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| - I finally got a chance to try Barrio's restaurant this past weekend - I have previously had Barrio's tacos both from their food truck and their stand at Progressive Field, which I've always loved. Unfortunately I just didn't feel like the food at the restaurant itself lived up to the same standards.
The restaurant is very hip; I especially like the eclectic skeleton murals on the walls. We were fortunate to be here during the month of October, so the whole restaurant was decorated for Day of the Dead and was very festive. We had to wait a little bit to be seated, but the staff seemed to be efficient with a quick turnaround time for a table.
When we sat down, we were greeted with warm chips and salsa and then ordered a round of drinks. Honestly, my biggest disappointment of the evening was my margarita: it tasted like it was poured straight out of a pre-mixed José Cuervo bottle. It was so sweet that I almost couldn't finish it. I know it seems insane to have the margarita be such a disappointment to me, but I've had some absolutely amazing margaritas from taco joints recently (I'm looking at you, Bakersfield!), so I guess I was expecting the same from Barrio.
Anyone who knows me knows that I consider tacos a food group in itself. After being wowed with the tacos from Barrio's food trucks and the stand at Progressive, I expected a lot. I decided to build my own - there are order sheets on every table for you to fill in your own preferences and then hand your order off to your waiter. I loved the concept of this, and the build-your-own tacos were only $3 each, which is definitely a steal! I ordered two tacos. The first included grilled chicken, pineapple salsa, and chihuahua cheese (plus tons of veggies), and the second had Coca Cola marinated steak, honey chipotle sauce, queso fresco, and veggies. The steak taco was definitely my favorite; I liked the taste of the Coca Cola marinated steak much more than the grilled chicken, which didn't have much flavor. Neither one of the tacos seemed remarkable to me. They were piled high with veggies and didn't have much meat in them at all.
For now I'll stick to Barrio's food truck or their stand at Progressive, where for some reason the tacos seem much more impressive and flavorful.
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