Selma Flea Market and Tacos

I have driven by the Selma Flea Market dozens of times and never stopped. I was probably in a hurry to get back to Los Angeles and miss traffic. I hated living in LA, but that's another story.

I went with my Dad, T.L., for a couple hours of browsing around for supplies and eventually eating at the market. I could have even gotten my hair cut here, which I found out was a spectator sport.

Angel’s Mexican (lengua was tender but flavorless and cabeza was very tasty)

La Mexicana (cabeza good but the carnitas were dry. Also they were out of onions) from Sanger

Los Toritos (al pastor, best of the day) from Orosi

Frito Boats also are available.

Las Dos Hermanas Taco Truck, Merced CA

The random stop with no plan in Merced, one exit before my usual Tacos Sinloa. I ordered three tacos, Cabeza, Pastor, and Carnitas.

I think I’ve given up on finding good asada tacos, they’re usually too dry, hence my rotation to cabeza. Cabeza, is not brain tacos, it’s usually beef cheeks.

Dos Hermanas uses a small taqueria size taco; automatically raising the respect bar. I love small tortillas. Each of the meats is quickly seared on the flat-top and a bit of garnish is placed on each taco. Green salsa is used for all the tacos. Of the three, the Cabeza was the best, followed by Carnitas, and the Pastor a distant third (Sinloa has fabulous Pastor. I seriously considered driving down the block to buy one in order to redeem my belief in Pastor)

This truck is parked in the Smart and Final parking lot in Merced, just off Highway 99 and it's worth a stop for the Cabeza taco.

La Elegante Truck, Fresno

I get the idea that the meat in Adobada is marinated, which I like, although I prefer an al pastor style. I do not specifically care for a pool of liquid in any taco I eat. When there is enough liquid pooling in the dish to start breaking down the tortilla, it’s way too much (look at the pool of liquid at the bottom of the photo). I speak of balance with tacos, ratios. The amount of liquid that resides in this taco created an imbalance and therefore, lessened the dish and the experience.

However, the cabeza tacos was quite tasty. Thoroughly seasoned with a generous, but even heat from the picante, these tacos were very good. Here, the ratio of fat to meat was in balance, no pool of fat and only a beautiful little drip, drip, drip from the edge of the tortilla. I was very pleased with the outcome of my cabeza taco order.

 

Other taco related items of interest, La Elegante uses big tortillas instead of small ones and limits garnish to iceberg lettuce, both of which I think could be improved upon. 

Al Fresco Kitchen, Healdsburg

An under-the-radar food truck has hit the Dry Creek Valley in Healdsburg. Parked near Family Wineries, Papapietro Perry, and the Dry Creek Olive Oil company, the Al Fresco Kitchen offers a real alternative to the Dry Creek General Store down the road.

 

For me, if a Reuben sandwich is available, I order it. It’s my Control Sandwich, like tacos carnitas and al pastor or a Cesear Salad. It’s the dish I’ve had a hundred times and will probably have one hundred more times if I’m lucky enough to live that long. Some friends ordered the pulled BBQ pork sandwich, also pictured.

 

My Reuben sandwich was solid. 10 Times better than the Dry Creek Store reuben down the road, but that isn’t saying much. Al Fresco’s Reuben was moist, well dressed with the Thousand Island, not too much sauerkraut and the bread was grilled, not toasted. The potato salad was really good. A generous portion was served with my sandwich. The potatoes were tender, but not mooshy, seasoned well and perfectly cold. I haven’t gotten this excited about potato salad since I was in Portland and another deli.

 

Sandwiches at Al Fresco are Wine Country and Captive Location expensive, but the view on a clear day is unmatched by any restaurant in or out of Healdsburg. As I mentioned, the close-by alternative Dry Creek Deli General Store is equally priced and the Oakville Grocery in town usually offers long lines,  no vineyard views and high prices (albeit gourmet options). I think Al Fresco is worth the try.

Tacos El Guero, Lone Pine

On the 395 and Gateway to Mt. Whitney, Tacos El Guero has set up shop on an unpaved corner in Lone Pine. A make-shift tent, patio furniture, a couple fold-up tables and a hand spray painted sign make up this pop-up taqueria. All Hail Capitalism and the mobile food truck!

I ordered at the window of the food truck and received my al pastor tacos ungarnished. On one of the fold-up tables behind me, all the condiments and sides for my tacos awaited my adornment. As you can see, I went with one green and one red salsa style taco complete with habanero marinated onions; a bit more of a kick than the regular jalapeno onion and carrot mixture.

My tacos were good, the al pastor was tender and well seasoned. The corn tortillas were the larger grocery variety, rather than palm sized. Fully garnishing my own tacos was a first for me. I suppose I like being in the skilled hands of the cook as to how they like to season things. So completely garnishing my own tacos was only a minor letdown.

There aren’t many places to eat in Lone Pine and this is the only taco truck I’ve seen in many a year traveling to this town. I’m looking forward to coming down from Mt. Whitney or Tyndall again and grubbing on about 6 of these tacos. Maybe in the summer of 2011?