Did lunch at The Rusty Taco today. It's a new fast casual spot housed in a former gas station on the corner of University and Greenville. They did a great job on the decor. It's simple, but fun. The overhang that used to cover the gas pumps now creates shelter for a large outdoor patio, which was packed as the weather was so nice today. In fact, the whole place was packed. By the time I left at noon, people were lining up out the door to sample the menu of Mexico City-style tacos.
I opted for the #2, Roasted Pork, the #4, Chicken, and the #7, Grilled Fish. It didn't take longer than 5 minutes for the tacos to arrive, and with them came my first frustration: they stacked all of the tacos for everyone in my party on one tray with no identifying marks of any kind. We were left to sort through them on our own, which was no easy task. How am I supposed to tell roasted pork from brisket from achiote pork? A quick trip back to the counter for some advice and I was ready.
The chicken taco was up first. I bit into it expecting the juicy, highly seasoned chicken that made this type of street food famous, and what I got was dry and bland. The tortilla itself was perfect, but the filling was like a sponge in my mouth. About that time, I eyed two large squirt bottles of red and green salsa on the table. Aha! They want us to use the salsas to season the tacos to our liking. After a generous application of the red salsa, I took another bite. Now, I had a wet, bland taco.
I moved on to the pork and fish tacos with the same result: dry and flavorless. Too bad. I really wanted to like this place. After all, it's a relatively healthy choice with cool atmosphere that's really close to my office. C'est la vie...
