Best dam tacos: Portable Mexican staple popular at local eateries

Tacos are one of the great things in life, and we here at the Boulder City Review are some of the many people who enjoy them.

To help spread that joy, we looked around town to find the best places to eat them. In no particular order, here they are.

BC Dam Tacos, 709 Canyon Road

BC Dam Tacos is a family-run food trailer with a menu full of tacos including chicken, beef, pork and avocado. It also has daily specials with $1 chicken tacos on Tuesdays and $1 pork tacos on Thursdays.

Its street tacos are made with corn tortillas and filled with slow-cooked meat. The chicken is cooked with spices, tomatoes, and onions, and the pork is cooked with spices and onions. On top of the meat is a mixture of chopped onions and cilantro. The tacos are served with a lime slice to allow fresh juice to be added.

Customers can also add a spicy red salsa and a milder green salsa.

The food trailers also offers Gringo Tacos, served with ground beef, lettuce and cheese.

Owner Rolando Medrano celebrated the business’s anniversary in November and said BC Dam Tacos has brought a lot of people to that area of town, including new customers every day.

“The neighbors are great here,” he said.

BC Dam Tacos is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday and offers breakfast tacos and burritos from 8-10 a.m. There is also a vegan and a vegetarian menu on request.

The Tap, 704 Nevada Way

The Tap has tacos on its menu and a special Taco Tuesday menu highlighting carne asada, fried pollock, fried avocado, carnitas, chicken and pork belly.

The fried avocado taco is a street taco with cilantro lime aioli, shredded lettuce, red onion, Tapatío ranch dressing and cilantro served on top of a piece of fried and breaded avocado. The pork belly street taco is an Asian fusion creation with sliced braised pork belly, sweet Asian sauce and green onions.

Each taco is $3 and pairs nicely with the available beers and margaritas.

Owner Grant Turner said he started the special about a year ago because “who doesn’t love a taco?”

The Tap is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and from 7 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.

Maxx’s Food &Drink at Oasis Boutique Motel, 708 Nevada Way

Maxx’s offers a Taco Tuesday special that offers customers chicken, beef or pork street tacos for $1 each. Each taco is filled with meat and topped with a fresh cilantro and onion compote. Customers can get lime slices to squeeze on top of the tacos.

Manager Ryan Finnegan said he started the special to draw business into Maxx’s on Tuesdays.

Maxx’s also has a full menu and bar and entertainment and karaoke.

Southwest Diner, 761 Nevada Way

Homecooked items, including three kinds of tacos, highlight the menu at Southwest Diner.

“It’s our Mexican chicken and our Mexican beef,” owner Cindy Ford said. “We also have fish tacos, and we have hard and soft shell.”

The meat is slow-cooked and not marinated. The Mexican beef is cooked in a red sauce, and the fish is deep-fried cod. Beef tacos are available with fajita meat.

The tacos come in twos and are served with lettuce and shredded cheese. They are available as a combo meal with rice and refried beans topped with melted cheese for $12.50. Tomato salsa is available on the side. Ford said tacos can be bought a la carte.

Southwest Diner is open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.

Fox Smokehouse BBQ, 1007 Elm St.

Fox Smokehouse offers chicken, pork or brisket tacos. They come in orders of two for $10.50, and customers can mix or match the type of meat. Lettuce, tomato, onions, cheese, jalapenos and sour cream are available upon request.

Brisket tacos are 50 cents more.

The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.

Roberto’s Taco Shop, 1645 Boulder City Parkway

Tacos, with a variety of burritos, quesadillas and other Mexican food, are staples on Roberto’s menu. Most come with salsa, lettuce and cheese. Guacamole can be added. The fish tacos come with tartar sauce.

Items can be bought individually or as part of a combo.

The restaurant is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Contact reporter Celia Shortt Goodyear at cgoodyear@bouldercityreview.com or at 702-586-9401. Follow her on Twitter @csgoodyear.