Tacos 1986 West Village
Taco restaurant · West Village ·
Tijuana-style tacos, grilled meats, homemade tortillas, fresh salsas
Tijuana-style tacos, grilled meats, homemade tortillas, fresh salsas
"A sliver of a counter-service spot, this West Village outpost has only a standing counter overlooking Cornelia Street that fits about six—no lingering; wolf your tacos and make room. Service is staffed to the hilt with shout-outs and peace signs, and the stated goal is to deliver every order within two minutes. The focus is typical Tijuana tacos: soft, handmade yellow corn tortillas piled generously with fire-roasted meats—adobada pork braised with red chile carved from a vertical spit, carne asada (my favorite), pollo asado (a close second), or some decent vegan hongos—plus onions, cilantro, chunky salsa, and creamy guacamole, all for $5; in a city suddenly flush with excellent taco options, these Tijuana beauties are in the top tier. Additional salsas sit in tubs from mild (the strawberry-based one) to seriously fiery, and they’re all very good; I suggest filling a crock of each and splattering away with Pollock-esque abandon. Beyond tacos, mulitas ($6) stack a second soft tortilla, vampiros ($6.25) fry both tortillas to a crisp, and the open-faced quesadilla on a single crunchy tortilla adds melted cheese ($5.75); in general, I prefer the soft tortillas because they taste cornier and are easier to eat, but you can’t go wrong—trust your cravings. Skip the extra bowl of guacamole, which doesn’t add much to an already guac-ed-up party, and instead get the punchy, generously seasoned pinto beans and red rice (the “small” sizes are plenty) to spoon onto whatever you ordered, or go for the Tacos 1986 bowl that uses the beans and rice as a base for any meaty (or mushroomy) topping; go to town on the salsas—it's a satisfying bargain at $13." - Scott Lynch
"With the arrival of this LA taqueria, our own Tacos No. 1 might be getting some competition for their Tijuana-style tacos—at least in the West Village. Serving breakfast burritos and various combos, the shop is on the ground floor of a Cornelia Street building, which will eventually also house two partner bars, both from the PDT team." - will hartman, willa moore, molly fitzpatrick, sonal shah, bryan kim
"With the arrival of this LA taqueria, our own Tacos No. 1 might be getting some competition for their Tijuana-style tacos—at least in the West Village. Serving breakfast burritos and various combos, the shop is on the ground floor of a Cornelia Street building, which will eventually also house two partner bars, both from the PDT team. We haven’t been here yet, but want you to know this spot exists." - Sonal Shah
"A famed Los Angeles taqueria is making its East Coast debut in the West Village on Thursday, July 24 at 1 Cornelia Street (at West Fourth Street). The small New York outpost will be a slim, standing-room counter-service space of about 250 square feet that will initially operate evening hours before expanding to morning and afternoon service to include breakfast. Co-owners Victor Delgado and Jorge “Joy” Alvarez-Tostado — who grew up in the Mexican border city of Tijuana — emphasize Tijuana-style tacos with grilled meats layered onto homemade corn and flour tortillas: popular carne asada (steak) and the adobada (“adobo-marinated thin pork cut from a trompo”), along with chicken and mushroom varieties. Taco iterations will vary with degrees of grilled cheese, from mulitas to vampiros to quesadillas, as well as the recommended perrones (flour tortillas with grilled cheese and layered with beans and meats). The team will also offer breakfast tacos and burritos during the daytime with scrambled eggs, meats, mushrooms, salsas, bacon, beans, and more, and the restaurant will serve its own aguas frescas. The duo started a taqueria stand in Hollywood in 2018, were named one of Eater’s best new restaurants in 2019, have grown to eight locations across the region, and Alvarez-Tostado was part of the opening team of a prominent New York City taco spot back in 2013. On expanding to Manhattan the partners are candid: Alvarez-Tostado says, “It was a mission, a vision,” while Delgado positions it as: “How do you say no to New York City?” Alvarez-Tostado adds, “That’s really the goal in this small corner of New York: to represent Tijuana and Los Angeles,” and “I would love to create a nostalgic vibe for people who know it and have been to Tijuana.”" - Nadia Chaudhury
"The famed Los Angeles taqueria is opening its first East Coast location as part of a three-part West Village complex, joining an agave bar and a cocktail bar from the same developer." - Nadia Chaudhury