Taco town!
Tacos Ricos / For years, Phil Wang was in the car business. But his self-described “leap of faith” into the food service is paying off–and mostly for the growing number of devotees to the taco shop that he and his wife Carolina Garcia-Wang opened on Kapahulu Avenue about two weeks ago.
“Word traveled pretty fast,” says Phil. “We’ve got customers who will drive from as far as Haleiwa.”
Some of those customers may be the ones who discovered the original Tacos Ricos, which Phil and Carolina opened on a whim in 2008 in the 99-Ranch Market food court near Tripler Army Medical Center. They relocated to a more centralized location to expand their hours and build their customer base. So far, it’s working. One man who stood in line at Tacos Ricos last week said he and his girlfriend made the trip from outside of Mililani.
“People come from all over,” says Wang. “I think it’s because everything we make is authentic.”
The offerings at Tacos Ricos–where Carolina’s Mexican grandmother’s recipes make up the menu–are about as authentic as you can get outside of Mexico. Tortillas are small, preservative-free and packed with flavor. Taco lovers have their pick of carne asada, cochinita, pollo asado, lengua, tripas and more–plus open access to a kiosk stocked with top-it-yourself salsa, sour cream, onions, lime, cilantro, guacamole and more. The salsa, Phil says, is worth noting.
“You know a place is authentic by the tortillas and salsa,” he says. “The salsa is made fresh daily by hand. It consists of all fresh ingredients, we roast the peppers, hand-peel the tomatillas. The result is awesome.”
Tacos Ricos also serves up nachos and burritos that weigh in at up to three pounds. If that doesn’t fill you up, there are a variety of drinks like sweet jicama, and palletas (Mexican popsicles) made from fresh fruit.
Not only is the food incredible, it’s served late into the night. Tacos Ricos runs on bar time (though the establishment is BYOB, with no immediate plans to seek a liquor license), and closes daily at 2am. As Phil and Carolina settle into their new digs, they’re continuing to grow their business model. Soon they hope to offer catering and delivery services throughout Waikiki. Within weeks, they’ll accept all major credit cards. Phil is also hammering out details for a food challenge involving a 12-pound burrito, which he says requires at least three people to roll it up. For now, he says he’s just waiting to plan shipment for massive tortillas so big, they’ll be shipped in a box meant for a bicycle tire.
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