Nuri Fusion Street Kitchen — Restaurant in McAllen

This was my first time eating from Nuri - I ordered the food to-go due to not wanting to eat inside (it's still a pandemic). I'm sorry to say that I did not enjoy the meal. I ordered the Bandito, the Q-Dilla with grilled chicken, a side of kimchi, and a J-Bomb.

When I was driving home from picking it up, I could smell a faint odor of bad fish. It was wet and rainy outside so I figured that I drove past something smelly. It was when I unpacked my food that I discovered the smell was coming from the small side of kimchi. I'm not sure if it is supposed to smell like that as it was my first time trying the food - but either way, I could not even bring myself to open the container due to the rotted fish smell. I ended up throwing it in the trash.

I kept unpacking and was genuinely excited about the rest of the meal. The Bandito was okay except the beef inside was way too spicy, I couldn't eat it all. But that could be a preference of mine, not so much on the cooks at Nuri. I only ate half and couldn't finish it from the spice.

The Q-Dilla, I had high hopes for due to it literally being a flour tortilla with melted cheese and some grilled chicken inside. However, I was still disappointed. The tortilla was on the hard side and the chicken tasted like it was cooked days before and was thrown into the microwave to reheat. The entire Q-Dilla was tasteless and rubbery.

I ordered the J-Bomb (which is just a jalapeno with cream cheese wrapped in bacon) was also disappointing. The bacon wrapped around it looked old and grey but it had dark grill burn marks on either side as if they were cooked previously and just heated up. The entire J-Bomb was also soggy/floppy and already had the cheese separating from the jalapeno. It did not appear or taste like it was freshly made or made to order.

I ended up throwing away the whole meal (about $30 worth of food) - all of it was less than half eaten due to the poor quality and overall bad taste and presentation. Then I had to take out my entire trash due to the overwhelmingly terrible smell of the kimchi. Even though it was unopened from the container and in the trash - the smell permeated throughout my small apartment and I couldn't stand the rotted fish...

6 years later Nuri has only improved on their ideas and the execution is something to be proud of. Post covid, I now order almost weekly on door dash and they are mindful of my notes and careful with packaging since it travels from McAllen to Edinburg.

They also absolutely added tako paks to the menu and I LOVE their take on the el pastor street style taco. Kim Chi fries are still top notch too.

I have seen the future and the future is Nuri. I had the kimchi fries that with each bite got better and better. I found them complex, yet simple. Elote in a cup has room for improvement... needs a little bite of salt but the spice and creaminess is there. Tried some of the drummlets? I believe... their take on chicken wings AMAZING. Crunchy and salty, sweet... spicy A+ Now for the tacos. I honestly would appreciate three small tacos over one average sized one, an “order” of tacos is more appealing. I had the divine swine which was out of the world! And the free bird... It was recommended by the cashier/waitress but honestly it was a safe pick, breaded chicken and some slaw. I’m an adventurous eater and at almost $5 for the taco I wished I had ordered something more risky. But it was delicious, breaded well and well balanced. All these eastern flavors with jarritos?! Such a well thought out concept... I literally cannot...

If you’re in North McAllen and looking for a place to eat, stop what you’re doing and just come here. I haven’t tried a whole lot of menu items, but the kimchi rice and Brussel sprouts are phenomenal. I ordered the rice with ribeye whereas my girlfriend got the Korean karnitas. I think the beef’s a lot better than the pork options here; might have to try the other proteins to be certain beef’s best. If you go off of cartoons or movies, Brussel sprouts might not be very appetizing. But if you go off Nuri’s fried brussels, they’re the best appetizer to start a meal with. They’re a (presumably) healthier alternative to fries or other appetizers on the menu. Since proteins are optional and there’s the choice of tofu, this place is great for vegetarians. Or if you’re like me, go with a vegetarian family member and ask them for their protein! 😋 Overall, I think this might be the best restaurant on the Trenton/10th area of McAllen in my opinion. Perfect for a casual hang out, quick meal, or even an affordable date...