La Fachada

When a Mexican brings you to their favorite food spot, you stand back, pay attention, order what they order, and prepare for some tasty shit. I like to think that I can taste my way through the standard Tex-Mex and spot a genuine hole-in-the-wall promising to serve some the best comida north of the border, but much of the time the best of the best places are those hidden deep in ghettos, behind crumbling walls, past flickering neon, and filled with cheap plastic chairs with nary a paleface in sight. When my co-worker who hails from our southern neighborland caught sight of my salsa tattoo a few months ago, he engaged me with tales of homemade menudo, fresh tortillas straight from generations past, and the best damn tacos you can imagine. When I proudly announced my successful trip to Tacos el Gordo, he sneered and told me I had no idea what I was talking about. My interest piqued, and he offered to take me on a lunch excursion the likes of which I haven't seen. How could I turn it down?!!

La Fachada isn't terribly far off the beaten path (just beyond Golden Hill on the south side of Market Street in Logan Heights on 25th street), but its promise of an amazing meal was apparent once we turned into the parking lot. A warehouse-esque restaurant sits beyond a small paved lot behind an open black fence, but all of the lunch action was taking place around the smoking grill next to a parked Roach Coach, surrounded by Costco folding tables and chairs with stacks of paper plates held down by jars of salsa and large bins filled with marinated peppers, carrots, and limes. Short, sweet, and to the point, the menu had the normal offerings of chicken and carnitas tacos, along with authentic crowd-pleasers such as lengua and cabeza, and even venturing into unknown (to me) territory of bucha and beyond! We went there for one thing and one thing only- damn good tacos.



We were not to be disappointed. While we waited (all 2 minutes- fresh and fast!), a heaping pile of grilled onions and peppers lay crackling across a charcoal grill, and we were encouraged to help ourselves to soaked radishes and limes. Our food popped up shortly, and the pig out of 2010 commenced. The major qualms that my co-worker has with Tacos el Gordo are few, but critical- too expensive, and too small. Personally, if the food is right, then $2.50 for a taco doesn't exactly make me want to blow my brains out with stinginess, but why pay more for less? La Fachada's tacos weren't obscenely bulging to the point of absurdity, overindulgence just for the sake of it, but they absolutely beat Tacos el Gordo on that point. As far as taste goes, I found it to be apples and oranges. Both superb in their own right. Does sitting in the sun surrounded by mariachi music, friends, and scents of grilling meat beat sitting inside a "fast-food" atmosphere? Maybe it does. All I know is these were some DAMN good tacos. We found what we were looking for. Venture into the neighborhood and take a chance. You won't regret it.

La Fachada
20 25th St
(at Imperial Ave)
San Diego, CA 92102
(619) 236-8566

Pictured above: Bucha, Cabeza, y Carnitas tacos with tomatillo salsa, hot salsa roja, grilled with cilantro and onions on fresh tortilla, squeeze of lime.