Eat the Menu: Tacodeli, Days 15 and 16

This is part of an ongoing series about my quest to try all of the yumminess at local restaurant Tacodeli. See my eat the menu tag for the other parts of the series. Scores are summarized here.

This weekend I not only made my first weekend trip to Tacodeli since starting this, I did so on all three days of the weekend. After Saturday's rendezvous with Tacodeli North, I returned to my usual Central on Sunday for breakfast. I may need to give other breakfast taco joints a chance at a head-to-head with Tacodeli. I'm honestly not sure I like their breakfast tacos all that much. The doña sauce makes up for it, but doña on someone else's breakfast tacos might possibly be even better. This time I tried the Jess Special ("Eggs scrambled with our migas mix and topped with Monterrey jack cheese and fresh sliced avocado") and El Popeye ("Spinach and scrambled egg breakfast taco with crumbled queso fresco Mexican white cheese"). They were both OK, but neither was particularly special. Still good compared to "normal" tacos, but they don't stand up to the lunch standards. I give them 0.55 and 0.5 moles, respectively.

Today I met some friends for another tryst with Tacodeli North, this time for lunch. I used this lunch to compare the picadillos: Picadillo (from the beef menu) and Thunder Heart Bison Picadillo. The Picadillo is "100% grass fed Burgundy Pasture ground beef in a spicy tomato and jalapeño sauce, garnished with lettuce and tomato." This taco was very... interesting. There's a hint of cinnamon or something in there, I couldn't place it. Something about it reminded me of pumpkin pie. I'm giving it 0.85 moles, but I definitely have to try this one again. It seemed like the sort of thing that might grow on me.

The Thunder Heart Bison Picadillo wasn't as interesting, but it was definitely good. I grew up around the corner from a bison ranch, but I never tried bison until much later. It has always been very good, the few times I've tried it. This is no exception. I give it 0.9 moles.

Summary:

• Jess Special: 0.55 moles
• El Popeye: 0.5 moles
• Picadillo: 0.85 moles
• Thunder Heart Bison Picadillo: 0.9 moles

This is what I have left:

1. Beef: Mexico City Sirloin ("Grilled sirloin with diced onion and cilantro.")
2. Pork: Mole Taco Pork ("Shredded pork smothered with a traditional, made-from-scratch mole. Garnished with cilantro, onion and crumbled queso fresco.")
3. Pork: Puerco Verde ("Tender pork shoulder simmered in a delicious tomatillo salsa and topped with queso fresco, cilantro and onion.")
4. Pork: Cochinita Pibil ("Yucatecan style roasted pork marinated and cooked in citrus and achiote. A unique tropical flavor garnished with pickled purple onions and serranos.")
5. Chicken: Frontera Fundido Chicken ("Grilled chicken with sauteéd poblano pepper and onion strips glazed with melted Monterrey jack cheese.")
6. Chicken: Mexico City Chicken ("Grilled chicken with diced onion & cilantro.")
7. Veggie: Frontera Fundido Portabella ("Oven roasted portabellas with sauteed pepper & onion strips and glazed with melted Monterrey jack cheese.")
8. Breakfast: Migas Taco ("Eggs scrambled with our migas mix and topped with Monterrey jack cheese.")
9. Breakfast: Migas Royale Plate ("A heaping plate of our migas topped with queso, Monterrey jack cheese, avocado and pico de gallo. Served with Mexican mashed potatoes, refried black beans and tortillas.")
10. Breakfast: The Sirloin, Egg and Cheese ("Grilled sirloin, scrambled egg and Monterrey jack cheese.")

I'm going to try the Puerco Verde or Cochinita Pibil tomorrow, I think, but I need something really solidly good as backup in case whichever I get tastes too much like the Puerco Borracho. Any suggestions?