food | DINE
Limón Tacos & Tequila Neighborhood Mexican restaurant focuses on customization. BY ANDREW LEACH PHOTOS BY ANDREW LEACH IN NORTH PHOENIX, adjacent to the new Fry’s Food megastore, sits Limón Tacos & Tequila. Focusing on fresh ingredients, Limón’s menu allows you to customize your meal before you sit down to enjoy the ambiance, which includes a large outdoor patio area with foosball, cornhole, and a giant Connect Four. There are seven different items to decide on for your base of the meal and then nine proteins to add onto whichever base you pick. The fun continues from there, because there are numerous add-on items to help personalize your meal, including a variety of vegetables and sauces. I recommend looking at the menu online before your visit to get an idea of some of the items you’re interested in prior to getting into the order line. Although the line moved quickly during my visit, I noticed those behind me got a bit impatient if someone took too much time thinking about what to order during their turn. We ordered the street tacos with chile lime shrimp ($8.49) first. You have your choice of corn, flour, or jicama sliced rounds for the taco shells. For this order we went with soft corn street taco tortillas. We decided to top each one with cotija cheese and fresh pico de gallo. The shrimp has nice flavor that the pico accentuates. The cheese rounds out the taste. The tacos are easy to hold with one hand, something to keep in mind when adding on toppings. Also sampled, the street tacos with beef barbacoa ($8.99). For these, we went with flour tortillas for the street taco shell. We
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topped them off with shredded cheddar jack cheese and mango salsa. The beef barbacoa has a sweet flavor that’s accentuated by the mango salsa. What we didn’t know, until after ordering, is that you can mix and match the tacos shells as well as proteins. If I understand correctly, you pay the price for the most expensive of the proteins, but you can mix and match proteins and all toppings are no additional charge. The nachos with pork carnitas with roasted white poblano queso ($8.49)— guacamole an additional $1.99—were next on our list. The nachos are a great value, as you’re able to build the dish with many more toppings than say the tacos. We added roasted corn, brown rice with cilantro, pinto beans, diced tomatoes, and sour cream. Since it’s all on top of corn tortilla chips, it’s easy to scoop up all the toppings. The white poblano queso offers a nice creamy layer with just a touch of heat. If you like your food with more spice, I recommend adding the smoky chile de arbol to kick up the heat index. The carne asada burrito ($8.99) also made the cut. We opted for the burrito with diced carne asada, quinoa rice, black beans, shredded cheddar jack cheese, cotija cheese, and sour cream. All the flavors mixed perfectly together in the flour tortilla. Limón Tacos & Tequila also serves quesadillas and salad greens as a base to build your meal. Meanwhile, if you’re looking to keep to a more vegetarian eating expe-
rience, you can order the fajita style vegetables ($6.99) as a protein option. Additionally, Limón has daily specials. One of them is a Friday Fish Fry, which includes French fries and jicama slaw for $9.99. They also have a robust daily happy hour from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. with $2 off all cocktails, beer, and wine, $4 Three Amigos margaritas, and beers starting at $2.50.
Limón Tacos & Tequila limontacos.com (623) 466-7500 2750 W. Dove Valley Rd., Phoenix
ANDREW LEACH A local Realtor who loves dining out. Arizona's been the home of this New Jersey native for over 20 years.