Where: El Rey Taqueria, 3330 Ella Blvd., 713-263-0659. Check out their website for all four locations.
What $7 gets you: A plateful of tacos, rice and beans, a.k.a. the 3 Amigo Plate for $6.99. I cheated a little and forgot to take the taxes into account, but if you dig around your dashboard, you'll probably find a quarter or two to get by. If you want any of their seafood tacos, add a measly 25 cents extra.
My favorite of the three tacos was the Cuban. Chock full of chicken (or if you choose, beef), black beans and the starchy, sweet fried plantains, it's pulled together with a smear of rich sour cream. The sweetness of the plantains enhances the savory chicken, the earthy beans and the sour cream binds the addictive flavors harmoniously.
Second favorite (and close runner up), was the Ropa Vieja. A healthy portion of their slowly braised, shredded beef in a savory tomato sauce acts as the base, with a topping of shredded red cabbage, tomatoes and a cooling cilantro cream sauce. Other than having half of the taco tumble onto the plate (nothing that a little forking couldn't remedy), it's a Cuban/Mexican masterpiece.
Third, and finally, the rotisserie chicken taco was mediocre comparatively, although juicy and not skimpy on the shredded chicken. Enhancing it with their green salsa and lots of lime brought it up to par, and once again, my taste buds were content.
Rice and beans are average, but after savoring the tacos, you probably won't even notice.
Recommended: Can I get an amen? However, indecisive wafflers need to prepare before taking the taco plunge. Your head will spin trying to narrow your decision to three tacos from their creative mix of traditional and nontraditional tortilla wrapped goodies. Then, contemplate the beef/chicken question, with a few of the selections. Finally, if you're not too flabbergasted, choose corn, flour or whole wheat tortillas. You can even switch your charro beans to refrieds if you think to ask--which I would recommend.
Bonus point: Lots of desserts and coffee choices for your after-taco nirvana.
