Restaurant Review - Eight Wonders

It’s lunchtime at La Tapatia. The restaurant is empty but for two Latino men, who look up from their platters of carne asada, beans and rice as we seat ourselves at the counter. A small Mexican woman, whose apron barely stretches across her pregnant belly, watches her small daughter amble about the booths in back, while she dishes out tacos and flautas as fast as her husband, the cook, whips them up. Ceiling fans stir the air above museumlike black-and-white photos of Mexican generals and landmarks.

Occupying the corner suite in an all but abandoned strip mall, La Tapatia feels like the last stop for food and water in Texas before the highway turns into a two-lane journey through days of empty desert.

Big fatty: Tex-Mex fans and those searching for authentic tacos will find choices galore at La Tapatia. There are few pleasures guiltier than a saucer full of irresistible, goopy cheese dip ($2.99). The gordita ($2.99) — a hefty, crunchy-chewy fried flour tortilla stuffed with lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, onion, sour cream and refried beans that stick to the roof of your mouth — is the sort of heavy snack you dream of on a Saturday night after too many beers. Platters are a filling bargain at $6.99 each, with rice and soupy refried beans. A three-enchilada combo (one each of chicken, beef and cheese) is too mild for my palate. But, with its thick, chili-free sauce, it would be an ideal choice for kids.

All broken up: Like the lunch specials, which cost little more than a double espresso, Mexican breakfast is available all day. Divorced eggs ($3.99), “separated by the rice and beans” as the menu reads, are fried sunny-side-up the way I like them, with runny yolks and whites burnt lacy around the edges. The tart tomatillo salsa that naps one egg and the fresh, cilantro-heavy tomato salsa that tops the other are saucy finishing touches on an addictive dish. I can’t get enough of the tostadas ($2.99) of small fried flour tortillas topped with chicken, beans, lettuce, onions, sour cream and cotija cheese, concluded with a lashing of mouth-burning habanero salsa.

Me so hony: At a measly $1.50, the best way to make a meal at La Tapatia is to sample all eight of the taco varieties. From the jamon taco of “grilled hony ham steak” to the chorizo and scrambled egg taco, you just can’t go wrong. Wrapped in soft, steamed corn tortillas and topped with onions and cilantro, a heaping spoonful of salsa — creamy avocado or piquant, fresh tomato — completes the delicious picture. The unbeatable carne al pastor taco features succulent pork steak, charred around the edges, and an earthy guajillo pepper marinade. The milaneza taco of fried, battered steak slices is pure tender-crunchy heaven.

Don’t be put off by La Tapatia’s last holdout surroundings. Inside, it’s cool and quiet, and when you sidle up to the counter, you’ll marvel at how much flavor you get for pocket change.