Taqueria La Vaquita‎ — Restaurant in Durham

Taqueria La Vaquita, recommended to me by a friend and as someone who grew up in LA and went to school out in San Diego I had to give it a shot. I’ve craved tacos ever since moving out here and I would say this place was good but definitely not up to par to what I am used to.

Now the food isn’t terrible by any means. I got to try the al pastor, shrimp, carnitas, carne asada, lengua and the cabeza. By far my favorite was the cabeza. The chips and salsa were great!

Cabeza - crispy outside and fatty and tender inside. Carnitas - good, solid choice. Not dry. Carne asada- give that a go, it was like a steak chopped up, even had some sinew bits (I enjoyed that, some might not). Shrimp - had a nice bite, not over cooked, pricey. Al pastor - good, a bit dry and definitely not sliced from a spindle of meat (this is the chopped stuff) Lengua - stay away.. did not have its signature meaty and tender combo that a well done tongue should have

I do have to agree with some comments as others put out about their service. I have two main comments-

Wait time : waited 35 minutes for a burrito, 4 tacos, chips and salsa. Ran out of Al pastor for my burrito on a taco Tuesday.. and did not tell me until 18 minutes in. But I give an extra star because they replaced my meat with shrimp.

Aside from that I’d recommend checking in on your food at the 10 minute mark, then the 20 minute mark, etc. Of course you can order online, and maybe it’s Covid but I went during dinner time at 6pm, with 2 people ahead of me and waited 35 minutes total. So if you’re hungry get a drink, maybe ask for your chips first or you’ll get a little grumpy.

My initial review is a 3 because i would give the food a 4 and the service a 2. I would like to give this place a second shot though.

Update 4/11/2023 I finally came back to visit- some notable changes to the storefront is that there are now TVs for the menus. The food was also more expensive though I can understand that with the economy the way it is.

Ive come back to give the 4th star back because they were quick! But the feedback for the food above still stands; and some new ones below.

Chips and Guac - nothing special, though the guac seemed to lack some flavor, I had to add some salt, pepper, cilantro and onion (from my taco) and that made it better but it must’ve been mostly avocado. A bit expensive for what it is.

I tried the following this time and have an update only for the chicken taco.

Carne Asada - Still good, came with onions and cilantro Cabeza - tender, fatty; still recommend this as one of my favorites Pastor - good flavor, a bit of crisp; delicious Beans + Rice - they get the job done

Chicken - Don’t recommend this guy, I finished it since it was a $3 taco but the meat was a bit dry, not memorable or worth your time.

Mexican Coke - Classic, refreshing; I got to pop the cap myself and found on the wood support next to the picnic table, the bottle opener is a bit worn as it seemed to barely catch my bottle but I got it open!

*I did see Birria tacos and want to come back...

I hadn't been here in a long time and it's nice to see some things have changed and some things have remained the same. Taqueria La Vaquita is built into an old drive-through convenience store so it's got some charm to it and feels like eating at a food truck venue with expanded outdoor seating. Their prices are a little steep given what you get, but if you want to get that coin from the transplants you gotta charge a higher tier. The woman at the counter was a little brisk and didn't seem eager to answer questions about the menu. The person I was eating with was curious if they sold beer, which they dont but there is a latin american convenience store in close walking distance where you can buy a beer and brown bag it. I got the mexican street corn special, one of their summer staples. It was truly authentic, albeit incredibly tangy and very messy. Good, but intense. For my main entree I got the Burrito Texano (Grilled shrimp, steak & chicken on a bed of lettuce, tomatoes, rice, beans, sour cream, and cheese). The portion of this burrito was a good size and it was certainly packed with meat, but the meat itself was not very flavorful and sadly not a terribly high quality. The chicken and steak were pretty tough and the shrimp was rubbery. I split an order of the quac and chips with my dining companion. The chips were excellent and the quac was pretty good. Everything is served in incredibly basic bags. For the price it does feel like it should be a little more presentable than looking like it came out of a food truck. The diet coke I ordered was in a bottle, not a fountain drink. There's lots of outdoor seating, and no indoor seating. The parking situation can be a little messy but there's usually a spot in a larger dirt lot on the side. Overall it was a decent experience. Unfortunately it does feel like this place has lost a lot of its charm given the demographics trying to serve it now. It's still very authentic but it's not as affordable as it...

Possibly the best and most authentic Mexican food in the area, but you'll be eating outside in what is basically a parking lot. That's part of the charm really.

Tacos are small, but substantial. The taco plate with three tacos, rice, and beans ($9) usually fills me up no problem. Tortas are another favorite. A torta is a Mexican sandwich made with soft bread, Mexican style braised and shredded meat, and other toppings. They also invariably have some specials written on the whiteboard, some of which are the real deal dishes you usually can't find outside of Mexico and bordering states. Favorite meats are the lengua (tongue - it's good and an authentic taco filling) and barbacoa (better than the Chipotle version). Cabeza if they have it. Their guacamole is weird, and unorthodox in my mind. There is lettuce mixed in with the mashed avocado. The chips are also not fantastic, just okay.

You can order for take out by phone. But this is one factor that helps them lose a star. Often they don't communicate that well when you're ordering by phone and it's hard to tell when your food will be ready and when to arrive. For instance, sometimes they will say ready in ten minutes but when you arrive in ten minutes you end up waiting another ten.

Seating is just a few tables outside under a metal awning. They did recently add railings around the patio and a plastic greenhouse-like thing surrounding the patio to keep it warm and dry in late fall and winter. You're not coming here for the location or atmosphere, unless you're seeking out the atmosphere of street Mexican food. In that case, you've come to the right place because the food doesn't disappoint.

Oh, and there's a life-sized cow statue on top. So that's funny. Vaca is Spanish for cow. So la Vaquita is the diminutive form and means...