Tex-Mex cuisine is the bigger, brasher and crasser cousin to their neighbors south of the border. The portions are huge – and usually slightly sloppy – the flavors lively and the price good for the pocketbook. Many have tried to recreate the Tex-Mex magic in Shanghai, but few have succeeded. Enter Taco Mama’s, with their battle cry of “Viva La Revolucion!”
While the concept of this joint isn’t necessarily ground-breaking, owner Daniel Avery has put together a neat little delivery company that will bring the party to your home (or anywhere else you fancy for that matter). Henry has a background in higher-end American chain restaurants like Outback Steakhouse and Tex-Mex giant Chichis. That experience translates to generous, tasty, relatively consistent offerings. A burrito bowl with ground beef (RMB52) was a warm mush of refried beans, rice, rather canned-tasting salsa, cheese, sour cream and guacamole (all sans tortilla). It was full of satisfying, well-spiced flavors but a soft brownness permeated the ingredients and ended up reminding us more of a housewife’s seven-layer dip than something we could eat with a fork. We had expected a lighter version of their regular burrito (RMB59-74), which is a serious hungry-man gut-buster. Instead, we used tortilla chips as crunchy dippers for the bowl of meaty, heavy goodness.
The chips were left over from the regular-sized guacamole (RMB29) which was too small to warrant so many. However, the mousse-like puree was fresh and didn’t taste like filler, a downfall that many low-budget Mexican restaurants fall into when trying to save a buck on this expensive item. For lighter eaters, the six-bite soft tacos are a good choice. We’re partial to the chicken filling and nutty corn wrap. If you want more for your money, upgrade to a one-kilo burrito (RMB99-119), a sumo-sized wrap that needs two tortillas to enfold its filling.
Perhaps the biggest advantage of Taco Mamas is their margaritas (RMB39, RMB99/for three) that come served in tall, frosty glass containers. They’re strong, fruity and deliver just the right punch for an evening. Two go down very easily. Currently the location is anonymous, but they deliver through Mealbay (RMB15 for downtown Puxi, more outside) from 5pm each day. ML
// (www.tacomamas.com, 400 821 3856)
