The Taco Stand – North Park

Jake and I decided that for our wedding we were gonna do tacos. It was a convenient surprise to get an invite to The Taco Stand since it doubled up as a review for food and for the wedding!

The Taco Stand started off in La Jolla and has now expanded to Downtown San Diego, Encinitas, and North Park. They recently opened locations in Miami and Orange County with a new location coming soon to Las Vegas. Crazy!

The Taco Stand definitely has that “Tijuana-style” vibe to it in when you walk in. The menu is on a metal sign, there’s exposed brick and concrete for an industrial feel and it feels like the taco stands down in Tijuana.

There was a cute little “cart” that held paletas.

They only had a few flavors on the day of our visit.

On the back wall they had their salsa bar.

Here’s a better look at the stuff in the back which included pico de gallo, pickled onions, jalapenos and limes.

The cilantro sauce was my hands down favorite of all of the sauces they had. It was super delicious!!! I put it on everything!

We decided to try a little bit of everything and started off with a couple of Carne Asada Tacos [$3.49]. These are dressed with cilantro, onions, guacamole and their house salsa. The salsa is a lot darker and a bit thicker than the salsas I’m used to seeing – it was dark like a mole sauce!

The carne asada had a nice flavor to it and I quite liked their homemade corn tortillas. This was a good way to kick off our meal!

Jake got the Carne Asada Fries [$8.89] and added beans to them along with the standard sour cream, cheese, and guacamole. The fries are a bit thicker than a shoestring and managed to actually stay crispy with all of the toppings. I liked that it also had melted cheese on top, not just shredded cheese. The combo of fries with all of the yummy toppings was a great option.

Okay okay okay. OKAY. Let’s talk about my FAVORITE THING here at the Taco Stand which were these Al Pastor tacos [$2.99]. Their marinated pork is TO DIE FOR and to top off the deliciousness, they add their yummy cilantro sauce along with pieces of fresh, juicy pineapple. The combination of the pineapple and the pork was mouthwatering and I could not get enough of this taco!

Jake actually also ordered the Al Pastor burrito [$6.99] which is like a bigger version of the taco but wrapped in a flour tortilla. IT WAS AMAZING. If I had to choose, I’d pick the taco because I love the corn tortilla, but if you get a burrito then you get MORE al pastor… so really, it’s a toss up. Either way, burrito or taco, please go here and order the Al Pastor. You’ll thank me later.

Jake’s mom tagged along with us to sample the food and we got her a Shrimp Taco [$3.79]. It’s a spicy shrimp but she said she liked it anyway. Get a lot of that big piece of avocado!

We also tried a Sonora Taco [$4.49] which is a bit different than that other tacos. This one comes on a thick flour tortilla with angus beef, melted cheese, beans, guacamole, onions, cilantro, and salsa. It’s the same meat they use for the regular carne asada so it was good overall, but I just don’t like beans in my tacos. The flour tortilla also gives it a different texture and flavor that was a good contrast to the other tacos. This one is a bit bigger and heartier, too!

We also tried a few sides here at The Taco Stand. We got some rice [$1.29], beans [$1.29], plus chips and guacamole [$4.99]. The beans weren’t my favorite, but that’s usually the case. I don’t like whole beans in the mix – I prefer it to be smooth. The rice was not bad, it just wasn’t particularly noteworthy. The guacamole and chips were tasty though! I like dipping chips in a mix of guacamole and their cilantro sauce.

We also got one Elote [$3.25] to share. They just list it as “corn on the cob” on the menu though. It’s got a mix of mayo, parmesan cheese, and chili powder on top. I think perhaps it’s just not the right season for corn though because this didn’t really do it for me.

Last but not least…. dessert! We shared one order of Churros [$3.45], You get three churros to an order and it’s served with a side of lechera (sweetened condensed milk). The churros are made to order so they are served fresh and hot. These churros were a bit denser and thicker than other churros I’ve had in the past. They broke apart easily and were a bit more like fried cake batter. It was crumbly and thick. I liked how it tasted with the lechera as well though I wished it had a bit more cinnamon sugar and didn’t fall apart so much. Still yummy though!

All in all we had a great visit to The Taco Stand! The al pastor will stay in my heart forever and we shall continue our taco sampling quest for the wedding next year!

The Taco Stand
(Multiple Locations)
3000 Upas St Suite 105,
San Diego, CA 92104

Disclaimer: I was invited on behalf of the restaurant to dine in. Our meal was complimentary. I was not further compensated for this post and all opinions stated here are my own.