HI,

When you refer to Canal Street Market is often referred to here as the Maxwell Street Market. Please look at the link, which has other links you will find useful in locating the goodies.

Regards,

I normally refer to it that way, too. Don't know what I was thinking - or not thinking!!

HI,

Just for the love of it, I stopped into the Burger King in Glenview for lunch today. The taco's are not on the sides menu, instead they are on the budget menu at 2 for $1.39. I had already decided I wanted on regular taco and another with tomatoes for, "... A reasonable facsimile of Jack's Monster Taco," according to ParkLaBrea.

When I placed my order for the tacos the girl immediately asked, "Do you want them with tomatoes and sour cream?" "Sure, but only for one taco, I want the other one standard issue." Later when I studied the bill, I found her glib question and my equally glib answer cost me forty cents for sour cream. The tomatoes were free.

It's been several years since I last had a Jack in the Box taco. Quite likely it was somewhere around St. Louis. It has always been my recollection these were pretty greasy tacos. When I had them last year at the Highland Park BK, they were also nicely greasy. My taco today didn't have a greasy feel, if anything it seemed baked:



When I was finished, I inquired with the manager how were the taco's prepared. She said they were frozen then deep fat fried. Afterwards they added the sauce and lettuce. If these were made as indicated, then they had sat in a blotter for a long time because the end result really seemed baked. I'll have to try to Highland Park location soon as a comparative.

When I was a kid, I used to read the cereal boxes while eating breakfast. It could be the same cereal for days, I very likely had the text memorized, but I would read it every morning as if it were fresh. I still read whatever falls before me. Today my lunch entertainment was a newspaper and this taco wrapper:



Pretty insipid stuff BK paid for. I kept thinking to myself how many review committees did this get run past before BK spent a chunk of money getting all those wrappers printed. Pretty embarassing stuff to have tied to your name. I guess they are simply pleased it is written to fit their tag line. I hope someone is laughing their way to the bank.

Regards,

I thought there was a local place that made the 'Jack in the Box' style tacos.

Tasty Dog
701 N Lake
Oak Park
708-383-2645

Nicely crunchy shell with the meat filling lightly browned by the deep fryer. Crunchy lettuce and a tomato slice best eaten ion the side.

I have tried the Burger King tacos and the shell is just not right. Perhaps the oil it is fiyed in is too clean?

Im not sure if this thread was originally meant to be for taco dorados, but it looks like it has gone the way of the deep fried Jack in the box style. If its that your looking for, then my friend compares the jack in the box style taco to the deep fried taco offered at Duks on Ashland. I personally have never tried them but whenever im in the place for some late night munchies, people are always drunk ordering the tacos. Along with the tacos they slang a pretty decent beef, good burgers and a damn good breakfest sandwich. My uncle tells me there ws a time when quite a few of these places werescttered throughout Chicago but this location is the last of a dying breed. Just beware this place is the definition of a grease pit, if you eat inside, you will fell like you took a plunge into one of the fryers, nonetheless this place is open late and it is one of the best post bar destinations in the city.

636 North Ashland Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60622-6061

I know this is an old thread but this is one of my guilty pleasures.

Last week I stopped by a little hot dog stand to check it out...

Mc Donough's Red Top (less than one billion sold! )
6601 W 26th St, Berwyn
(708) 788-1120

... and had a pretty good meal. Fresh ingredients and the standard menu.

But of course they had my beloved deep fried taco's! I mentioned that I have been searching for a local source and the gal was surprised that I have had difficulty finding them. She stated theirs were better than the other local places because they made theirs homemade while the other spots usually bought theirs premade.

She did let slip that they were also available at ...

Henry's Drive-In
6031 W Ogden Ave, Cicero
(708) 656-9344

Looks like I will be making some area visits...

The sign in the foyer of the south/western Ashland La Pasadita indicates that they now sell hard shelled tacos. They were delicious!

Synder's/Jansen's Red Hots, 9900 S Western, Chicago, Illinois has fried tacos in the vein of Jack in the Box. Used to eat these every Saturday and Sunday Brunch for longer than I care to remember. Had some several weeks ago and brought back all those pleasant memories. They also make a very decent hot fudge shake!

Tacos Erendira in Bridgeport. About 32nd and Halsted across from the police station garage!

Someone mentioned Del Taco. I'm a big Del Taco fan. I don't know how they can sell their tacos for so cheap - sometimes as low as 39 cents each (yeah, I am sure there is something I may not want to know about the meat). They even have a Tuesday night special 3 for $1.09! I go to the one in Mishawaka, Indiana (South Bend area) everytime I visit my sister's house in SW Michigan. It's the only one near Chicago. I do remember seeing a location in Oak Lawn a few years ago on their website, but it's not there anymore.

Del Taco
221 W. Day Rd
Mishawaka, IN 46545
(574) 252-2911
http://www.deltaco.com/home.html

Rene G wrote:Thanks for the reminder; I'd forgotten to follow up on my query from seven years ago. Yes, Loncar's is indeed open, I think with new owners (hence the "Chico" on the menu). I've been a number of times in the past five years and always enjoy myself...Wednesday is taco day! I try to schedule my visits so I'm able to enjoy a basket of crispy ground beef tacos, excellent renditions of the Mexamerican classic

Thanks for the heads up as I was aware these were the special that night from previous visits but never tried them until your tip last week. I'm a sucker for a good crispy taco and I aint afraid to admit it. I'm not sure why they're not easier to find.


92nd and Commercial, does this boost LTH's street cred?!?!?!

These arent lazy man's hard shell tacos. No freezer to the fryer shit here. They come fried to order with the aforementioned chopped burger meat thrown into a soft tortilla which is held together with a toothpick while frying. After frying the pick comes out and the toppings go on. They're known for their fried chicken which is pretty dang good too albeit slightly under-seasoned. Though you can kick it and the tacos up with Heinie's Hot Sauce and some house salsa. Folks come out for these good drinking eats in a great neighborhood place. More on Loncar's in the fried chicken thread when I get the chance.


Wednesday night tacos ($1.50/each)

Loncar's Liqours
3201 E 92nd St
Chicago, IL 60617
(773) 734-3933

Da Beef wrote:I'm a sucker for a good crispy taco and I aint afraid to admit it. I'm not sure why they're not easier to find.

Did you try (while there was still a chance) the crispy beef tacos at Mexican Inn, less than a mile from Loncar's?

Da Beef wrote:
92nd and Commercial, does this boost LTH's street cred?!?!?!

They've spruced the place up a bit. I used to think they had one of the most intimidating doors in Chicago.

Loncar's in February, 2012 (from the Fish Taco thread)


Gone are the heavy black horizontal bars, the multi-paragraph sign listing the house rules, and the deeply scuffed and rusted lower section scarred by being kicked open by generations of drinkers.

It occurred to me that some particular pictures are missing from this crispy taco thread. Sometimes it's useful to set a baseline below which no others can sink, a culinary absolute zero if you will.





I know it looks like it's been sitting overnight at the bottom of someone's gym bag but this is how it appeared within two minutes of purchase. It tasted just as good as it looks. I don't think Jack was at the top of his game that day.

Rene G wrote:It occurred to me that some particular pictures are missing from this crispy taco thread. Sometimes it's useful to set a baseline below which no others can sink, a culinary absolute zero if you will.





I know it looks like it's been sitting overnight at the bottom of someone's gym bag but this is how it appeared within two minutes of purchase. It tasted just as good as it looks.

For the love of God, why?

fropones wrote:For the love of God, why?

Looks to me like we need a Jack Taco vs Slider Cook-Off

92nd and Commercial, does this boost LTH's street cred?!?!?!

Now that's what I'm talking about!!

[quote="bnowell724"][quote="Panther in the Den"]I love the type of taco's being mentioned!

If I am incorrect please correct me...

They are the type that are sold at Jack in the Box. Supplied frozen, a tortilla with the meat micture inside, placed in the deep fryer, then garnished with cheese, lettuce, tomato and a splash of hot sauce.

Cock Robin on Lake Street used to make some great ones and since they have closed I did find another place to get them but where evades me at the moment.

Grrr.

I will visit a few local haunts and see what I can dig up.

Stay tuned...[/quote]

In KC, in the Hispanic neighborhoods, in the hole in the wall places that have no reason to try to cater to a more american palette these tacos are the norm. But they aren't supplied frozen. They take a thin corn tortilla, fill it with cooked very lightly seasoned ground beef or shredded chicken, then deep fry it and serve it w/ lettuce and cheese and fresh salsa. Some places(usually the busier more amercanized seeming ones) use the already made shells and meat with lots of seasoning like at Taco Bell and other fast food places, but I never liked that kind. I grew up on these kind of tacos, and the first kind I described seem like authentic food, even though its so different from here(and I know nobody in Mexico eats crispy tacos, just taquitos). Anyone know why there's such a difference btw. the tacos of Chicago and KC when both have a large Mexican populations? I really like both kinds, if they are made well.[/quote]
Not sure how I, another KC expat, missed this thread lo these many years,
but here are two similar threads from Roadfood, one mirroring your memories, and the other celebrating In-A-Tub which soldiers on still dripping gloriously in grease.
http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/deep-fri ... 16425.aspx

http://www.roadfood.com/Forums/InATub-T ... 62521.aspx

http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/34/380982/r ... ansas-City

http://in-a-tub.com/?page_id=65

Rene G wrote:

Da Beef wrote:I'm a sucker for a good crispy taco and I aint afraid to admit it. I'm not sure why they're not easier to find.

Did you try (while there was still a chance) the crispy beef tacos at Mexican Inn, less than a mile from Loncar's?

Oh yeah, one of the original spots you led me too thru here. I drove by a little while back and noticed the neon is still up in front while the building is for sale. I might make an attempt at getting the sign in case I ever want to open a crispy taco shack somewhere in the city and name it after that place. RIP.

bbqboy wrote:In KC, in the Hispanic neighborhoods, in the hole in the wall places that have no reason to try to cater to a more american palette these tacos are the norm. But they aren't supplied frozen. They take a thin corn tortilla, fill it with cooked very lightly seasoned ground beef or shredded chicken, then deep fry it and serve it w/ lettuce and cheese and fresh salsa.

It's funny you mention that because I forgot to say that even though there's the big neon orange "I" for the Illini in the window, there's quite a bunch of KU stuff inside. So if anyone from KC who happens to be a fan of Jayhawk basketball wants a taste of home, you might want to see if they're playing any televised Wednesday night games coming up.

One other sports note is that despite being on the southside, Loncars is definitely a Cubs bar as there's memorabilia and mentions of them all over the place. Looking forward to some crispy tacos and waiting until next year this summer.

Of course not everyone can make it out there on a Wednesday night. I've found crispy hard shell tacos not all that hard to tackle in your own kitchen, even without a deep fryer.


Fried Crispy tacos at home

If you check each crack and every crevice of the city surely some top notch tacos dorados are to be found? Note: Not Flautas which are rolled. Not great luck thus far. But if there's going to be any it's most likely to come from the Eastside of the city. It seems that there's some tradition of the deep fried taco in these parts and the towns across the border in NW Indiana. Take Taqueria Hacienda at 97th and Commercial as example.


You never know what each and every spot offers until you stop in and check...

This place is a really nice stop for those seeking their crispy taco fix. It's labeled as both a taqueria and a restaurant but it's more the latter. The inside is well done and really charming and they boast both sitdown tables and booths as well as a bar if you're so inclined. It seems like quite a few folks from the way like to do take-out too.


As we enter

There's many options for Mexican in the area and I can vouch this place is good one. On top of this the people working have been really kind on each of my visits. They have tacos dorados on their menu and you get them in three's with rice and beans. I was tempted by the steak offering but stuck with my traditional filling of picadillo aka ground beef. It's mixed with some potatoes and veggies as well as lima beans and was quite pleasing as far as seasoning.


Tacos Dorados de Picadillo

These weren't deep fried whole as in the meat in the tortilla folded over and held together with tooth picks aka "Closed". It was just the shell that was fried and the beef went in followed by the toppings aka "open" style. Nonetheless the shell was fried fresh and remained crunchy and the filling was really good. Well executed. I tried their dorados de papa (potato) and they too were quite tasty while fried closed. Next time I need to ask them to do the dorados de papa with picadillo instead of potato, fried closed. I'm betting I'd really like those.


Tacos Dorados de Papa

Taqueria Hacienda
9710 S Commercial Ave
Chicago, IL 60617
(773) 221-5743

ParkLaBrea wrote:I also once saw a guy get a crispy taco from some place that must have been near the Belmont Blue line stop...he got on the train and was crunching it loudly for several stops, grease, lettuce and shell all over his face and down the front of his shirt...and I was wishing I were him.....at least for the few minutes it took him to devour it...

I know this is an old lead, but I can almost guarantee that this greasy delight came from Mic Duck's hot dog stand at the corner of Belmont and Kimball. I've had this taco and it is probably the messiest thing I've ever eaten standing up.

I will not recommend anything else at this stand, especially not the hot dog (skinless, and it comes with cucumber), but the hard shell taco dripping with hot sauce really scratches a certain kind of itch.

rosie wrote:My husband LOVES these. I like them too, they do bring to mind the Jack in the Box tacos. I've never ordered them, but our local Mexican restaurant, LaMagdalena in Addison has crispy tacos as an option on the menu, as does Santa Fe in Glen Ellyn. They call them Longy-style tacos

Longy tacos were started by a guy who used to run a long gone bar called Longy's in Lombard. A Tribune article from 1991 explains how the family who runs/opened El Zarape in Wheaton brought these popular eats back to being available in this area.


El Zarape in Wheaton, IL

When the Jeminez family came to the suburbs from Mexico City in 1969, husband Jesse took a job cooking at Longy's. They saved up and inched closer to the American dream of owning their own place. Now they have a few spots including the Santa Fe Cafe in Glen Ellyn. Longy tacos are corn tortillas filled with a beef and refried bean mixture and then pan fried making for an almost creamy filling. I've tried them from El Zarape and also Santa Fe and have noticed they're available on other menus around this way. Tastes for them have come since my first bite so you know I like.


Longy Taco from Santa Fe Cafe

El Zarape
325 W Front St
Wheaton, IL 60187
(630) 260-1122

Santa Fe Restaurant
426 N Main St
Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
(630) 790-3311

Still not much luck on real deal tacos dorados outside Da Region. These below came from Taqueria Moran on California in Logan Square. They made for good after drinking eats following the Whistler but only had them halfway there. The shells were fried fresh to order but the fillings didn't go in until after they came out of the fryer. But I do have some intriguing news for the people of the SW Suburbs. Was with some fellow LTh'ers and they ran into the guy who used to own the now gone Taco Mex which had been doc'd a few times on here. He has plans to open a place in Orland Park offering exclusively crispy deep fried tacos. From good old ground beef to portabello offerings. He sounded pretty damn excited. So am I!


Beef Tacos Dorados Dinner from Taqueria Moran

Taqueria Moran
2226 N California Ave
Chicago, IL 60647
(773) 235-2663