprons.
GRADE:
A+++3. San Loco
160 N.4th (btw Bedford and Driggs) Brooklyn, NY 11211
Plently of seating... we should have been tipped off, but we just attributed the restaurant's emptiness to it being Monday and now nearing midnight. The tables were filthy as we waited for our food, Jaime and I resolved to cleaning off the least of offenders with a paper napkin. Few loiterers hovered over their
wax paper wrappers and laptops as a sign delineates the separation between the bar and restaurant. Lunch special, happy hours (both afternoon and late night) seemed like worthwhile deals. We encountered our most expensive of soft tacos ($3.90/each) as I ordered a
Chipotle Chicken and Jaime failed to find any
semblance of
chorizo, she settled for Pork
Pinannia. Along with table service, there was no hot sauce in sight. No guacamole. Soggy shredded
iceberg lettuce, a slice of flavorless tomato an even more offensive meat fillings, were served on a less than acceptable tortilla. The dirty tables now could be attributed to either the inability for the thin tortilla (not the quicker picker upper) to hold sloppy
innards or the inability of San Loco's customers to stomach the sub par Mexican fair. Yet the prices of drinks seemed reasonable and after a $23 pitcher of margarita, even San Loco's tacos could be San Tolerable.
INFO: Cash only, Alcohol necessary....we mean "available"...
GRADE:
C-So after a long night on the perfect taco quest, the
WONTONanators retired to the Levee (212 Berry Street.) where we earned our Tequila sunrises. Yet our second round, we opted for the a Levee house special, the
Gatorita (Lemon-Lime Gatorade and Tequila $6.50/pint). Our matching wolf tattoos in tow, we discovered, that tonight, there was a full moon as the Wolf Pack played on the jukebox. We decided to call it a night with fears of being bitten by werewolves on the way home, where Jaime replied, "It's better than being dead." Yes, being infected by the werewolf virus is definitely better than being dead.
WONTON-SPIRATION:
Chipotle Chorizo and Avocado Wonton
(served with Sour Cream and fresh Lime squeeze)
