Tastemade Me Tacos at CITIZENS New York Food Hall
A private preview party was held at CITIZENS Food Hall in New York City by the contemporary media company Tastemade for its first-ever US restauran
Tastemade Me Tacos, which was created in collaboration with C3 by SBE, will grow as a grab-and-go dining destination and delivery concept in new markets throughout the US in the upcoming months.
A private preview party was held at CITIZENS Food Hall in New York City by the contemporary media company Tastemade for its first-ever US restaurant, Tastemade Me Tacos, which opens on March 9th and expands the food and lifestyle brand into a hybrid in-person and delivery dining experience from renowned Chef Wes Avila. SBE, a rapidly expanding food tech platform, collaborated with C3 (Creating Culinary Communities) to launch this new takeaway and delivery restaurant.
Taco tastings and a special guest appearance by Chef Wes Avila, who was in town straight from Los Angeles, were part of Tastemade Me Tacos' party at CITIZENS at Manhattan West on Tuesday, March 7. The Market Bar served beverages, including Kawama Tequila Sodas in cans.
Tastemade Me Tacos offers followers of the modern media brand a first-ever eating experience that is inspired by the fan base of millennials and Gen Z and the engaging approach to culinary content used by Tastemade. With this restaurant, Tastemade is taking its food and lifestyle services to the next level and deliberately expanding beyond content into the experiential hospitality sector in order to build stronger ties with its highly engaged social and streaming consumers.
A collection of tacos inspired by the tastes of Mexico, the Mediterranean, Asia, and the American Southwest have been created by Chef Avila, a finalist for the James Beard Award, in collaboration with Tastemade. Tacos with teriyaki beef, chicken shawarma with feta, sumac, and tahini, and the traditional Queso Asado taco with carne asada are among the highlights of Tastemade Me Tacos' menu. For the first time, Avila's cuisine will be sold in New York City at Tastemade Me Tacos. The Michelin Guide to California awarded Bib Gourmand status to Chef Wes' Guerrilla Tacos in 2019. The Los Angeles Magazine readers selected Chef Wes as the city's top local chef in 2020. With his eatery Angry Egret Dinette, Chef Wes was a finalist for the 2022 James Beard Award.
According to Tastemade Co-Founder & CEO Larry Fitzgibbon, "Our followers have embraced Tastemade as a go-to source for international culinary trends, viral food recipes, and the most interesting storytelling in the food industry.” In order to provide our fans with a dining location and delivery service where they can personally taste the finest of Tastemade, we are thrilled to offer this passion and skill to a new culinary experience, Tastemade Me Tacos. We're delighted to introduce Chef Wes Avila to New York City for the first time and to work with best-in-class partners at C3.
“I am more than thrilled to have partnered with Tastemade, a platform that I’ve followed with the utmost appreciation and admiration,” says Founder & CEO Sam Nazarian, SBE.
"I'm very excited to partner with two industry leaders to bring Tastemade Me Tacos to life,” says Chef Wes Avila. “It has been a longtime dream of mine to enter the New York City marketplace, and I'm thrilled to be doing so with Tastemade and C3."
In addition to adding more dining halls in New York City, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Washington, D.C., and Miami, Tastemade and C3 want to expand the Tastemade Me Tacos delivery idea into other areas across the US. New sites are anticipated for the Seattle, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Minneapolis metro regions later this Spring. The relationship also covers the possibility of developing other dining and delivery ideas in the future. Together, the firms will connect C3's enormous network of over 800 worldwide brand locations, including Umami Burger, Krispy Rice, and Sam's Crispy Chicken, with Tastemade's devoted global audience of over 300 million monthly viewers.
Tastemade Me Tacos is open Monday through Friday, 11:00a.m. - 4:00p.m. at Citizens New York Food Hall at Manhattan West (398 10th Ave, New York, NY 10001). The menu will be available for delivery on the GO by Citizens app, GrubHub, Uber Eats, DoorDash and delivery.com.
Taco Takeover in Brooklyn
On Saturday, May 12th, Cannonball Productions brought Taco Takeover back to New York City for its second annual celebration of tacos, tequila, empanadas, and beer. The event took place at the Brooklyn Expo Center, where it gathered several local chefs who brought their best Mexican-inspired dishes to the table. With tacos from Queens Bully, Dos Caminos, Mid|Nights, and Zen Taco to empanadas from Empanada Mama, there was something for everyone to indulge in.
Organized a week after Cinco de Mayo, the Taco Takeover included options for traditional taco fans, as well as for those willing to experiment. There was a “Hot Chicken Taco” from the Queens Bully, which was a twist on the concept of a traditional taco since white bread was used instead of the taco shell. The spicy “taco” was accompanied by a cool coconut “margarita,” which was a mixture of Don Julio tequila, coconut milk, cane sugar, and coconut flakes. There were also fun vegetarian options, such as the “Shroom Taco” from Dos Caminos, and “Masala Jackfruit” taco from Baar Baar, which included spices and ingredients from the South-Asian cuisine.
Besides the finger-licking food and fun alterations on classic drinks, the Taco Takeover also transported its visitors to a summer getaway. The event included beer pong and inflatable pool floats as props for photobooth photos provided by Deadpool and Lyft while songs from Celia Cruz to J Balvin were playing. It was difficult not to think of the approaching summer days.
Missed out on the Taco Takeover in NYC? No worries, since Taco Takeover will also be coming to Dallas, TX and San Diego, CA. The organizers of the event are also invested in working with local non-profit organizations and food recovery programs in order to donate leftover food to those in need. If you’re interested in finding out more information about the festival, visit https://thetacotakeover.com
Sneak Preview of Borrachito at The Garret East
On Wednesday night, one of New York City’s most reputable cocktail bars, The Garret, located in the Lower East Side, turned into a finger-licking taco concept. As guests walked in, they were welcomed to a drink of their choice at the bar, where they had a chance to strike up a conversation with a compelling stranger. And when the evening went well, invitees continued their night by walking further into a more romantic setup dubbed, “Borrachito.”
Borrachito, which is located in the back area, was once a speakeasy restaurant entitled, “Dinnertable,” turned itself into an intimate and date-appropriate bar and taco spot, filled with lots of delicious tacos to accompany a wide array of boozy cocktails and luscious wines.
Borrachito brings Mexican street food inspired by family recipes to the comfort of a New York City bar. Executive Chef Yuval Ochoa thrills the crowd with tacos filled with pork, steak, and fish, as well as delightfully unexpected fillings, such as burrata. Each taco is a masterpiece of its own: the “Pork Bomb” taco includes roasted pork belly, confit pork shoulder and deep fried pork skin, andpico de gallo and pickled onions; the “Baja Fish” taco is a refreshing creation comprised of fried seabass, grilled pineapple salsa, and guajillo majo. Not feeling tacos but still want a flavor of Mexico? Try “Del Every Dia” soup, or ceviche and guacamole appetizers. And for those with a sweet tooth, Borrachito does not disappoint. There is a choice of paletas (ice pops) with flavors such as pineapple mezcal and strawberry cilantro, and duros (sweet chips) covered in sugar, cinnamon, and served with a side of corn ice cream.
To accompany the flavorful feast, grab one of the delicious cocktails from The Garret’s bar. From “Detroit Dancehall” to “Cheap Furniture,” your night is guaranteed to be a blast. With mouthwatering food and equally delicious drinks, what else could one wish for? In the age of Instagram, it is an aesthetically-pleasing venue, which Borrachito and The Garret most definitely offer.
Looking to experience street style tacos but are on a date, or would just like to enjoy flavors of Mexico with a delicious drink in another hand? Borrachito is for you. It doesn’t have to be #TacoTuesday for you to visit this cozy and flavorful location this weekend by going to 206 Avenue A, NY, NY 10009, located in the back of The Garret East.
Photo credit @fohnyc
ZenTaco Brunch
In November 2017, an intimate, fun restaurant called ZenTaco opened on the Upper West Side. Last week, they hosted a press-brunch to debut their new mouth-watering brunch menu.
ZenTaco is an Asian-Latin fusion taco shop owned by the Executive-Chef, Rene Garcia. The owner previously owned Verde Latin in North Carolina before making the decision to join his brother, Alex Garcia, who owns the popular A.G. Kitchen just down Columbus Avenue.
The ZenTaco brunch menu features Latin and Asian inspired dishes such as a Vietnamese Torta, Papas con Panza, Chilaquiles and Vegetable Fried Rice with a fried egg and a choice of meat. Vegetarians and vegans can choose to substitute meat with tofu. Everything I tasted was cooked and seasoned to perfection, my personal favorite dish was the Mexi-Tatertots. This dish includes potato tots, cheese dip, pico de gallo, crema, guacamole, cotija, and a fried egg. It was delicious.
Coming into an Asian-Latin restaurant, one would expect for their taste buds to burn a little bit (in a good way), but ZenTaco has got you covered. Something that makes this restaurant unique is their speciality Popsicle Cocktails including the Bloody Mary Pop, a Tequila Bloody Mary served with an Avocado Tortilla Popsicle inside, and the Strawberry Lemonade Mimosa Pop made with Orange Juice, Vodka and a Strawberry Lemonade Popsicle inside. Even on the freezing 9-degree day, these drinks were a huge hit.
ZenTaco is the perfect restaurant for a quality yet inexpensive brunch on the Upper West Side. For more information, check out their Instagram (@zentacousa) and their website http://www.zentacousa.com.
Photos courtesy of ZenTaco