We can all agree that Phoenix is not LA. Good, now that that’s settled, Phoenix does appear to get an event or two on occasion, and the first since I made the big move was the 8th Annual Arizona Taco Festival, which converged at the Salt River Fields in Scottsdale. While the place is better-known for MLB spring training, the vast field was put to good use in hosting dozens of vendors pushing mostly tacos, but also drinks, desserts and the occasional t-shirt.

Although the RFID cashless money-loading system was great in theory, it actually put a damper on the experience from the get-go on an already unseasonably hot day because it forced people who had already purchased tickets to wait in an airport security-esque line to get wrist bands and load funds.

But aside from the temperature, that was all but forgotten upon entering the festival and setting to work to down some tacos. Here are the highlights:

Machaca Taco – Chico Malo

Look, I get that you are prepping tacos en masse and that you can’t exactly make food to order. That’s why I’m willing to see past the pickled onion and mushrooms in this taco, as well as the fact that seemed be a bit cooled off despite the billion degree weather. Because at the end of the day, this was an amazing homemade tortilla with perfectly braised machaca on top.

Barbacoa Taco – Creations by Sergio

Unlike most vendors, Creations by Sergio is not a restaurant, but a catering company. At the taco fest, Sergio went for quality over quantity, churning out little tacos with a punch of taste. The barbacoa taco was packed with flavor and amazingly tender meat. Plus, there was no fancy business with toppings, opting to go for the classic street style of onions and cilantro.

Pork Belly Taco – Crujiente Tacos

I’m not normally a fan of kimchi, and Crujiente Tacos did nothing to change my opinion in that regard. But I had to try their Pork Belly Taco despite the kimchi because it just sounded like a nice change of pace (and perhaps because I subconsciously miss all the Korean food in LA). The good news is that that kimchi really took a backseat to the pork belly in this taco, only rearing its ugly head occasionally and letting the pork, cilantro and sriracha aioli do their jobs.

Shredded Beef Taco – Dos Gringos

I was fully prepared to hate this place because of the name, but was pleasantly surprised by the taco, which I ordered without lettuce. The beef was solid, the cotija cheese was a nice touch and the splash of salsa verde tied it all together.

Frozen Key Lime Pie Bar – Pinnacle Peak Pie Company

In heat like this, anything cool and refreshing was a winner, but the Frozen Key Lime Pie Bar on a stick from Pinnacle Peak Pie Company (also lacking in brick and mortar location) was the ideal way to cool me off. With a thin, but mighty crust and flavorful filling, this got the desert job done.

While I couldn’t try everything (and wish I could have), it was obvious that there are some pretty amazing tacos out there for the eating in the Phoenix area. The majority of the vendors were local and even those that weren’t amazing were still pretty darn good. Tacos Huicho deserves its own special shot out for rolling out real tacos al pastor off of a spit, and even though the taco itself didn’t overly impress, I am sure if I paid their real location a visit I would have been mighty happy.

After all, what’s a good old fashioned food event for, if not to whet the tastebuds and leave you wanting to try more?

The world may be full of Mexican restaurants, but little taquerias are kinda confined to certain parts of the USA. Fortunately, while in San Jose we happened upon a place called Tacos al Pastor #2. The whereabouts of #1 are unknown, but the thought was that any taqueria deserving of a sequel was deserving of my stomach.

I decided to get some of their Super Tacos, which were like regular tacos, except bigger, badder, filled with beans and topped with avocado. Yeah, super is definitely the right word. They also came with a choice of meat and topped with pico de gallo. I wanted none of that pico, but everything else looked good and I opted for one asada and one al pastor (because I mean I kinda had to order the taqueria’s namesake).

The result was unquestionably beautiful and also the biggest tacos I had ever seen. Each one of these guys was nearly burrito-sized and I had my work cut out for me. They were served like a Cali hamburger with wax paper holding in the backside, but I still knew I was going to make a mess. Like usual, I was right, but mess or not these were pretty good tacos. The al pastor had some great flavor, but the carne asada could have used some more seasoning. They also suffered from some sauteed onions that slipped in, but they were mostly liquid at this point and I couldn’t justify picking them out.

In all, Tacos al Pastor #2 served me well. The tacos were a breath of fresh air, as was the general existence of the place after spending six months away from the west. It is definitely a good place to have in your neighborhood, but at least in California not exactly a destination.

Santa Monica doesn’t exactly have a reputation for good food. And what reputation it does have usually tends to lean on the upscale. But reputation alone does not simply make a city, and Santa Monica actually has a surprising number of little gems hidden in its nooks and crannies. One of these, I had heard, was Tacos Por Favor.

Yet, aside from actually hearing of Tacos Por Favor, I hadn’t really been told what was good on their menu, so when I arrived and found a vast menu full of nearly every Mexican dish I had ever heard of, I was in trouble.

So I did what any rational gringo lost in a sea of Mexican food would do – ordered tacos. In this case, I went for their 2 Soft Taco Combo, which came with beans and rice. The tacos were topped with meat of my choosing (one carne asada and the other al pastor), salsa, cilantro and onions. As always, I had no tolerance for onions, so I ordered without and then got a side of guacamole to make up for it.

Pretty soon, my combo was ready and I grabbed it along with a couple of additional salsas to accompany my meal. To say that I was disappointed by the portion of my $1.25 side of guacamole would be an understatement. If there was more than one ounce in there, I would have be shocked. But maybe the guac was awesome, so I forked it out onto my tacos and went to work. It was good, but nothing near awesome and nothing close making the $1.25 worth it. The tacos themselves were good and packed pretty nicely with meat, but didn’t exactly offer much more than I could get at your average taco truck. This is not to knock the tacos in any way, but to simply say that such tacos are a dime a dozen.

So maybe I ordered the wrong thing and Tacos Por Favor has some intensely amazing burrito that deliciously sat in the corner crying as I ordered the wrong thing. In any case, Tacos Por Favor is worthwhile if you happen to be nearby, but if not you can probably do better in your own part of LA.

Well I needed something in walking distance and I wanted something good. Not knowing what I would find, I took a walk down Magnolia Boulevard and stopped at the first Mexican place I found. It was called Casita Taco al Carbon and had the look of something awesome. I took a while deciding what to order, as I often do when visiting a Mexican place for the first time. I never know what’s going to be the best, whether it be a burrito, taco or something more interesting. Since the name of the place had “taco” in it, I figured that would be a good place to start.

I found a little combo deal they had, which came with a taco, quesadilla, rice and beans. The taco came with whatever meat I wanted so I chose their taco al pastor. Al pastor is a fun little meat. It’s pork, but is heavily influenced by Middle Eastern cooking styles so it is really unique. It also came with onions, but I ordered my taco without. The quesadilla was kind of interesting as well, containing only cheese and guacamole. I love both of these, never had them all alone.

I grabbed my food to go and opened it a few minutes later in the safety of my office. I opened up and was saddened to see a small bed of lettuce lain out in one of the sections of the styrofoam. Luckily, it barely made any contact with the real food. Then I set to work on devouring my taco. This one tiny shell had been loaded way up with al pastor and with every bite I took, a shower of al pastor rained upon the rest of my food. This meat was really good and I was glad it was so plentiful. Then I dug into the quesadilla. While I liked the cheese and guacamole, it definitely felt like it was missing something. Fortunately, there was enough leftover meat from the taco, that I was able to turn a couple sections of the ‘dilla into something a bit meatier. The rice and beans were just normal, which was fine, because the real winner here was al pastor.

I’m pretty happy I stumbled into this little local taco shop. Their taco al pastor was a delight and although their quesadilla could have used some work, it was surely worth the walk.