Traditional Tacos at El Taco Loco

Last night the wife and I tried El Taco Loco for the first time. We took advantage of the Half off Thursdays promotion sponsored by WDAM-TV.

Located at 603 Broadway Drive in Hattiesburg, from the exterior it looks like Tijuana threw up on a long forgotten chain restaurant. But, don't worry about that you can't see the outside once you're inside. The interior decor is probably best described as Mexican tacky, but it was very clean and the the service was top notch.

El Taco Loco is one of the first Mexican restaurants in Hattiesburg to merge their Tex-Mex menu with a menu of traditional Mexican fare. Over the last few weeks I have heard a number of positives about El Taco Loco.

The menu is a bit difficult to read, not because of the language, but because the bright artwork on the pages make it difficult to read the print on the menu.

We ordered the Loco Dip with our tortilla chips and it was pretty good, a mix of cheese, beans, avocado chunks and pico di gio. I know it sounds a little weird, but just mix it all together and dig in.

I went straight to the back page and found the authentic Mexican tacos. The list was pretty extensive and they're served a la carte, at $2.25 each. I decided on one each of the Al Pastor, Barbacoa, Chrizo, and Tripita. I finished my order with sides of beans and Spanish rice.

The tacos were served Gringa (using wheat taco shells) instead of the corn shells you will find at some establishments. They were topped simply with fresh raw onions, chopped cilantro, and a very nice pico di gio.

The highlight was the barbacoa, the slow roasted beef with spices and chilies was so tender it falls apart. The Chrizo was good not great, very spicy, but not over powering. The Al pastor was good and was perfectly complimented with the pico di gio and a squeeze of fresh lime. This was my first experience with the tripita (tripe), and I was pleasantly surprised. The texture was quite good and the flavor was pleasing, also great with a squeeze of the fresh lime.

The rice and beans were good, they are more of the Tex-Mex standard that the beans and rice you may get at other places, but they were fine.

My wife ordered one of the Tex-Mex offerings - shrimp quesadilla with a side of Spanish rice and a Tex-Mex taco. She had positives to say about the quesadilla, which was packed with large, tender shrimp. Her taco was a bit on the bland side, and I think in the end she may have had some entree envy over the great tacos I had on my plate.

I think I may have found a new favorite Mexican restaurant in Hattiesburg, the authentic Mexican dishes are something that I will work my way through over time while my wife will have the option of ordering the more traditional Tex-Mex offerings.

Interestingly, not long after we arrived, local celebrity chef Robert St. John and family arrived. Which leads to only one question...."RSJ are you following me?"

Tamales at Shucker's Oyster Bar

Shucker's in Oak Grove is one of Hattiesburg's hidden gems. Located off of Hwy 98 W behind Lake Serene Grocery in an unassuming strip mall is one of the areas most unique establishments.

An oyster bar by trade Shucker's has a very limited menu, but what they do they seem to do well. They specialize as you have probably guessed in oysters, but they serve some other traditional Cajun fare in seafood gumbo, red beans and rice, and boudin. Their shrimp boudin is excellent.

On my last visit I asked about the tamales, and was told that in addition to the beef tamales that were listed on the menu that they also had venison tamales. Always ask if they have any off-menu items or daily specials.

I ordered some of each, and I'll be honest they're pretty small as far as tamales go, but at $1 each it's not too bad. I enjoyed both the beef and venison tamales the texture was good and the they were seasoned almost perfectly. The flavors were distinct and the venison had a more mellow flavor than the beef. The were served with a chili sauce that was flavorful and spicy, but not too spicy.

I know good tamales are hard to find in this area and not many places make them, but if you're craving a few finger sized tamales, then stopping by Shucker's may be just the fix you need.

El Taco Brown offers Traditional Mexican Fare

Over the past year or so a culinary trend has emerged in Hattiesburg, a number “traditional” Mexican restaurants have started popping up and others have began to add traditional and regional items to their menus. There's a cookie-cutter Tex-Mex joint on just about every corner in Hattiesburg and some of them do a really good job, and some are akin to the Old El Paso dinner in a box you can get at the grocery store.

A few weeks ago I noticed a new establishment on the Hwy 42 by-pass, - El Taco Brown. I'll be the first to admit that it's not the most appetizing name, but don't judge this place by the sign.

It was late afternoon when we stopped by for a few tacos. The place is small, but newly renovated, clean and well kept. Big flat screen TV's on the wall, but unless you're into soccer or speak Spanish they're pretty much useless.

We were given menus and were brought some whole tortillas for dipping in a bean sauce. I was pleased to find that the menu was not the run of the mill Tex-Mex fare, it was chocked with traditional dishes from various regions around Mexico.

We each decided on the three-taco plate, which gives several choices. I selected one Taco Lengua, one Taco Barbacoa and one Taco Chorizo.

I'm just becoming familiar with authentic Mexican fare, so I am going to assume that some of our readers may not know what some of these dishes are, so I'll break them down for everyone.

All three taco were served on soft corn tortillas. They were dressed quite simply with raw onions, a little tomato, fresh chopped cilantro and each had a slice of lime to squeeze over the tacos. They also brought three different chili sauces to the table each with slightly different flavors and consistencies.

Chorizo is a type of pork sausage that traces all the way back to Spain and Portugal, it's commonly served as a breakfast food in Mexico, but is also used in tacos, burritos and other regional fare. The Chorizo at El Taco Brown was quite spicy and full of flavor, the lime was a perfect compliment for the dish.

The Barbacoa is a traditional way of preparing beef, a particular cut of beef. It's the tender beef from a slow cooked cow's head. This is fare indigenous to northern Mexico, and the slow cooking was often prepared in a pit.

The Barbacoa at El Taco Brown was very good, tender, slow cooked beef seasoned to perfection with local chilies, spices, garlic and onions. I enjoyed this unique dish with a nice helping of the spicy chili sauce provided with the meal. This was my favorite of the three tacos.

The most unusual of the three tacos was the Lengua. No way to really sugar coat this one, Lengua is beef tongue. Before my visit to El Taco Brown I had never eaten beef tongue. Just about every culture around the world has a use for this often overlooked part of a cow. But, some how I had manged to miss it until now.

The Lengua was coarsely chopped into about ¼” cubes and slow cooked with onions, chilies and garlic. This is one of the most unique dishes I've ever enjoyed, the flavor and taste with the fresh onions, tomatoes, cilantro and lime was tasty, but I'll be honest the texture is pretty funky and is not for the faint of heart.

If you're interested in traditional Mexican fare and are interested in trying something a little different El Taco Brown would be a great place to get your feet wet. But, at the same time they have plenty of items on the menu that are not nearly as adventurous.

Other Notes:

- ample parking
- ADA accessible with free standing tables
- Happy Hour

Half Off Thursdays from WDAM-TV

I just wanted to let our readers know about a way you can try some great Hattiesburg area restaurants on the cheap. WDAM-TV has an ongoing promotion called Half-Off Thursdays. This promotion allows you to purchase $50.00 in gift certificates to select restaurants for only $25.00 (28.75 including S/H).

The selection changes weekly and the sponsoring restaurants will make anywhere from 50 to 150 of these certificates available. Sometimes they go fast. This week Wagon Wheel Steakhouse in Petal offered 75 certificates and they were sold out with in a few hours. As of this writing there were to previous offers still open El Taco Loco in Hattiesburg and Miki's in Laurel.

In the upcoming month they will feature Dicky's Barbeque Pit, Brownstone's, and The Bottling Company.

In these tough economic times, us foodies have to stick together and pinch our pennies anywhere we can. Taking advantage of this promotion from WDAM and their partner restaurants is a great way to dine out on the cheap, and it may even convince you to try a new restaurant or two.

Sidelines Sports Cafe

Ok, well lets get something straight, this ain't no sports "cafe" it's a "sports bar" in every sense of the word. Big TV's, sports video games, pool tables, a foosball machine, a menu of pub grub and lots of draft beer taps on the wall. To my knowledge it's the only sports bar in Oak Grove. Now that we have the pleasantries out of the way, lets get down to business.

I've been to Sidelines Sports Cafe a number of times since it opened about two years ago, and to begin with I wasn't all that impressed, but over the past year they've gotten a handle on the kitchen and are producing a consistent product.

Today I stopped in for their Tuesday lunch special, which is always a ribeye steak sandwich, I would guess it's about a 6 oz, (pre-cooked) ribeye on a six inch po-boy bun, with all the toppings and a side of fries for $7.95. That's not a bad lunch special, it's getting to where you can hardly find a decent lunch in Hattiesburg for under $8.

The ribeye sandwich was good, I asked to be cooked medium and that's what I got, the fries were not hand cut, but they were hot, right out of the fryer and not mushy. The toppings were fresh, and the service was pretty good.

In the past I've had several of their burgers, and I often wonder when debates come up about who has the best burgers in the 'Burg why they don't get more mentions, they grill a good one. They have several signature burgers, but the Black Bean Burger being my burger of choice at Sidelines. It's not a burger made from beans or anything before ya'll think I've gone all vegan-crazy or something, it's half-pound Angus beef burger topped with black beans and pepper-jack cheese. It's a pretty unique taste.

They're located at Cedar Creek Strip Mall right on Oak Grove road right by the intersection of Oak Grove Rd and the Lincoln Rd extension.

All in all Denny, Coach and the rest of the crew at Sidelines have come a long way in the last year, and they're putting out some pretty good pub grub right now.

Bangkok Cafe

Today the wife and I took in lunch at Bangkok Cafe on Hwy 49 South in Hattiesburg, near Forrest General Hospital. I had heard several folks talk about it on MyHattiesburg.com and wanted to see what all the talk was about. The rumor was that they had a lunch buffet.

When we arrived the parking lot was packed and there was only one empty table in the dining hall. Very good signs if you ask me. I then noticed two other things - there was indeed a buffet and local celebrity chef and food writer Robert St. John and a couple of friends were having lunch. If RSJ is there, the place is usually well above average.

We were seated quickly by a friendly host and our beverage order was taken by an attentive server. Being relatively new to Thai cuisine I was honestly wondering how they would pull off a Thai buffet.

On the buffet they had a full compliment of several traditional Thai dishes. The kind folks at Bangkok Cafe are kind enough to list on the buffet how spicy each dish was from mild to Thai Spicy.

When making my first round I over-heard (so sue me) RSJ recommend the Gia Katiem (Chicken) to one of this lunch friends, so I just had to take his advice. The Gia Katiem with thai fried rice was very nice. The Gia Katiem was chopped chicken with Thai Chilies, fresh basil leaves, onions, in a very nice red sauce.

Another highlight of the buffet was the Pad Khing with chicken. Pad Khing consists of sauteed chicken with fresh ginger, onions, mushrooms, bell peppers and baby corn in a medium spicy light brown sauce.

In addition to the above mentioned dishes they had Thai fried rice with shrimp, Thai Spring Rolls, Gang Curry (Pork), and several other dishes that I really can't remember.

I would say that this is well above average for any Asia buffet that I've had and despite my reservations, they pull off a pretty good Thai buffet. Overall, I would say that this was a very positive dinning experience and I would recommend their lunch buffet to family and friends. I can't wait to go back another time and try their sit-down service and menu.

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Ray Ray's Fried Chicken

This afternoon I was in a rush for lunch and hit the drive-thru at Ray Ray's Fried Chicken on Old Hwy 11 in Oak Grove. Having heard mixed reviews I wanted to give it a try myself.

I ordered the three piece mixed dinner with two sides - mac and cheese and red beans and rice.

I got a wing, thigh and leg in the box. Was kind of disappointed that it didn't include a breast. The chicken was better than average with a nicely flavored breading, it had flavor, but I wouldn't call it spicy. It was hot just out of the fryer. The chicken was juicy, but not overly greasy, usually a sign of being cooked at a high temperature.

The mac and cheese was actually pretty good while the red beans left something to be desired.

It's pretty good fried chicken, not saying it's anything like mama makes, but I'd probably take it over most of the national chains. It's a bit on the pricey side but I kind of expected it considering the location.