Whether as fuel for the crushpad, for a hike or for harvesting in the garden, tacos are a classic. Narrowing down a list of Sonoma’s best tacos feels like a near impossibility, but here’s a great first try for the warmth of early fall.

Did I miss a favorite local taco shop? Tell me your faves!

Best of the Best

Quiote Mexican Restaurant

These handmade blue corn tortillas — topped with fresh rock cod, cochinita pibil with pickled onions, or al pastor and salsa verde — are at the top of my list. Add a side of guacamole with serrano chiles and crispy raspadas or brothy Rancho Gordo beans. 121 Kentucky St., Petaluma. 707-774-6130, quiotemx.com

Best Fish Tacos

El Molino Central

Beer-battered fish tacos with salsa de arbol and avocado-lime mayo are the best around. Crispy beef brisket tacos with sour cream, avocado and pickled escabeche are also a can’t-miss. 11 Central Ave., Sonoma. 707-939-1010, elmolinocentral.com

Community Spirit

Galvan’s Eatery

Seeing the long lines for these brothers-owned food trucks is always heartwarming because they truly believe in the food they’re sharing with the community. My favorites are the messy, gooey quesabirria and crispy carnitas. Weekly stops listed online at Instagram.com/galvanseatery.

Oaxacan Style

Sonoma Eats

Chef Efrain Balmes makes the best Oaxacan food in Sonoma County, infused with his heart and soul. Best bets include Baja fish tacos and potato tacos. 18133 Sonoma Highway, Sonoma. 707-343-1141, sonoma-eats.com

All Together

Mitote Food Park

You’ll be hard pressed to find a bad taco at this Roseland collective. Favorites include quesabirria from Gio y Los Magos, mushroom tacos from Lucha Sabina, huitlacoche at Antojitos Victoria and cochinita pibil at Mami’s Panuchos. 100 Sebastopol Road, Santa Rosa. mitotefoodpark.com

On the Road

El Roy’s

Between their multiple food trucks and a Petaluma brick-and-mortar, these tasty tacos are practically everywhere you need them to be. Convenient and always a good bet on the run. 602 Elsa Drive, Santa Rosa and food trucks in Petaluma and Santa Rosa. eatelroys.com

Street Food Classics

El Fogon

Though not technically a taco, the epic Machete — a forearm-length corn tortilla filled with meat (al pastor!), cheese, sour cream, tomato and cilantro — is a favorite. The focus on Mexican street classics makes this a great lunch stop or casual dinner. 623 Fourth St., Santa Rosa, 707-575-0574, elfogonca.com

Heavenly Al Pastor

Cielito Lindo

The very best versions of al pastor feature a pineapple atop the rotisserie, dripping sweet juices onto the meat. There are no shortage of local options, both spit-grilled or griddled, but Cielito Lindo is one of the best. 52 Mission Circle, Santa Rosa. Instagram.com/cielitolindosantarosa

You can reach Dining Editor Heather Irwin at heather.irwin@pressdemocrat.com. Follow Heather on Instagram @biteclubeats.

The post The Best Tacos in Sonoma County, According to Our Dining Editor appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

The well-worn Wagon Wheel Saloon in north Santa Rosa has been called many things over the years, but a food truck hot spot is not one of them — until now.

Once infamous for its cast of colorful (and sometimes felonious) characters, the faded green bar is now ground zero for some of the county’s best quesabirria.

In late May, fluttering banners advertised Tacos Tijuana would be coming to the 3320 Mendocino Ave. location. Curiously, the owners of Tacos Tijuana posted on social media that the business had permanently closed in May.

So, was the new Santana-themed mobile kitchen emblazoned with the Tacos Tijuana logo the same taco favorite, or an impostor?

Co-owner Uriel Brena considers it more like Tacos Tijuana 2.0. His former business partners, Miguel Canseco of Taqueria El Paisa and Chef Jose Rodriguez of El Fogon Taqueria, left the business after the truck struggled to make a profit in its first six months at Shady Oak Brewing, according to Brena.

“We tried really hard, but it just wasn’t paying the bills,” said Brena, who continues to handle the business side of the food truck. A marketing professional and political consultant by day, Brena got into the restaurant business after volunteering his services to local restaurants during the pandemic. That led to co-ownership in Tacos Tijuana, whose tasty quesabirria tacos were tapped as favorites by The Press Democrat.

So, without partners, and stuck with a $60,000 used food truck, Brena decided to forge ahead and strike a deal with the Wagon Wheel’s owners to host the mobile kitchen. Tacos Tijuana’s original chef, Edwin Hernandez, and two of Hernandez’s family members have become Brena’s new business partners.

The menu remains much the same, with their signature quesabirria — a crispy, cheesy, beefy handful of happiness — as good as it ever was. New items are coming onto the menu weekly, including conchinita pibil and tacos al vapor (steamed tacos).

In early July, chicken parmigiana and Philly cheesesteak sandwiches will also be added to the menu, Brena said. He tapped Chef Gerard Giudice from Sally Tomatoes Catering and the Heirloom Cafe in Rohnert Park to help perfect his sandwich game after working with Giudice on his successful campaign for Rohnert Park City Council.

Brena plans to add his mother’s chile rellenos as part of an expanded vegetarian menu that includes Soyrizo Nachos, zucchini blossom quesadillas and huitlacoche (a corn fungus with a mushroom-like flavor) tacos. He cautions that although the items are prepared vegetarian and vegan, the grill is also used to cook meat.

For now, quesabirria remains the top seller, but meatless options like the flor de calabaza (squash blossom) are also popular. Paired with a stiff gin and tonic at the Wagon Wheel, you can’t possibly go wrong.

3320 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa. Open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily with $1 tacos on Tuesday. Delivery orders at 707-296-3000. More details on their Instagram page, @tacostijuana707. Parking can be a little tricky, and the only exit is a right turn onto Mendocino Avenue.

The post Popular Santa Rosa Taco Truck Is Back in an Unexpected Location appeared first on Sonoma Magazine.

Tour Sonoma County with dining editor Heather Irwin in honor of the richly filmed and mouthwateringly inspiring Netflix show, Taco Chronicles. 

Most people find it hard to imagine that I didn’t try my first taco until the age of about 30 — and even then with much trepidation and disbelief. Those tiny corn tortillas had no business being unfried and doubled up like that, I thought. It didn’t contain cumin-overloaded seasoning from a packet. It didn’t even have hamburger or sour cream. One bite, however, of a simple carnitas soft taco with onions and fresh cilantro, a little dab of hot sauce and — hold-the-guacamole, this is a taco?!

Even years later, after eating thousands of tasty tacos from throughout California, I still don’t fully understood the subtleties of this ancient, beloved street food of Mexico. But I’ve made progress after devouring two seasons of Netflix’s series The Taco Chronicles, which schooled me in the culture and history of al pastor and lesser-known local taco fillers like suadero (fatty beef) and cabrito (goat), buche (pork stomach) and cabeza (head).

So whether you end up going on a Taco Chronicles adventure of your own, exploring out-of-the-way taquerias specializing in barbacoa, or you just want to challenge yourself to get out of a burrito rut, there’s a lifetime of tacos out there just waiting to be discovered. And you don’t even have to wait until #tacotuesday. Click through the above gallery for details.

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