SEA - tacos al pastor?

[phinious]

What is the best place in Seattle for Mexico City style Tacos al Pastor? Is there even such a place? Please exclude the following;

* la carta de oaxaca (great, but a little too delicate for my taste)
* taqueria guaymas (solid, but lacks pineapple)
* Any place that offers beans and rice on the side, or adds iceburg lettece and chedder cheese to their tacos

Taco trucks are also an option for me.
Thanks!

[AndrewS]

El Agave from Kent has a stand a Madrona Farmer's market. Traditional spit roasted pork traditionally seasoned, pineapple on the spit, pineapple on the tacos- real al pastor DFA style. The huaraches are good too (though the tacos are an ephemeral perfection that never allow me to get an order of huaraches).

Andrew

[dalipardon]

La Casa Azul in North Seattle makes exactly what you are looking for.

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La Casa Azul
14419 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle, WA 98133

[SeaFood2009]

Thank you. Just tried Casa Azul out for the first time and it is excellent. The wife and I split tacos al pastor and a queso fundido appetizer. Although the queso fundido was slightly different than what I am used to from baja and socal restaurants (there it is usually served in a round shallow platter with a thin sprinkling of chorizo in a sea of cheese, casa azul serves it in a boat dish with quite a bit of chorizo and a thin layer of cheese on top), it was delicious. The tacos al pastor were very close to good tijuana street tacos, meaning that they were better than any in Seattle and at least as good as most tacos in the southland. The only things missing were pickled carrots, and dish of fresh cilantro and onion mix.

[pusherman]

Wow, that sounds awesome...if only it could be 100 blocks further south! Well, I'll definitely have to check it out next time I'm in the north...

[seattleviking]

I like the tacos al pastor at Laredos Grill but I have no point of reference to tell you if they are authentic. They do have the pork on an upright rotisserie with a pineapple on top and include pineapple in the tacos.

I have mostly have them at Happy Hour where you get 3 small tacos cheap with cilantro and onion, pico de gallo on the side.

[JayDK]

Taqueria Sanchez in Renton is a small butcher and taqueria. Had tacos al pastor today and they were quite yummy. I'll def go back when I'm in the neighborhood - up the hill from Fry's etc.

[magfoodguy]

El Agave Mexican Cuisine is at the Ballard Farmer's market and has the real deal. Pork sliced and spit roasted with a pineapple on top. Excellent and very authentic.

[phinious]

This is huge! I will need to check this out and report back.

[magfoodguy]

I can't wait to get another fix tommorow!

[pigeonmom]

Taqueria el trompo loco in Kent if they are still there.
Excellent tacos al pastor and yes, they had pineapple.

Rinconcito in Burien is better than guaymas for pastor
but I don't recall if they have pineapple.

[equinoise]

I have never been to Mexico City, but I am a huge al pastor fan. From what I have read, an essential aspect of al pastor in the DF is the pork being roasted on vertical spits in the style of shawarma, gyros, etc (a technique brought, as I understand it, from Lebanese immigrants to the Mexican metropolis). Pineapple or onion sit atop the meat on the spit, imparting their exuding juices in the roasting process, and the taquero slices some of the fruit to go with the meat. I have had tacos prepared this way in Chicago's Little Village, and the results were spectacular.

I inquired as to the spit presence in Seattle taquerias over a year ago, and the only place I heard of using the device was Muy Macho in South Park. However, when I visited the place, the machine was not in operation. I did order the al pastor, and enjoyed it, but it didn't have the quality of the Chicago spit roasted version. Around here, "adobada" is almost interchangeable with "al pastor" for purposes of taco truck/taqueria menus, signifying heavily spice-marinated pork, and in this way, I enjoy Asadero and Riconsito, mentioned above, as well as Rancho Bravo in Wallingford, which has a particularly pungent marinade.

pigeonmom - does el trompo have the spit?

[pigeonmom]

Yes, el trompo had a spit.
I haven't been there in a year.. I hope they're still open.

[cburnsi]

Alas, they are not (open anymore). Drove by there on Tuesday hoping for Al Pastor for lunch, they've been replaced by another Taqueria which I will check out on another day....

[equinoise]

Saw a taco truck bearing signage for El Trompo Loco on E. Marginal way recently. It was in the parking lot for a large Mexican Restaurant. It was not open for business when I drove by.

I also note this site listing Taqueria El Trompo Loco at 7047 E Marginal Way S. http://www.whrrl.com/entity/14832/Taq... . This might be the same place where I saw the truck, but Im not positive.

Anyone been to a place matching these descriptions?

[Whrrl]

We're always trying to keep the taco truck info up to date in Whrrl, although with them moving and changing hands regularly it can get a bit difficult. One good article, though a bit old, that I've used as a resource is here: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/food/13...

I hope you'll find more of what you're looking for on Whrrl, and if you ever want us to add a taco truck for you just send the info to [e-mail]

Cheers! - Danielle @ Whrrl.com

[shaolinLFE]

I had a similar question on trying to find a good Breakfast Machaca burrito like the ones I used to have in LA and OC. I asked a few taco trucks and the revelation to me was that most of the taco truck operators in Seattle are from Southern Mexico while majority in SoCal are from Northern Mexico or Mexico City. Maybe this is why it's harder to find a good Al Pastor (which i also crave)

[magfoodguy]

Just back from Mexico City and must say this is a real challenge.

[dagrassroots]

Tacos El Asadero, a taco truck on Rainier Ave, has pretty good al pastor. They also have mexican coke to wash down your tacos.

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Tacos El Asadero
3517 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98127

[HungWeiLo]

This is absolutely my favorite taco truck in Seattle.

[pusherman]

I love that place, but they actually don't do al pastor. There was a thing in one of the dailies about a stand in the Ballard farmer's market that has it... here it is-

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/food/36...

[jodymaryk]

Do you know if they have pineapple? Never mind, just read farther and answered my question!