Friday, June 22, 2012

Chronic Tacos - Vancouver (Gas Town)

Chronic Tacos Cantina on Urbanspoon

So there I was, walking by myself on water street, wet, cold, and hungry. I had initially made it a goal to find a good sushi restaurant, but that plan fell through when the only one I found had a line up. I continued down the street when I saw Chronic Tacos across the street. My stomach grumbled and demanded that I feed it, so, with my stomach in control of my mind, my legs obeyed and in I went into the Chronic Taco.

On first entry, I was not very impressed. My first impression was that this was some dingy pub that had been abandoned and turned into a make-shift Mexican joint. Red walls and shoddy decor definitely didn't help. There was TVs every where like a sports pub but no bar. The first sign you see is: SEAT YOURSELF PLEASE. The servers were friendly enough, since I was dining alone and there was no bar, I ended up taking over a table for 5 by myself.

I ordered a Corona which was on special for $4.50, they were sold out. That's disappointing; a Mexican restaurant without Corona, oxy-moronic? I ended up with a Pacifico, not my typical taste in beer, but my stomach reminded me I was thirsty.On the servers recommendation, I had a fish taco and a meat taco, both with a soft tortilla shell. The real Mexican name escapes me at the moment. She said they were both really good and only $3.50 each, so for the price, why not?As I sipped my beer and stared out the window at the depressing rain that vancouver is so famous for, a basket of tortilla chips appears with what seems like a homemade salsa. Instinctively satisfying my hunger, my hands and both begin working in unison to consume the basket. The salsa wasn't anything special, I think I could have made it in my magic bullet at home, but it was free and went well enough with the beer.

My two tacos took about 15 minutes to appear. By the time they got to me I had already finished my beer. I took at look at the dish and it looked appetizing enough. No utensils were to be seen. I guess this is the authentic Mexican experience. So, with what I hoped were clean hands, I formed the soft shells with their contents into a taco shaped form and began stuffing my mouth.

First to introduce itself to my tongue was the fish taco. The fish was battered and there was tartar like, but more mayo-ish dressing on it. Combined with the lettuce, guacamole and some salsa, it was surprisingly tasty. I engulfed the whole thing with a hungry four bites. If I ever came back here, that's what I would order.The meat taco was nothing special and quite honestly, other than having some bite to it, is not even worth mentioning.

All in all, for a quick... Wait, for a fairly cheap dine in lunch experience in Gas Town, it's not a terrible place. I think this place needs a huge renovation as it seems to have an identity crisis. The whole bill came to about $18 for the two tacos, basket of chips and salsa, and two beers. Not bad I suppose.

Would I make a special trip for it in the future, doubtful...Service was good tho... And easy on the eyes...