Terrible photo of Arturo’s.
Last night I took the ol’ lady out for a big night on the town. For our formal dinner, we tried Arturo’s in the first of our two-part series: “24 Hour Taco Joints on the Corner of Western and Armitage”. I know I’ve tried both Arturo’s and Lazo’s several times, but I was unsure of who had the better taco. After last night, while 2/3 of my tacos were tasty, I’m guessing/hoping that Lazo’s will come out on top. Arturo’s was less than spectacular.
The carnitas taco was possibly the driest thing I’ve ever eaten. Leather would be envious. The chunks of pork were large and looked hopeful, but any excitement was lost in the first bite. Enough, I have cotton mouth just typing about it.
The carne asada and camaron tacos were both good, but not great. The shrimp tasted pretty good, but there wasn’t anything else on the taco with taste. Some cabbage, a remoulade, or anything with taste or texture would have been a nice compliment. The carne asada was good and cooked well, but lacked grill flavor.
Ok, on to Lazo’s….
Suspect #1 in the middle…
The breakdown of our visit:
- Location: 2001 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL (Bucktown)
- Tourists: Josh, Julia
- Tacos sampled: carne asada, carnitas, camaron (also have chorizo, lengua, pollo, al pastor, vegetariano, cabeza, barbacoa, aquacate, suadero, tripas and chile relleno)
- Toppings: onions and cilantro or lettuce and tomato
- Salsa: pico de gallo, salsa roja
- Extras: chips
- Tortillas: corn (camaron had flour)
- Atmosphere: busy, hipsters, mexican diner, 24 hours, servers watching you like you’re an exhibit at the museum
- Price: $2.05-$2.95/taco
- OVERALL RATING: 6
taco tourist 