Taco Palenque

Taco Palenque is a Texas chain (with one location in Mexico) with a few locations in Houston. One took over the closed Zaxby's in our neighborhood so we stopped in for an evening meal. Got the tampiquena plate (cheese enchilada, beef fajitas, refried beans and sides) and the Matamoros tacos (sirloin with queso fresco). Added a side of charro beans, and arroz con leche and a dessert called capirotada, a bread pudding with nuts. Washed it down with a fountain drink and a jamaica agua fresca (they also had horchata but were out, a fact that was reflected on the menu). Lots of food but we wanted to sample.

The main way to order is at a touch screen near the counter. The menu was reasonable to navigate. I recommend printing your receipt--they do ask for an email at the start if you want to join the loyalty program, but don't repeat the ask at checkout. You take a number and enter it at the order screen, then go pick a table and they bring it out. While you're waiting you can get some chips and salsa from the salsa bar. The setup is cramped, there's no flow so it backed up. But the chips were very fresh and the salsas were tasty.

The food was mostly OK. The meats were tender and flavorful, above average in my estimation. The main choice was beef--that was the only kind of fajita they had, they do have chicken and fish but it is breaded and not available on plates. They do have an Impossible option if you prefer. The enchilada did not have any sort of sauce on it but was tender and tasty. Rice and beans were fine. The plates come with guacamole, which was chunky and tasted very fresh. What was not so fresh were the desserts. They all come packaged. The arroz con leche was good, lots of cinnamon and nice and creamy. The capirotada was a disappointment. The flavor was OK but it was very firm, almost hard, my plastic spoon had a tough time with it. Didn't eat much of it. The jamaica was OK, fairly strong but perhaps not quite sweet enough, I did not love the flavor.

They have not been open that long (no grand opening yet) and there were service issues. They have an option to get 1 flour and 2 corn tortillas with the plates. I asked for that, but got 3 flour. On the first pass they didn't bring the desserts. The server just asked what we ordered and brought it, which is the right thing to do, but we should have printed the receipt. The restaurant is bright and colorful inside. I would compare it to a Taco Cabana. The Tampiquena plate is over $19, seems high for fast casual but I think that's just how it is now. Next time I would get the picadillo plate--I have not seen anywhere else that offers that. Overall a solid choice and likely to make it in the location.

My Yelp Review