A Sonoran Style Taco in LondonBy Gabriela Mungarro
Post-pandemic plans? Try eating tacos...in LONDON!
Living in a diverse and metropolitan city like Los Angeles, you don’t have to travel too far to eat a great taco, but in case you are open to travel for food (post pandemic, of course!), go to London for authentic Sonoran tacos.
You might be thinking: “London for tacos?” YES!! Allow us to convince you as to why you should add this London Sonoran taquería to your foodie bucket list. Originally established as a Pollo Feliz stall in the Netil Market in Hackney, London, a popular community for arts, fashion and food, owners Michelle Salazar and Sam Napier launched London’s only northern Mexican food stand joining Salazar’s family franchise of grilled chicken restaurants that haven been family operated since the 1970s in Sinaloa and Sonora. Now, Salazar and Napier have shifted focus from grilled chicken to beef tacos during the peak of the pandemic and re-opened as Sonora Taquería after moving to a bigger space in the same market. Specializing in tortillas and beef plates, particularly tacos, Sonoran fare has taken East London by storm and made loyal patrons of new eaters.
“I get a bit nostalgic not being able to go home. So I’m trying to bring home here with the food I’m making,” said Salazar in a phone call.
Keeping her Sonoran roots very much alive and weaved into every aspect of her London business, Salazar’s goal was always centered around Sonoran food, from barbacoa to carne con chile, and of course, tortillas de harina. “We being Sonoran, incredibly beef centric, we currently sell barbacoa tacos-- kind of trying to recreate tacos del Chino in Hermosillo-- they’re super popular and that’s the barbacoa to eat. That’s what I’m trying to recreate here. I’m doing carne con chile, that’s the more traditional one, and a carne deshebrada con chile verde. I’m trying to introduce machaca, but it will come,” said Salazar, who will be making the machaca in house and serving it in the next few weeks at the taquería. Perfecting her grandma’s tortilla de harina recipe alone and 5,471 miles away from her home in Hermosillo, Salazar took to a Facebook video featuring a “lady from Obregon” to learn the step-by-step process of tortilla making. Fusing a traditional method with a modern approach, Salazar introduced her handmade wheat tortillas ( sold at £ 5) that range from using pork fat, goose fat, and vegan ingredients.
Being possibly the only northern Mexican restaurant, as well as one of the few Mexican owned restaurants in London, Sonora Taquería has faced its fair share of challenges while introducing Mexico's northern region’s cuisine.
“The Mexican food that is known here is definitely Southern-- it’s the most popular quantity. It’s been a challenge to make people understand that flour tortillas are also very traditionally Mexican and that they’re very different from the tortillas you can find in your supermarket. It’s kind of changing the concept of understanding what authentic Mexican food is and introducing the idea that northern food is its own culture,” said Salazar. Breaking the barriers of the typical ideals behind Mexican food, Sonora Taquería has allowed Londoners to first-hand experience quality tortillas de harina and also understand what northern Mexican food is all about. “People are very excited to learn more about regional stuff, so I think it’s worked so far,” said Salazar.
Although tortillas were at the forefront of their business since their Pollo Feliz days, currently, Sonora Taquería had to limit their packaged tortilla production due to increased demand of their tacos and have opted to only producing tortillas for their food, making an estimated 1,000 tortillas for service during the 3 days a week they are open.
For Salazar, Sonora Taquería has allowed her to find her true voice in the culinary world as she repositioned herself from her family’s franchise to creating her own space. “I’m never not going to be part of that business, but it sort of felt necessary for me to make that change and to have something that’s mine more than trying to recreate something that I did not come up with,” said Salazar. While the taquería offers everything from beef tacos to nopales, refried beans and quesadillas, Sonora Taquería is currently in the works of introducing another Mexican food staple: frijoles charros-- a perfect menu addition given the seasonal change. It’s safe to say that Sonoran cuisine has finally entered the arena after years of being an outcast and followed solely by Sonorans. Sonoran food is here to stay, and its takeover has only just begun. Sonora Taqueria London 13, 23 Westgate St, Hackney, London E8 3RL, United Kingdom www.sonorataqueria.com |
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