Destin Taqueria: Tijuana on Main Street
209 Main Street, Destin, 543-8670

By Bruce Collier September 21, 2006 Issue


If you look at the ratings box for this review, you will notice I left out the “atmosphere” rating at Destin Taqueria, and rated only the food quality and service. This is because Destin Taqueria really doesn’t have much atmosphere. Set just off Main Street, amid ongoing construction, it has only a tiny dining room, decorated with a few posters and a calendar featuring the Pope, about a half-dozen tables, a steamy kitchen right nearby, and an overworked A/C. At noon the place is packed, and all the hotter for that. Takeout is popular, and probably advisable if you work in the area and are on the clock for lunch.

All of that is by the way. If the old New York adage about never eating Chinese food in a restaurant unless you see Chinese people there holds true for Mexican places, this is the place to be. It’s probably as close as one can come to going to a Mexican family’s home for lunch, and having mom and dad cook and serve you. The food tastes home-cooked, the tableware doesn’t match, beverage service is do-it-yourself, and English is spoken only on the menu. My friend, who had eaten here before, suggested we go after the weekday lunch rush. We got a table right away, but several menu items were sold out, so you take your chances.

Destin Taqueria is very popular with area construction workers, many of whom are Mexican and Latino. Hard hats are the fashion, and many appear to be regulars. Everyone is very friendly, and one or two words of polite Spanish go a long way. Aside from that, pointing works pretty well. Actually, I kind of enjoyed asking for a bottle opener and being directed to the bathroom. Once in a while, it’s fun to be the foreigner.

There’s a one-page menu, and I imagine it changes. Don’t neglect to look at the daily specials handwritten on the wallboards. In addition to the day’s offerings, I saw a notice for a Saturday barbacoa, featuring lamb. Another hardcore Hispanic dish, menudo (tripe soup), can be had on Sundays. There ain’t no talkin’ Chihuahuas here, sport.

I ordered carne asada, marinated slices of ribeye, stewed with tomatoes, onions, and jalapenos, and a pork tamale. My friend chose chilaquiles, fried tortillas with green salsa, served with a choice of eggs or steak. She chose steak.

The menu does not mention starters or appetizers, but everyone gets a basket of chips, guacamole with onions and cilantro, and two bowls of salsa, green and red. Both have a kick, especially the green. We each got a bottle of Jarritos, a brand of Mexican soda pop I’ve seen sold in a lot of places. My friend got pineapple and I got tamarind. I don’t know if Jarritos makes diet, but I didn’t see any. There’s also beer, and American soft drinks.

The food came, partly on plastic plates, partly on china. Cutlery was likewise eclectic, but there’s a good stack of paper napkins. My carne asada was tender, full of lean beef, with a light but potently spicy sauce. Yellow rice and green peas helped absorb the heat. My tamale was the best kind, rich and earthy, served without sauce or melted cheese, a hand held item that tasted good dipped in the asada sauce.

My friend also got a tamale, and faced a daunting plate covered with meat, peppers, and cheese. She ate most of it, and we shared a foil-wrapped stack of soft tortillas, into which I stuffed the meat.

Other menu items included enchiladas, a combination plate, quesadillas, shrimp diabla, burritos, and steak, chicken, and pork tacos. Another friend came in for tamales before we left, and was told the kitchen had only chicken left. Specials vary daily, possibly hourly; so multiple visits are in order if you want to sample the cook’s full repertoire of dishes. I saw no desserts, but that may also vary.

On an intentional trip to the bathroom —another diner had already loaned us a bottle opener — I peeked into the kitchen. It looked like a one-man operation, and that man was working up a storm. I can only imagine how much food Destin Taqueria cooks and serves in a day. I hope the cook took a Jarritos break at some point. He, and the wait staff, certainly deserved it.

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