De Nada Cantina Review - Govalle - Austin - The Infatuation

"The people who own on East Cesar Chavez are no strangers to a good theme, as evidenced by the Jetson’s- esque interior of the diner that we like to visit for on the weekends. And their other venture—in the very same parking lot—is no exception. Stepping into De Nada Cantina might as well be a fast track to an upscale taqueria in Mexico City, complete with an indoor fountain, colorful metal chairs, and enough plants to mistake the dining room for a nursery. But instead of feeling like it relies purely on theme, De Nada avoids the trap of turning into Instagram bait by offering excellent Mexico City-style street tacos and margaritas in a dining room where you just can’t help but snap a mental or physical photo.  The simple menu at De Nada Cantina on East Cesar Chavez consists of about a dozen lunch and breakfast tacos. And when the tacos are as tasty and reliable as De Nada’s, simple is very good. Flour tortillas aren’t even a consideration here,  where almost everything arrives on housemade blue corn tortillas that provide a warm, savory base for a variety of toppings. We like to get the fish taco—it comes topped with pickled pineapples that provide a sweet and salty balance to the thick slabs of seared gulf fish—and round it out with a carnitas topped with salsa macha. This is also one of the better places in town to get crispy shell tacos outside of your favorite fast food “taqueria,” AKA Taco Bell .  Don’t show up to De Nada expecting to pay Mexico City prices for these tacos—this is East Austin, after all—but don’t expect anything too outlandish either. Margaritas come in at just over $10, and considering their potency and quality, they’re worth testing the “two per person limit” on. Or you can pay a couple of dollars more for a large and take home the pink, plastic souvenir cup to forever remember the mistakes and/or good choices you made that night.  " - Nicolai McCrary