El Barrio's Finest

El Barrio should be proud. Yup, this neighborhood, also known as Spanish Harlem and East Harlem, should hold its head up high. Not only is it rich in culture and history, El Barrio is the home to El Paso Taqueria, the purveyor of the best fish taco north of 14th Street. Yes, folks, even if you live in Brooklyn or Queens, Tickle commands you to make the trip up to 104th Street and Lexington to indulge in the beauty that is El Paso Taqueria. 

Before I bestow glory upon El Paso and its formidable fish taco, I feel the need to tell the abridged story of the owners. El Paso is the creation of two regular joses, Rodrigo Abrajan and Porfidio Grande, from Mexico who came to the US to get their work on. These hard working dudes spent their early NYC years toiling in restaurants doing everything from busing tables to washing dishes. To make a long story short, their restaurant chops lead them to go about it on their own, and they purchased a taco cart that they stationed on 103rd and 3rd. After three years of pushing tacos, Rodrigo and Porfidio decided to up the ante and open up a storefront - the legend was born! Today, El Paso boasts three locations (97th/Madison, 116th/2nd, 104th/Lex) all located in Spanish Harlem.

I made my way up to El Barrio last week to get my long awaited El Paso review under my belt. There was no doubt in my mind that my El Paso experience would be great, as I had feasted on their fish tacos and brunch goodies countless times - their chilaquiles are off the charts! I went to their newest location on 104th and Lexington that, at least to me, appears to be their higher end and flagship location. Previously, they ran their 104th street operation across the street in a much smaller store front that was more bodega than restaurant appropriate. Those days are apparently over, as demonstrated by their impressive new digs that can hold roughly twice or three times as many customers. Unlike the old location, the new joint is thoughtfully decked out in Mexican folk art with an emphasis on skulls (calaveras) and skeletons that symbolize El Dia del Los Muertos. It must also be noted that they have a very spacious and intimate backyard perfect for summer time fish taco enjoyment. The new El Paso location is elegant yet inviting and cozy.


When the friendly waitress came by to take our drink order, I shocked both myself and my dining buddy by ordering a pineapple rose sangria...that's right, a PINEAPPLE ROSE SANGRIA! I never order sangria. In fact, I don't think I really care for sangria, but I ordered it, and it was amazing! If you recall, in my last post, I made the declaration that there is no better combination than fish tacos, cerveza and summer. Obviously, it's not summer yet. In any case, I still ordered their fish tacos. 


El Paso's fish tacos are simple - grilled tilapia, corn tortilla, pico de gallo, green cabbage, and avocado salsa. The simplicity of their tacos is what makes them great, i.e., they don't try to overwhelm your palette or confuse your taste buds by using too many ingredients. The tilapia was very fresh and moist, and the tortilla was also fresh, as I'm all but sure they make their tortillas in-house. While the tilapia was the star, the ingredient that made the El Paso fish taco an over-the-top delight was the avocado salsa, a mild and lightly-seasoned salsa with chunks of avocado. The chef even places the avocado salsa on the side for the diner to use at his/her own discretion. Needless to say, zero discretion was used in my case. 

El Barrio's finest!

Calaveras

104th and Lexington

Porfidio and Rodrigo

Los tres amigos

El Paso is a true star in the NYC Mexican culinary scene. The service is delightful, decor is spot-on, and, more importantly, their fish tacos are Tickleriffic!


Tickle gives El Paso 4 out of a possible 5 tickles.