Tacos are the perfect summer food. Meat lovers crave them brimming with quesabirria, al pastor, or carnitas, and people like me seek versions filled with grilled shrimp, salmon, or nopale. Some folks prefer topping them with creamy slaw, fresh salsa, and sliced radish. And, we learned, the most important addition is a squeeze of lime (it’s not just a garnish!). No matter how you take them, the handy finger food is a great complement to all your warm-weather activities.
Our taco-obsessed crew set out to find some of Reno-Tahoe’s best taco choices. Edible Reno-Tahoe managing editor Jessica Santina teamed up with co-publisher Jaci Goodman and local chef Kevin Ashton, co-founder of The Great Taco Trek Facebook group and host of the popular Old’s Cool Kevmo channels on TikTok and YouTube, to taste test, review, and sometimes argue over the offerings. (How do you feel about an all-cheese taco shell?)
The team settled on 14 locations that range from hole-in-the-wall taquerias to Mexican butcher shops, food trucks, and more elevated establishments. We hope you enjoy their hard-earned “research”.
By press deadline, they ran out of time eating tacos; there were so many more that could have been included. What did we miss in our coverage? Let’s taco ’bout it on our social media pages.
Once you’ve perused our list, check out how to eat a taco. You may be doing it all wrong!
What goes great with tacos? How about an icy horchata (one of the original plant-based milks)? We tested and tweaked a recipe, and now I can’t stop drinking it. Or how about a local fresh fruit paleta (Mexican popsicle) for dessert? Gawk at the artful photos by Ari Nordhagen, and whet your appetite for these sweet treats.
What else goes great with summer? Dog-friendly restaurant patios, of course. Check out our list of five in South Lake, North Lake, Reno, Carson City, and Truckee. And meet seven local chefs who love hanging with their canine companions.
You’ll find all of this and much more. We hope you enjoy it.
Happy summer!
About the cover Carnitas, al pastor, and chicken chirmol tacos at Estella restaurant at The Jesse in Reno. Special thanks to chef Will Sheppard. Photo by Lou Manna
Correction In our COOKS! (May-June) edition feature on the national cookie competition, a Food Network representative provided the wrong photo, so, unfortunately, we published a photo of her competitor’s work. We regret the error.
