Papalo Taqueria

Wonderful taco counter in a food court at the base of an office building in downtown Houston. We tried this place after it was named one of the fifty best taco spots in Texas. The Zanahoria lived up to being a standout vegetarian taco, blending several flavors and textures, led by roasted carrot. The tepache chicken's savory tabbies made it my second favorite. There are many tables, booths, and counters shared by the businesses in the food court, along with a water station by the stairs. There is paid parking on surrounding streets.

Of the four tacos I tried, the puerco en salsa verde is slightly better to my taste than the chicharrón just because the latter gets a bit one-note. In order of preference: 1. Puerco en Salsa Verde - Pork was very tender and juicy, indicating a successful low and slow cook that broke down the collagen in the pork shoulder. A nice little bit of heat from the tomatillo salsa. The dash of saltiness of the queso fresco is balanced by the freshness of the greens. The corn tortilla is nice and soft; not dry. All in all my favorite, edging out the chicharrón because the flavors are a bit more complex. 2. Chicharrón taco - The chicharrón itself is nice and crunchy; the pork is rich and fatty, which is pleasantly cut through by the acid of the pickled red onions & lime you squeeze on top. However, the proportion of onion could be better - there's not nearly enough to balance out the richness of the all the chicharrón & pork belly in each bite, so by the end it became heavy and one-note. 3. Zanahoria - The confit carrot is sweet but also smoky from the char. The pepita salsa adds a nutty dimension. However, if the carrot is the "meat" of this vegetarian aco, there wasn't nearly enough; 2 small pieces, so it was mostly mixed greens. Although there’s a nice crunch from the pumpkin seeds contrasted with the creaminess of the queso fresco, it’s not a very satisfying taco by itself portion-wise. 4. Brisket - This is billed to be a 12-hour slow cooked brisket, marinated with morita pepper paste, but the cook on the brisket was inconsistent at best. I was distracted by how dry some of it was, so I didn’t really register the flavors. By far my least favorite.

I got the Puerco en Salsa Verde, the Chicharron, and the Tepache Chicken. Chicharron is amazing, incredible flavor, likewise with the Puerco. The Tepache Chicken to me was dry and not that flavorful. Maybe they had an off day, I also got it to go and didn’t eat it hot so maybe that’s it. Either way it wasn’t really that bad, the toppings and tortillas made up for it. The corn tortillas here are the best I’ve ever had, really something special. Staff very professional and quick.