Jenny L.
Yelp
After spending time outside of El Paso, I was ready to dive back into delicious tacos and caldos, so I stopped by Cafe Mayapan.
I've been there several times during the pandemic and it's been take-out orders only, but they're back to indoor dining. The ladies were wonderful and welcoming, as always, and the food was delicious.
I ordered a Pina agua and it was fresh, not too sugary or sweet, just delicately pineapple tasting....it was refreshing and the refills were unlimited and timely; she must've filled my glass 5 times! There were complimentary chips and salsa. The salsa was hot but needed salt and I guess that's why there's a salt and pepper shaker at the table.
Their menu is so packed with unique dishes, I was stumped as to what to get. I wanted the mole and nopales initially but when I saw that I could mix and match the tacos I was sold.
I got 3 tacos (one shredded beef-deshrebrada, one squash-calabacitas, and one with cactus-nopal). You can have them soft or crispy, I chose crispy. The orders are made fresh and the ingredients are from their farmers market and local, and you can taste the quality. Each taco was stuffed at the bottom with mashed potatoes then the ingredients you ordered alongside a generous helping of white shredded cheese and lettuce.
The unique thing was that the outside of the taco shells had a layer of salt to season it, otherwise, the entire flavor was just from the ingredients themselves. The mashed potatoes added a lot of density to the tacos and were a good base for the shredded beef, as well as the squash. I'd never thought to put just vegetables as a filler in tacos but after this, I might just mix it up for our Meatless Mondays we cook at home. It's so good! My favorite was the nopal or cactus, it was so smokey added with some browned onions, and it was rich and tender.
The caldo or soup was so good and just perfect for the weather and was a good sized amount for one person without having to take it home. I finished it to the last drop.
I highly highly recommend you go, especially if you don't have an aubela cooking Mexican food at home for you. These women are skilled cooks and it's delicious because they use traditional techniques to bring out the flavor from each fresh ingredient.
They have a small store and art displays as well to showcase the cultures. I just love that this exists here in El Paso. It's a great gateway to Mexican/indigenous cultures. and food that I think every visitor should come and try.