Most authentic Mexican food in Tallahassee?
- Thread starter wbnolefan2
- Start date
La Tiendita wins by a mile. They’ve got good housemade Agua frescas (usually two of melon, tamarind and hibiscus but sometimes something different) and great crispy tripe and Cabeza tacos.
We have authentic Mexicans here in DeFuniak. Some of them opened a restaurant. Not your typical chain fare.
I'm curious what authentic Mexican place in Texas you're referencing. I might not have been there before, but it'd be good to know. It's hard to find authentic Mexican food there, rather than lots of really good Tex Mex.
Ah...couldn’t tell you the name. It was somewhere off of Ben White in between I35 and the Airport.
Place was legit. Everything was in Spanish, the employees spoke nothing but Spanish, specials were on a black board and were always so damn good. The place was so good, have never found a place close to it since.
And maybe “authentic” Mexican is a term I’m not used too and I was taking for something different. But I was thinking this place was “authentic” because it was unlike the locally owned Mexican places that are all pretty much identical. It was unique.
I’ve never been to Mexico...I was giving an answer based on places I’ve actually been.
Tallahassee had “El Jelisco”...while I guess it’s more authentic than Taco Bell...I still don’t see it as authentic authentic.
I feel Iike I’m coming across as a Mexican food snob in this thread. Wasn’t my angle...I’ve just been searching for a place as good as this place I went to Austin ever since i left...hasn’t happened.
Man, I miss Guthrie’s. I occasionally try to make a knock off batch at home, but it’s never quite the same
Do you remember Geno? He posted in here back in 2004ish. He owned restaurants etc.
Any how...he posted a recipe that he called “geno sauce” and it was gut sauce to the tee.
Was so good...have since lost the recipe.
I remember there was a lot of olive oil in it, which was surprising.
Xochi, Hugo's or Caracol in Houston. Xochi is incredible
If tripe is "authentic"
, then I'll stick to La Fiesta and the 2 for 1 margaritas "Happy Hour" (which is actually 8 hours).
Last edited:
La Huasteca Mexican Foods. It's a restaurant/store combo across the street from the city hall. We like it.
Got it, we have one of those on 98 that I stop in to get tacos occasionally
This little place is the most authentic I have found in Tallahassee. Their yelp reviews are excellent as well.
If tripe is "authentic"
You’re missing out, the crispy tripe/tripa dorada (as opposed to the “regular” tripe) is probably my favorite Taco there even over other authentic and great tacos like cabeza (head/Cow cheek), lengua (tongue), chuleta (pork chop), chorizo (my second fave) etc... They also have good chilaquiles which I found better than a place famous for it in Austin and another local famous breakfast place in Phoenix but not as good as the version from a famous one in Flagstaff.
They have some gringo “safe” food as well, but what’s the point of asking for “authentic” dishes (which are quite tasty btw) and then eating typical TexMex BS?
Guess I'm a wimp for sticking to conventional cuts of meat...I'll never be Andrew Zimmern.
Conventional doesn’t mean better. Tongue used to be the most expensive cut and it’s the main reason wild bison almost went extinct as they would be slaughtered just for their tongues while the rest was left to rot similar to shark fin. I think it’s good even great in tacos and Jewish/Eastern European deli sandwiches but it’s not my favorite. The cheek is absolutely one of the best if not THE best cuts despite being cheap. Tripe is bland and flavourless on its own but fried and seasoned right such as at La Tiendita it has a nice texture and great flavor from the seasoning.
There’s a ton of other really great non-American conventional cuts and bits as well. As I’ve mentioned before, I love flap steak maybe even more than ribeye as it has more flavor yet is not noticeably tougher. The best cut of yakitori imo is the tsunagi or “special heart” ie the aorta and ventricles coming from the heart rather than the heart itself which is good but a little tougher.
When I was in San Francisco at an authentic northern Chinese restaurant I tried fried chicken knee tendon for the first time (also popular in Thailand so you can find similar versions with different sauces in authentic Thai places), which sounds awful to the uninitiated but may be one of my favorite fried bits of all time. They’re like a slightly crunchier, less chewy “chicken gizzard” with a surprising amount of chicken flavor.
I could go on and on about dishes unusual to american palates that are better than a sad hamburger and with less “disgusting” parts than a hotdog.
I don't doubt you...Ever tried Rocky Mountain oysters??Conventional doesn’t mean better. Tongue used to be the most expensive cut and it’s the main reason wild bison almost went extinct as they would be slaughtered just for their tongues while the rest was left to rot similar to shark fin. I think it’s good even great in tacos and Jewish/Eastern European deli sandwiches but it’s not my favorite. The cheek is absolutely one of the best if not THE best cuts despite being cheap. Tripe is bland and flavourless on its own but fried and seasoned right such as at La Tiendita it has a nice texture and great flavor from the seasoning.
There’s a ton of other really great non-American conventional cuts and bits as well. As I’ve mentioned before, I love flap steak maybe even more than ribeye as it has more flavor yet is not noticeably tougher. The best cut of yakitori imo is the tsunagi or “special heart” ie the aorta and ventricles coming from the heart rather than the heart itself which is good but a little tougher.
When I was in San Francisco at an authentic northern Chinese restaurant I tried fried chicken knee tendon for the first time (also popular in Thailand so you can find similar versions with different sauces in authentic Thai places), which sounds awful to the uninitiated but may be one of my favorite fried bits of all time. They’re like a slightly crunchier, less chewy “chicken gizzard” with a surprising amount of chicken flavor.
I could go on and on about dishes unusual to american palates that are better than a sad hamburger and with less “disgusting” parts than a hotdog.
I don't doubt you...Ever tried Rocky Mountain oysters??
Yep several times, my wife and I even planned a “steak and balls day” on a long driving trip where we went from Tallahassee over to New Mexico, up to Utah and Colorado and then to Kansas City before working our way down. We stopped at Cattlemen’s restaurant in Oklahoma City for an early lunch splitting a grilled ribeye steak, a country fried steak and the “lamb’s Fry” (which interestingly in New Zealand it has the same name for a different dish as it is pangriddled lamb liver) or “lamb fries” which is fried sliced lamb testicles. Then we stopped off to do a quick hike around “The Grand Canyon of Texas” whatever its real name is (not even close to being as nice as the real Grand Canyon) and then had a relatively late dinner at the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo Texas and split a grilled ribeye steak, a country fried steak and the “Rocky Mountain Oysters” which is fried sliced calf testicles. So two (rightfully famous despite the cheesy touristy trap look of the Big Texan) steakhouses back to back and two different set of fried balls. The best ribeye was hands down Cattlemen’s in OKC as it may have been the best nonwagyu steak I’ve ever had while the Big Texan was just really, really good. The best country fried (or as they call it in Oklahoma and Texas “chicken fried”) steak was at Big Texan. But the best balls clearly were the lamb’s fry at Cattlemen’s in OKC.
I’ve had other Rocky Mountain Oyster dishes and have to say that lamb’s Fry is much tastier. The calf balls are always a little bit tougher as there’s always some veins or something that harden up and give it too much toothiness and it’s always mealy kind of like overcooked real oysters or poorly cooked liver. The lamb fries on the other hand (at least at Cattlemen’s as I haven’t had it anywhere else) has the same texture as perfectly cooked oysters and a very mild flavor with none of the irony organy flavor you get a little of in the Rocky Mountain Oysters.
Last edited:
I'm with you on the steak part. Would love to try Cattleman's and the Big Texan.
We drove by the one on Tennessee Street this weekend and my daughter said her stomach got queasy just driving by.
There's a chain called Raising Canes that has a Guthries-like menu, complete with the sauce. I haven't had Guthries in over 20 years, but tastes the same to me.
Tribe, how do you prepare beef tongue? Do you skin it first? No way I'm eating the taste buds.
Tribe, how do you prepare beef tongue? Do you skin it first? No way I'm eating the taste buds.
I just now got this...lmao...I scare me sometimes.
Last edited:
Basically two ways either scald it like in this video
Or just slow cook it and discard the skin afterwards.
You must lead a very sheltered life. Every small town in the agricultural areas of Florida has at least one or two tacquerias that make food just like what you’d find on every street corner in Mexico City, Juarez, or any other city in Mexico. My small town has 5 or six.
I didnt say I’ve never been to one. Of course I’ve been to Mexican Restaurants. The places you are talking about are everywhere. I didn’t think OP would create a thread asking where to find one of those places, just google and read the reviews if that’s all you’re looking for.
Now, if you’re looking something good, as in outside of the places you’re talking about...then I stand by my answer, I have yet to find a place outside of the one I ate at in Texas.
Last edited:
Agree with this. It has been a few years, we had friends that lived in Summerbrooke, we used to go there a lot. We enjoyed it.
Find a food truck where English isn't spoken.
They're all over Tampa (where I live).
They're all over Tampa (where I live).
As far as Raising Canes, it’s definitely the best of the Guthries ripoffs (Zaxby’s, PDQ, Zaccadoo’s etc..) and honestly I like the chicken better as it’s got a little extra spice. But the sauce at Guthrie’s is still a tiny notch better. Raising Canes is close but not quite.
In an ideal world I’d be eating Raising Canes’ chicken with Guthrie’s Gut sauce.
Latest posts
-
-
Football Recruiting Setting FSU's 2026 Recruiting Board: Running Backs- Latest: jesusfreak132
-
FSU women's basketball travels to Miami (Sunday at 2 p.m.)
- Latest: Bob Ferrante
