José Manuel – a well-known chef in the Madrid taco scene – has just opened a brand new, no-frills taco joint in Madrid with his partner, Joe. This colourful and fun eatery is located in a beautiful old building just a five-minute walk from barrio Lavapiés, and has a lovely chilled terrace plus a cosy dining area inside.

Taco Maya’s cosy, minimalist dining area

It’s possible that you may have stumbled across José Manuel before: he used to own Taquería Maya in Huertas, where José met Joe! With a new team member and a more relaxed location, Taco Maya has a winning formula, and dare I say the best Mexican food I’ve had in Madrid?

THE FOOD

Everything is made from scratch by José himself, from the nachos to the tacos and every ingredient is bought in fresh that morning. It’s for this reason that the menu sometimes varies depending on what order comes in that day, and there’s an array of tacos, quesadillas and nachos to try.

The menu – full of options for all!

This is what we had:

Lemon and Strawberry Margaritas

First of all, the Lemon and Strawberry Margaritas are incredible – like nothing you’ve ever had before, I promise! The strong kick of tequila was also a great start to the evening.

The Nachos

We had three types of nachos: Courgette and corn from the cob (vegan), Guacamole and coriander (also vegan), and beef. All were absolutely delicious, and the guacamole was like something I’d make at home in secret so that I could put in as much coriander and fresh red onion as I wanted.

The Beef Tacos

2 x Cheese Tacos and 2 x Lamb Tacos

The beef and guacamole tacos were juicy and moreish, and that extra squeeze of lime cut through all that tender meat perfectly. The veggie options included cheese and guacamole quesadillas, but pictured above we have courgette tacos and two tacos with a creamy vegetable and corn mix and plenty of fresh coriander on top. Having said all that, the tacos themselves were so fresh and you could really decipher their flavour.

Tequila!

To end the evening, José Manuel offered us a wonderfully smooth tequila. He also gave us a salt-sugar-chilli mix for the usual tequila ritual, and now I’ll never be able to have just salt again.

José Manuel himself!

The tacos are great and the terrace is a real treat. This humble eatery has a bright future – check it out and be a part of it.

Info

• Address: Paseo de Santa María de la Cabeza, 60
• Metro: Embajadores
• Facebook and Instagram
• Phone number: 911 733 374 / 642 194 285

Also check out:

• Tacos, tamales and tequila: Madrid’s best Mexican joints!

You’ve made it half-way through the week, what better way to celebrate than with a few tacos and beers? Every Wednesday from 7pm-11pm, La Venganza de Malinche offers a variety of small tacos and Coronitas for only 1€ at their multiple locations in Madrid.

Locations:

Plaza de San Martin, 2
Calle de los Jardines, 5
Plaza Duque de Osuna, 5
Calle Leganes, 5

About the tacos:

The tacos are small, so you have an excuse to try one of each, and without hurting your wallet. You’ll find a little something for everyone: chicken tinga, vegetarian, cochinita, and mole, among others. The tacos are served on warm flour tortillas with accompanying salsas to use at your discretion. The supplementary salsas are not for the faint-of heart, and will certainly spice up your taco, so proceed with caution!

About the place:

The dining area features funky, unpretentious décor, and service is quick and friendly. This, combined with the 1€ price tag, will make it hard to avoid becoming a Wednesday night regular at La Venganza de Malinche!

by Meredith Parmalee

Haven’t found a good Mexican restaurant yet? Check out our post on Madrid’s Best Mexican Restaurants!

If you had to eat just one type of cuisine for the rest of your life, what would you choose? For me, Mexican food wins hands down every time. I could happily munch on chilaquiles for breakfast, enchiladas for lunch, pozole for dinner and still have room for a few tacos al pastor or some juicy tamales…all washed down with several delicious micheladas of course. I spent a year working in Mexico after I finished university and it wasn’t nearly long enough to sample all the delicious treats on offer, although I did manage to squeeze in tequila ice cream, grasshoppers and mezcal with worm salt, amongst other things!

So where can you get your Mexican fix in Madrid? Avoid the expensive chain restaurants and the Tex-Mex joints, and instead try one of these gems:

Taquería Mi Ciudad (Calle Hileras 5 and Calle Fuentes 11 <m> Sol/Ópera)

The infamous Gringa at Taquería Mi Ciudad

As the name suggests, tacos are the star of the show here: pastor, cochinita pibil, tinga, carnitas…they’ve got them all, as well as the usual staples like guacamole, quesadillas and frijoles. My personal favourite is the Gringa, a heavenly combination of carne al pastor, cheese and pineapple sandwiched between two flour tortillas…it needs to be eaten to be believed! If you sit at the bar you can watch the taco man work his magic, although there are plenty of tables for larger groups. Alternatively, you could hop one street over to the original restaurant on Calle Fuentes, which has standing room for about 10.

La Malinche (Calle Torija 10 <m> Santo Domingo)

Image from www.facebook.com/lamalinche.madrid

This place is the real deal, a Spanish-Mexican husband and wife dream team. He concocts delicious micheladas and margaritas at the bar upstairs, whilst she rustles up delicious sopes, huaraches and all other manner of delights in the kitchen below. Even the tortillas are homemade. The portions are very generous so make sure you go with an empty belly! Great value for money.

Antigua Taquería (Calle Cabestreros <m> La Latina/Tirso de Molina/Lavapiés and Calle Áncora 19 <m> Palos de la Frontera)

Antigua Taquería

An amazing hybrid of traditional bar de toda la vida and Mexican hipster joint. The menu here is limited – just tacos, nachos and quesadillas – but everything on it is absolutely divine. I have a particular weakness for their quesadillas and always end up ordering the huitlacoche one…it translates as corn smut which sounds grim, but don’t knock it until you’ve tried it. Heap some of their delicious salsas on top and you’re good to go…just watch out for the red one! Luckily they also make a mean margarita for you to wash it all down with.

Tepic (Calle Pelayo 4 <m> Chueca)

Image from www.facebook.com/restauranteTEPIC

I had my first ride in a pick-up truck, learned to dance to banda and tried ceviche for the first time in the Mexican state of Tepic, so I’ll always think of it fondly. Tepic in Chueca doesn’t disappoint either, with its varied menu of tacos, flautas, enchiladas and other tasty treats. They even have soups, salads and vegetarian options, just make sure you leave room for one of their delicious desserts! If you’re looking for a more upmarket meal in a swanky restaurant which manages to avoid all the usual Mexican clichés whilst still being thoroughly Mexican, this is your place.

For more on Tepic, check out our friends post here with mouth-watering photos.