Tacos Don Memo

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Jeff's Take:
One of the great advantages of city living is the concept of the food cart. A good food cart can offer a quick, convenient, cheap, and delicious meal, and the best food carts can even be deserving of a special trip. In Philadelphia, the best place to go searching for good food cart cuisine is West Philly’s University City neighborhood. Dozens of food cart vendors congregate there every day, offering a variety of options to the thousands of students in the area. How successful are the University City food carts? Just look at Greek Lady, which started out as a cart and now has a permanent storefront nearby. Thanks to a recommendation from my brother Erick, who lives in the area, I recently discovered a cart that could end up being just as successful—Tacos Don Memo, located at 38th and Sansom.

A trip to any food cart carries with it a range of possibilities in terms of quality. Some carts clearly haven’t been visited by the health inspector in quite awhile (if ever), and are either dirty in appearance or using ingredients that aren’t so fresh. At Tacos Don Memo, you can take comfort in the fact that all the food is freshly prepared in front of you. The chicken burrito I ordered was carefully assembled with fresh-sliced avocado, tomatoes, shredded lettuce, Mexican rice, beans, chicken, cheese, sour cream, and salsa verde. The rolled burrito is then grilled, which is a nice touch, helping the burrito maintain its shape and adding a nice crispy texture contrast to the softer inside. This almost ritualistic assembly may take a few minutes longer than the average food cart order, but it’s a mouth-watering wait.

The best part about the burritos at Tacos Don Memo is that the ingredients meld together perfectly. At a fast-food burrito chain like Qdoba or Chipotle, the flavors just don’t “marry” well—it often seems like the ingredients are just unhappily stuck in the same tortilla. A major reason for this difference is the rice. Tacos Don Memo uses real Mexican rice, and its mild tomato, onion, and garlic flavor brings the other tastes together well. Qdoba and Chipotle use white rice, which is much more bland, and is like a brick wall for flavors—it just doesn’t allow the other ingredients to mingle like they should. Finally, the meat at Tacos Don Memo is also much leaner than you’ll find at the chains. A good burrito shouldn’t be greasy, and Tacos Don Memo follows this maxim well. However, the chicken in my burrito, while tender and juicy, was a little too salty. The saltiness wasn’t overwhelming, but some other Mexican spices would have been a welcome substitute.

If you’re around the University City area, Tacos Don Memo is a great option for a fresh, authentic, tasty burrito. And at $6, it’s cheaper than the chains, too.





Tacos Don Memo
38th and Sansom Sts.
Philadelphia, PA 19104

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