Kim Pierce from the Dallas Morning News says "If ever there was a restaurant that spoke Tex-Mex, it was El Taxco, a fixture at McKinney and St. Paul in downtown Dallas for 40 years.
El Taxco meant hot sauce with the emphasis on hot. Enchiladas with wonderful chili gravy. Nachos piled so high with cheese and sour cream and guacamole that the tortilla chips disappeared from view.
Even after financial difficulties in the 80s, the restaurant hung on three more years up the way on Harry Hines.
Opened in a matchbox space at Marsh and Forest Lane, Casa Navarro is run with no-nonsense earnestness by Blanca Navarro, widow of Joe Navarro, whose father founded El Taxco in 1947. Joe and Blanca ran the restaurant from 1974 to 1987. Beneath sepia blowups of photos from the Mexican revolution, Spanish and English mingle as easily as salsa and cilantro.
For El Taxco fans, it's almost like coming home, starting with the hot sauce and chips. But the warming complimentary bowl of bean soup is a new extra.
You forget that these old style nachos - both Joe's and Blanca's are on the menu - are a meal in themselves. An assorted half-order is an overwhelming plateful studded with great gobs of guacamole, Cheddar and sour cream with jalapenos on the side. Beneath this are various combinations of chicken, beans and beef. Also offered: fajita nachos - flour tortilla triangles folded around skirt steak and grilled peppers and onions.
There are several dozen lunch specials, but who could resist the nostalgia-Mex of El Taxco plate dinner with a fresh chewy corn tortilla rolled into a cheese enchilada smothered in chili gravy and a cheese taco draped with light-colored cheese sauce? The taco shell is fresh-fried, if greasy, and stuffed with beef, lettuce, tomato and cheese. And the refried beans have that deep, almost sour undertaste."
One of the best Tex-Mex places I've eaten. Chips and are fantastic, complimentary bean soup is delicious. I normally order the Bryan's burrito--it's HUGE and I have it covered in queso instead of the red sauce...just because I'm spoiled. I shouldn't eat it all, but can never resist... It's been around for 20 years or so...so you know it's good. It's just basic fare, but basic fare done right beats over-priced gourmet food any day...
Great hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant. The menu's extensive, the staff is incredibly friedly and the food is delicious. If you go before 7 on a weeknight, the maragaritas are only $3.25!! The staff truly treats you like family here. If you're craving a good, greasy plate of Mexican food, this is your place. The shrimp fajitas are killer - huge, juicy shrimp, fresh tortiallas and spicy salsa. Nums. Be sure to try the flautas; it's the specialty! Oh, and finish your meal off with a sopapilla. UHMAZING.