Tacombi Review: Diet worthy tacos at Tacombi
With social networking surrounding us day and night, sometimes it’s hard to run out of things to say. Between blogging, twitter, facebook, tumblr, and god knows what else, the options are endless. In the end, social media is marked by the things you cannot say as opposed to the things you can say, and how easy it is to say it. When it comes to diets, it’s all too easy to be shaped by restrictions in what one can eat. Sometimes it’s the things you can’t say and the foods you’re not supposed to be eating that truly shape or haunt you. There probably aren’t many dieters accepting that tacos belong in the dieting food group. It does and should. For those really strict on their diets (not me), they would be able to at least try one taco at Tacombi in Soho. They have this cactus taco that’s $4 (all their tacos are $4). It’s perfect for folks on a diet because it’s slimy, weird, and not delicious at all. Just like all other diet foods. Luckily, other tacos on the menus are actually good.
The main draw of Tacombi is not sticker shock at having to pay $4 per taco. It’s that they have an open kitchen that’s placed inside of a retro-style VW van. The way it works is this: first you buy your tokens, which countless number of people have graced with their cold and flu-ridden germy fingers. Then you take it to the cook in the van, who’s wearing gloves but once he touches the germy tokens, what the fuck is the point of the gloves? Fortunately, the germ-depot that is taco tokens don’t really affect the taste of the tacos filled with meat. That’s what I learned at Tacombi. Stick with meaty tacos. Their beef taco features braised beef that’s piled high on a tiny tortilla. It’s delicious and actually not half-bad of a value even at $4.
The chicken and pork tacos are also good choices. I frankly couldn’t tell which one was chicken and which one was pork. Despite my lack of acute taste buds, I can tell you that they’re both good. If I have to get just one though, I might have to stick to the beef taco. I’m sure if you’re on a diet, eating all the major meat groups is out of the question but I’m down with that. Extra time on the elliptical machine for me!
Tacombi also makes breakfast tacos. The one Steph and I got was egg with chorizo and some other fillers. It’s mostly eggs. Eating an egg taco does make it feel like breakfast, but it also feels like, “Damn, I spent $4 on eggs.” The chorizo plays a minor role in this taco. They do give you lots of egg but I’d stick with the meat tacos next time.
You get a cool atmosphere at Tacombi, a germ-ridden ordering system, and pretty good tacos for Manhattan. Price aside, they probably are up there with the best tacos in the city. It’s too bad that I always factor in the price. I have to say that I don’t feel like I’m on a diet. It’s more like developing a new relationship with the elliptical machine at the gym. A lot of my food choices haven’t changed much except for no more gorging on pretzels during snack time. No more defining snack time as every other hour. I still do eat 95% of a bag of chips and then leave like the crumbs at the bottom after the guilt has settled and washed over me. It’s a good thing I’m not an alcoholic. I guess it’s kind of awesome to have a food blog.
Tacombi267 Elizabeth St.New York, NY 10012917-727-0179
Posted by Danny on January 26, 2011 at 7:30 pm
After two months of being a parent, I can say that it doesn’t get any easier! The food blogging pretty much has stopped but it’s nice to take… [more]
0 comments
April 1, 2016 at 2:26 am 
I am a dad now! It’s only been about a month, and it’s as surreal to write that now was it was when my son first came into the world. Being… [more]
2 comments
February 29, 2016 at 2:27 am 
For the food loving couple that’s hobbled by the exclamation of, “I’m getting too old for this,” there’s some usefulness in food courts…. [more]
0 comments
January 10, 2016 at 1:12 am 
When the semester cycles to an end, my brain basically cannot fit everything all in, and that’s why the blog has really suffered. My plan for the… [more]
0 comments
December 31, 2015 at 8:39 pm 
The other day wifey and I woke up at 3 am and took the train into the city. Weather had not yet turned cold. It wasn’t the kind of wind that would… [more]
0 comments
November 30, 2015 at 9:54 pm