There’s no one in Connecticut, and perhaps the entire country, who can present Latin American flavors with more authenticity and vibrancy than Arturo “Franco” Franco-Camacho.
Which is why this most recent Saturday night found my friend and me at Tacuba Taco Bar in Branford,
where a sign on the door advertised that the restaurant was a Cash Mob Branford participating merchant.
But let’s go inside.
You see how busy the restaurant was,
yet lucky timing allowed us to secure a table without waiting. Here is my friend with talented Suzette Franco-Camacho, who runs the front of the house,
here’s Franco hard at work in the kitchen,
and here is Franco & Suzette’s older daughter helping out in the family restaurant.
The street food-themed menu is pretty straightforward, whether posted
or printed.
We wanted to try everything. One way to try a lot is to order the sampler platter, which includes guacamole and chips, six tacos (two beef, two chicken, two fish), rice and black beans, and elote corn, a popular street food.
Here’s a better look at the generous guacamole, possibly the best I ever had, with a delightful pair of salsas and a pineapple relish.
And here are the chips.
When the chips are down, you’ll need to order other things. Like ceviche,
which comes with chips, popcorn and crackers
and couldn’t be lovelier.
Or a taco platter, for which I chose the pork carnitas, Ensenada fish and lamb barbacoa options,
which comes with terrific beans and rice.
For dessert, we savor a fruit salad that’s also based in a common Mexican street food. It features spears of watermelon, mango, cucumber and jícama treated with lime juice and dried chili.
We also love the churros con chocolate.
For those not familiar with the setup, the Franco-Camachos have opened plural restaurant concepts in the same structure. They also have the wonderful upscale-casual Waterhouse Oyster Bar, and are about to open The Sea Witch,
which will have sandwiches, salads, soups, sweets and suppers-to-go.
No one prepares better or fresher food than the Franco-Camachos.
Tacuba Taco Bar, 1209 Main Street, Branford, 203-208-0736, www.tacubataco.com