Skyler "Nearly Horizontal" K.'s Profile

Whoah now, they did a little remodeling and got all fancy-schmatzy.  Instead of a white board, a flat-screen TV now announces the drink flavors.  OK, progress is good, but they TOOK MY FAVORITE DISH OFF OF THE MENU.  Lame...

We'll call this one 3.5 stars.

Been anticipating this opening for months.  Biked past every day, searching for signs of opening.  As a native west-coaster, I have searched far and wide for decent, authentic fish tacos and come up mostly empty-bellied (an exception for El Pelon, may it rest in peace, or better yet, rise like a zombie).  So when I heard that a dedicated fish taco joint was opening a mere two blocks from my abode, I took it as a sign that the universe is in my favor.

T-1 day, 6:30 pm: Having received a Daily Candy email, drop by after work, to confirm that they are indeed opening.  Door is unlocked, they tell me to come by at 11am, offer a menu.  No thanks man, it's already set as my homepage.

Opening day, 11:01am:  Actually wake up on day off to get tacos.  Anticipating a line, hustle there with housemate only to be told that they are waiting for a permit.  Bummer, but Michael, one of the owners, gives us free taco coupons and we have a nice 10-minute chat about a variety of non-taco related subjects.  Told that they will be open till 10pm.

Opening day, 9:15pm: Hustle home from dance class to get long-awaited tacos.  Again turned away at door, as they have run out of taco makings!  Go through usual stages of grief: denial, anger, sorrow, etc.  

T+1 Day, 4:00pm.  Finally reach acceptance, give them a chance at redemption.  All is forgiven.

I had an Ensenada and a Dorado, both of which were delicious.  The Ensenada was the closest to the traditional fish tacos I had been looking for, while the chipotle crema on the Dorado added just enough zing to make it a little different while still keeping within the canon.  It's hard for me to describe in detail what the tacos here are like because to me, the don't stand out as much as just taste...RIGHT.  Finally!

Service is clearly still working out all of the kinks, but that is to be expected with a new restaurant.  They had significant trouble making substitutions on my companion's cemita, as it was probably the first time that they had been asked to do it.  My tacos came out in about 5 minutes, while the cemita and elote took closer to 10.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Dorado Tacos.  I look forward to seeing you a lot more often!

I came here with a friend on a Friday evening with a friend and we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table, which wasn't bad at all considering Cuchi Cuchi had quoted us an hour and a half. We had the veggie Puu Puu platter, and the various dips and accoutrement ran the gamut from "oh-my-god-this-is-the-best-thing-I-have-ever-put- in-my-mouth" to just mediocre. It was definitely a fun eating experience, though! We also had the calamari, which swam in a tomato broth, and could have been a little warmer.

Drinks took a long time to come out, and the cocktails were slightly off....the Old Fashioned was too sweet and the Gin House wasn't sweet enough.

The staff must have felt that we were lingering too close to 11 (when the dancing starts), because it felt like they were always trying to clear plates we were still working on.  Also, as the other diners got up and left, the staff moved their tables off to the side, until we were sitting at the only table in the middle of the dance floor. Awkward.....

I have a confession: I love Raspberry UFO.  I'm slightly embarrassed to admit it here, but dammit, it's sweet, it's delicious, it's a beer, it's a dessert, it's (occasionally) breakfast, it's...amazing.

Since it seems to be confession time, here's another: I rather liked Charlie's Beer Garden.  I've always avoided the original because of the fleet of fixies outside (and the occasional irritating drum circle I have to sit through while waiting for the 66), but it was nice to drink some delicious Raspberry UFO in the outdoors.

I just wish they had more bathrooms, and faster bartenders!

Nothing but meh.

Not a very large beer selection, and what they do have is way overpriced.  I always end up walking the extra block to Marty's and getting something more interesting for much cheaper.

They stopped carding me a week after I moved into the neighborhood.  That either means that Mall has personal, friendly service, or I'm turning into an alky.  Hope springs eternal, I'm going to go with the latter.

WTF??  They no longer have Cholula!!  From now on, it's BYOCondiments.

Four stars?!  Wait, what?? I thought I hated this place!!

No, I hate being dragged here by drunken friends at 12:30am on a Saturday when it is impossible to get a beer or hear a word being spoken.  But then I hit it up at 7pm in the middle of a blizzard and found out that, hey, this is a pretty decent place.

Food is wicked cheap, and our nachos were the best I have had yet in
Boston.  Seriously.  Better than Sunset.  And I know nachos.

Thanks to Jeanne J., I asked for a bloody mary, and it was enormous!  A little light on the vodka, but nicely spicy.

My only qualm is the totally yawn-worthy draft list.  Bud Bud light Miller Sam Blue Moon blah blah blah....give me something interesting!

The free tasting here is a great way to try those Harpoon beers that you might have trouble tracking down at your local bar or liquor store.  It's nice to get to sample some of their more interesting brews and hear a little more about them.  Smoked beer?  Tastes like "cheap sausage", according to my sister, but still interesting enough.  My one qualm was the format: they gave us a time limit for sampling, so I felt like I was rushing to get through all of the taps.  Still, a must-go for any beer lover in Boston!

I love the seaweed udon here!  The sushi is also pretty good (and cheap).  Best part of all, instead of just giving you a few pieces of pickled ginger on the side of the plate, there is a giant jar in the middle of the table so you can dig in with abandon.  Mmmm, ginger...

Maybe I'm not adventurous enough when it comes to ordering (I am very wary of seafood), but nothing here has really blown me away.  The roast duck is pretty tasty, but a lot of the noodle dishes are overly greasy.