Taco Loco fulfills on every element of a taco bar: cheap food and drinks, a hole-in-the-wall location near Shenzhen University’s west gate and funky wall murals. Kygo remixes play in the background as we ask co-owner Kim Lee about the restaurant’s concept. He tells us Taco Loco is geared towards students and foreigners looking to spend no more than RMB100 for a night out.
Lee achieves this by making all food items on the menu RMB20 or less. The chicken taco (RMB15), full of marinated cabbage and chicken, has a zesty tomato, onion and cilantro mix inside. Chili, garlic and the house-made sauce finish off the soft-shelled morsel. All ingredients taste fresh and well cooked. but we would hold the house sauce next time and ask for the in-house made salsa instead.
Other tacos include the beef, fish and pork (RMB15-20), which are just as good as the poultry. Patrons can ask for corn tortillas if they prefer more traditional-style tacos, too. Lee tells us it usually takes three tacos to fill up a guy and two to fill up most women. However, we recommend ordering two tacos and rounding the meal out with other dishes – all accompanied by a frozen margarita (RMB25) or a 3-liter tower of Tsingtao (RMB70) if among friends.
The cheeseballs (RMB20/5 pieces) taste buttery and the gooey cheese gets even more flavorful with each satisfying crunch. The pastels (RMB15/3pcs), essentially mini empanadas, and the fried cassava (RMB20) are worth ordering as well.
During the meal, take a second to look at the Dia de los Muertos wall art. One side of the restaurant boasts lipsticked skeletons with other colorful adornments and a tombstone with ‘AMS’ on it – a subtle homage to the coffee shop formerly inhabiting the space. The other wall is like the Day of the Dead in space: a mulit-colored sun attacks skeletons in clouds while another bag of bones smokes a cigarette, watching the whole thing. The artist owner, Jack, painted all of these himself to the chagrin of Lee, but we like them. It gives the place character.
Patrons can enjoy Taco Loco Tuesday to Sunday from 4pm until 12am, while Friday and Saturday nights the venue stays open until 2am. Look for the fluorescent tube-lit sidewalk off the main road. There’ll be some cheeseballs waiting for you.
Price: Approx. RMB50-70 for food and drinks
Who’s going: Students, teachers, skeletons who need to pack on some meat
Good for: Shekou pre-gaming, reliving your college days
// For address, see listing.
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