Texas Monthly list of best Texas tacos

AUSTIN – Since joining Texas Monthly in 2019 as the country’s first taco editor, José R. Ralat has visited thousands of taquerias, restaurants, and taco trucks across Texas. He’s highlighted the delicious food he’s come across, shared the stories of the people behind the dishes, and taken readers on a journey through the state’s wide variety of Mexican food, capturing the cultural complexity and fascinating history behind one of the most influential culinary traditions in the world. Now Ralat, the state’s preeminent taco expert, has released his first definitive list of the best tacos and taquerias in the Lone Star State.

To compile the rankings, Ralat traveled roughly 14,000 miles, visiting more than 400 taquerias in about six months. He looked for tacos that met a certain level of craft, quality, creativity, and flavor. As he took notes, he observed a new movement among taquerias—one that has created a new type of cuisine. Ralat calls this movement New Tejano, which describes dishes that marry nostalgic Mexican or Mexican American food with native Texan ingredients. Ralat’s comprehensive list features multiple examples of New Tejano cuisine.

The list’s No. 1 spot is Ana Liz Taqueria, in Mission, and the chile relleno as its standout taco. The restaurant, run by James Beard Award-winning chef Ana Liz Pulido, specializes in nixtamalization, the ancient Mexican process through which corn kernels are cooked and steeped in an alkaline solution to loosen the outer shell and release vital nutrients, and then made into corn tortillas.

Elemi, just outside El Paso, came in second for its New Tejano dishes that use local ingredients and are a nod to the Mexican roots of owners Emiliano and Kristal Marentes. Elemi’s conejito pibil is its tortilla-wrapped standout.

The third spot went to Azteca Taco House, in Houston. Ralat identifies the taqueria’s costillas en salsa verde as the taco of choice. Azteca, run by co-owner Carlos Gallegos and his family, ranked high not only for its delicious food but also because it makes customers feel at home.

Rounding out the Top 10 are:

No. 4 Revolver Taco Lounge, in Dallas

No. 5 Taqueria El Tiger, in El Paso

No. 6 Taconeta, in El Paso

No. 7 Papalo Taqueria, in Houston

No. 8 Stixs & Stone, in San Antonio

No. 9 Maskaras Mexican Grill, in Dallas

No. 10 Nixta Taqueria, in Austin

“There has never been a more exciting time for tacos and those who love them,” says Ralat. “Variety, tradition, and boundary pushing exist simultaneously. There are tacos for everyone everywhere. We are on the verge of a new age of tacos.”