SAN ANTONIO – Who has better tacos - Austin or San Antonio? It’s a question that’s been posed before but there might be a definitive answer soon.
If you love tacos and want to help decide who has the best-of-the-best, you might want to check out the first-of-its-kind Taco Rumble which is taking place next week in San Antonio.
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The H-E-B sponsored event taking place on July 15 only has a limited number of tickets available and the chefs clamoring for a chance to be taco supreme have already announced their menus.
Below you’ll find a list of the restaurants from each city that are competing, along with the names of their chefs and the type of taco they’re submitting:
San Antonio
- ¡Bucho! Tejano Street Fare - Chefs Gino Vidal and Jerry Moreno will serve a Chino Latino poke taco with a Tejano furikake-dusted crispy wonton shell, avocado, house tuna tartare, habanero-mezcal aioli, and micro cilantro.
- Carnitas Lonja - Chef Alex Paredes will serve a Michoacán-style carnitas taco with fresh corn tortillas.
- La Fonda de Jaime 2.0 - Chefs Jaime Hernandez & Pedro Rebollo will serve a Birria 2.0 taco.
- La Generala - Chef Blanca Márquez will serve a Costilla taco with pork ribs cooked in a signature blend of spices and chiles.
- Jason Dady Catering - Chef Esteban Valdez will serve a smoked beef short rib taco with Sikil Pak (Mayan pepita dip), avocado, Oaxaca cheese and salsa macha.
- Lala’s Gorditas - Chef Steven Anthony Pizzini will serve a puffy taco norteño with shredded chicken, house Adobo sauce curtido, crema and salsa verde.
- Milpa - Chef Jesse Kirk will serve a taco arabe with shawarma-style pork, crema Mexicana, cucumbers, cilantro and chile arbol salsa, as well as a flor de Jamaica taco with hibiscus flower con sazon, avocado spread, cilantro, queso fresco and salsa habanero.
- Naco Mexican Eatery - Chefs Francisco Estrada and Liz Estrada will serve a “Mexican Grandmother” dry fideo taco with cream, avocado and chicatanas (Mexican flying ants) with roasted salsa on heirloom blue corn tortillas.
Austin
- Asador - Chef Joe Becerra will serve a grilled mushroom taco with Mole Amarillo.
- Carnitas El Guero - Chef Gustavo Reyes will serve a traditional carnitas taco.
- Eldorado Café - Chef Joel Fried will serve a thunderosa taco with sirloin, bacon, roasted jalapenos, sautéed green chile and onion rajas with melted jack cheese.
- Paprika - Chef Margarito Pérez will serve a taco de Suadero with brisket confit, cilantro, onion and salsa de arbol.
- R19 Taqueria - Chef Christopher Haydostian will serve Báhn Mì tacos with twice-cooked pork belly, pickled jicama tortilla, traditional vegetables, herbs and Hanoi vinaigrette.
- Texsueño - Chef Brandon Martin will serve a crispy oxtail taco.
- Trill Foods - Chef Nick Belloni will serve a charred broccoli taco with lime, queso Oaxaca, smoked scallop XO sauce on a lobster tortilla.
- Austin Taco Mafia - Chef Luis “Beto” Robledo of Cuantos Tacos, Chef Anthony Pratto of Discada, Chef Edgar Rico of Nixta Taqueria and Chef Gerardo Guerrero of La Tunita 512 will serve a Campechana taco with arrachera and Longaniza confit, salsa verde, habanero pickled onions, cilantro on an epazote marbled tortilla.
Tickets for the Taco Rumble are $65 each. The event will take place from 7:30-10 p.m. on Thursday at the Espee located at 1174 East Commerce Street. A VIP experience will also be available for $150 per person and only 100 tickets are available. VIP will allow early entry to the event and access to an exclusive agave spirits lounge.
Bakery Lorraine, Lick Honest Ice Creams and Paleteria San Antonio will all be on hand to offer a variety of desserts.
Several celebrity judges, including KSAT’s David Elder, will be on hand to pick their favorite tacos and event attendees will be able to vote for their top taco as well.
Taco Rumble is a fundraiser for the San Antonio Food & Wine Alliance - a culinary nonprofit dedicated to fostering awareness, support and innovation in the South Texas food and beverage community.
Proceeds from Taco Rumble will help SAFWA give back to the local culinary community through a grant program for chefs, farmers, artisan producers, and nonprofits by funding projects focused on culinary innovation that support the community, according to a press release.
Tickets are expected to sell out and are available for online purchase here.