San Diego-born taqueria opens 2nd Las Vegas location
Let’s taco, Las Vegas. Again.
The Taco Stand, the Tijuana-style taqueria that deploys @letstaco_ as a swingy social media handle, opened its second Vegas location on Thursday, on South Fort Apache Road near Summerlin. The debut follows the launch of the first local Taco Stand in June 2020 on Spring Mountain Road.
Julian Hakim and Aram Baloyan founded The Taco Stand in 2013 in San Diego. The taqueria celebrates their upbringing in Baja California and the cooking of that border region.
The carne asada version at The Taco Stand offers “a traditional example of a Tijuana-style taco: handmade corn tortilla, carne asada, guacamole, cilantro and onion. The marinated angus steak is prepared ‘al carbon,’ or charcoal grilled,” Hakim said. “There are other examples of Tijuana-style tacos, but none more so than that one.”
On the spit
In Vegas, as at other Taco Stands, the carne asada taco leads the menu, joined by another Tijuana taco standard: battered fish with cabbage, tomato and chipotle salsa. Among the other taco choices: nopal (catcus paddle), grilled chicken and Sonora (flour tortilla, angus steak).
Burritos and quesadillas call on many of the taco fillings, among them sautéed mushrooms, grilled shrimp and pastor marinated pork cooked on a trompo, a traditional vertical spit. Salsas, made fresh daily, are showcased at a corrugated salsa bar in white and red, with black script.
Breakfast plates like chorizo or machaca shredded beef with eggs, carne asada fries and churros fried to order round out the menu.
Vegas store No. 3
Including the new Taco Stand at 1100 S. Fort Apache Road, Suite 150, and the Chinatown shop at 3616 Spring Mountain Road, the restaurant has 16 locations across Southern California, Dallas and the Miami area. A Taco Stand is planned for 2550 Paseo Verde Parkway, Suite 4, Henderson, but the company has not announced an opening date.
The new restaurant is operating with limited hours through Saturday. On Monday, regular hours begin, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily for dining in or takeout. The 1,700-square-foot space seats 40 and features vibrant murals by San Diego artist Beau Carney. Follow @letstaco_ or visit letstaco.com.
Contact Johnathan L. Wright at jwright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @JLWTaste on Instagram.
