la pasadita

La Nueva.

La Pasadita. La Pasadita. La Pasadia. That’s what goes through hundreds of peoples’ heads every day driving down Ashland Avenue. La Pasadita has three locations, all within 75 feet of each other.

The original (La Chaquita – “the small one”) is on the east side of the street (1141). Across the street from that at 1140 is El Largo (“the long one”, ladies) and directly south of that is La Nueva (“the new one”) at 1132. You can read about how all of this happened here. It’s a really great read, but one that my friend Justin and I hadn’t read before going. We chose La Nueva, which coincidentally the article says is the one for white people. My friend Justin, yup, that Justin, says it’s the best one and is the only one that has the salsa negro. If that’s not true, blame him.

La Pasadita is known for their “steak” tacos, so I decided to try all three that fit into that category. First, I tried the carne asada. It rivals some of the best. The steak has a great grill flavor and is seasoned with some family recipe rub that whoops booty. The barbacoa is excellent as well. It tastes like a beef roast. The lomo (ribeye) is very good as well. No grill flavor, but enough fat and seasoning to do the trick.

The only negative I can think of is it’s a lil’ dirty in there….but dirt don’t hurt.

Cow. Cow. And, Cow.

The salsa negro is also very tasty…smoky, sweet, spicy.

Stats:

• Location:  1132 N. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL (Wicker Park)
  
• Tourists:  Josh, Justin
  

  Las Pasaditas.

• Tacos sampled:  carne asada, barbacoa, lomo (they also have pollo, lengua, chorizo, and chile relleno)
  
• Toppings:  onions and cilantro
  
• Salsa:  salsa verde, salsa negra (roasted tomatillo)
  
• Extras:  chips
  
• Tortillas:  corn
  
• Atmosphere:  lil’ dirty, small
  
• Price: $1.85-$2.50/taco
  
• OVERALL RATING: 8.5