Food Truck Review – TacoNMaye (Georgetown, TX, Cedar Park, TX – Austin, TX Area)

Oh how I love food trucks! My very first review was on Cedar Pork – a lovely BBQ joint for carnivores that served up this heat-seeking vegetarian with some deliciously spicy breakfast tacos. I discovered a new one this morning – this one comes onsite Thursday – Sunday during breakfast and lunch hours at Cedar Park’s Red Horn Coffee and Brewing and yes, it does serve great breakfast tacos! (Doh! Another breakfast taco review!).

Breakfast tacos are a favorite of mine (well, duh!), but they are not a commodity by any means. Each place cooks and serves them differently. There is so much variety, it is impossible to make blanket statements. And while there may be a wrong way to cook them, there is no right way in how a breakfast taco comes out.

It’s all about:

  • How the eggs are cooked (if there are any)
  • How the beans are cooked (if there are any)
  • How the potatoes are cooked (if there are any)
  • How the tortillas are heated
  • What kind of tortillas are used – flour, corn, wheat or some fusion
  • What other ingredients are added (onions – grilled or plain, tortilla strips – grilled or plain, Jalapeno peppers, type of cheese, etc.)
  • And last, but certainly not least, the spicy salsas and sauces that come with it!

So that said, a breakfast taco is like a snowflake in that no two are ever alike. And with me, Heataholic, I just cannot get enough breakfast tacos – no matter how great the ones I am fortunate enough to try, I just like to keep trying more of them!

Onto TacoNMaye...Literally translated, it means “delightful or badass tacos.” TacoNMaye is a Mexican food truck, started in 2016 by a chef Carlos from Coahuila, Mexico. Don’t ask me how to pronounce it (is it “Taco-N-May”, “ta-CON-may” or something completely different) – 18 years and counting in the wonderful state of Texas, yet sadly, the only Spanish words I can muster are “Hola”, “Gracias”, “Por Favor” and numbers from 1 to 10! Slacker, I am, but I am so grateful to my Spanish-speaking friends for providing me the backup, so it’s one less thing on my plate! TacoNMaye is based in neighboring suburb, Georgetown, TX, but their truck comes to the Red Horn Coffee and Brewing Company in Cedar Park, TX.

Note: Red Horn is an alcohol-serving bar (what other kinds are there?), and as of the date of this post, bars in Texas are still officially closed due to COVID-19, but there are loopholes by which many can operate, such as if a food establishment is right by it, i.e., a food truck. Don’t ask me all the rules and regulations – I’m not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, and half the time, even I can’t decipher what the rules are – I just play it safe! Net-net: The TacoNMaye food truck comes Thursdays to Sundays typically during 8-2 PM, with more limited hours on the weekend, but double check the hours with Red Horn as these can vary and change, and once the restrictions are lifted, it may not come there, but you can always go Georgetown to enjoy.

TacoNMaye’s logo is that of a very happy man in a sombrero jumping with joy! One taste and it is easy to see why! For a vegetarian spice addict like me, TacoNMaye offers Potato, Egg and Cheese breakfast tacos which are so overflowing that the tortillas can barely contain them! So many of the core three ingredients, but let’s not forget those highly delectable grilled onions and tortilla strips. But relax, lunch-lovers! They also offer (for vegetarians) grilled veggie tacos, chips and salsa, and chips and queso blanco.

And now…the SPICE! There are four kinds of salsa they have. Two are average in heat capacity, while the other two are an adventure for your mouth! All four are made in-house, so you know they are fresh. The regular (red) and verde (green) salsas both have good flavor, but the other two are the true treasures (alliteration!) for heat-seekers far and wide.

First, the orange sauce – given its bright orange color, one can only assume this has a strong Habanero base. A quick sample taste and this is confirmed. There is likely some sea salt, vinegar and garlic mixed in, among other things. Then, there is the cream, almost-beige-colored sauce. It, too, has a Habanero taste and kick, so given this taste and the color, my gut feel is that it is the other bright orange sauce, with possibly sour cream or mayonnaise mixed in (it has a creamy texture too). I just need to verify if I’m right on this.

Both these salsas go great and provide a spicy kick with their Potato, Egg and Cheese tacos and illustrate again why some of the best food can be found in small, unheard-of places, like food trucks!

Details:

Spicy Flavors:

  • Orange Habanero Sauce
  • Light orange, creamy Habanero Sauce

Personal Faves ((since this was my first time, I will likely add to these after repeat trips):

  • Potato, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Taco
Potato, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Tacos – so much overflowing goodness. I love those grilled onions!
Just looking at this (especially in mid-September) makes me think about football! Like an offensive line, going Left-to-Right, you’ve got the Orange Habanero sauce as your Left Tackle, the two Verde Salsas as your Offensive Guards, the regular red salsa as your Center and your creamy Habanero sauce as your Right Tackle. The only question remains is – Where’s the Tight End? Hmm….

Spice on, my friends!

Mirror Mirror, on the wall, who’s got the greatest tacos of all (in Austin) – PART 2!

This is the sequel to one of my earliest posts. For those who had not read this post or just want a refresher of its content, I’d highlighted just how many fantastic taco joints there are in the Greater Austin metropolitan area and it is downright impossible to determine what is the “best” taco joint, with or without looking at it from a spicy lens.

I still stand firmly by that belief – and that includes evaluating based on spiciness. There are some places I’ve tried over the years that haven’t been worth going back to (and those won’t be mentioned in my blog), but they are vastly outnumbered those that are. I’d also highlighted in detail in that post about Taco Deli – a large and growing chain with so many unique tacos for vegetarians and non-vegetarians alike, and a fabulous green salsa dona and habanero salsa, both designed to keep your spice buds in check!

This post is about Taco Deli’s biggest competitor (at least in the eyes of many Austinites) – namely Torchy’s Tacos. Ask any random group of Austinites who has the best tacos in the city, and statistically, you’ll almost always get a plurality who’ll go for Taco Deli, another plurality for Torchy’s, and a third group who’ll include everyone else. I love ’em both, but I love so many others, you can’t include me in any of those categories.

Torchy’s has its own unique set of tacos and a corresponding unique set of tastes for any discerning spice lover, like yours truly. Unlike Taco Deli, I do love that they serve breakfast tacos ALL DAY LONG! They are also known for their fun and quirky work culture – so much so that yours truly applied for a Director of IT position they’d advertised, but alas, my resume just didn’t make it past the first round…:(

And now for the heat…like a “torchy”, Torchy’s is known for setting your taste buds on fire! If you’re a spice lover and you come out of Torchy’s feeling dissatisfied – you need to go to the closest doctor as you may be diagnosed with ageusia! It is impossible to go to Torchy’s and not fulfill your spice quota with so many options. Whether you’re going for the kill (tacos) or want some sides or want to be really daring and “drink” up some sauce, Torchy’s has it all! The key is their Diablo sauce – provided for free in small plastic containers (only by request) or sold by the bottle. Ironically, the bottle is shaped like a liquor flask, perfect for a Heataholic like me who has been known, on occasion, to drink an entire bottle in a sitting! Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING at Torchy’s can have Diablo added and spiced to order. As a secondary option, Torchy’s also has grilled Jalapenos and these come standard with some of the tacos, but usually, I’ve found they’re not always thrilled about putting these on other items. But rest assured, Diablo alone will be plenty to satisfy your spice buds! 🙂

A few of my faves:

  • Street Corn that can be dusted with chili powder, in addition to Diablo
  • Green Chile Queso and Chips – comes with a pre-made “stream” of Diablo. I usually turn that “stream” into an “ocean”! 🙂
  • Fried Avocado tacos
  • They have an Independent taco as well with eggs at their restaurants, but does not appear to be on their online menu

Spice on, my friends!

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