Tacowala — Restaurant in Somerville

Edited to add: I've been vegan for 13 years, I love trying new foods and I am obsessed with bold flavors. Look at my google profile, I am a "Local guide" and review restaurants all the time, mostly praising them to help them get new customers in our small vegan community. I am a huge small business supporter.

The initial response from this owner tried to switch the narrative and demonstrates that they allow rude, dismissive attitude towards interested customers. He stated that we insulted a minority owned establishment. This is totally not what happened. My friend is Filipino and so is my husband. My child is half minority. We own a minority business. That has literally nothing to do with the situation and the rude service you offer. Yourself and your employee out right insulting my "palate" in response to me stating I don't eat spicy food. Since when can't a chef make bold, flavorful dishes without extreme heat? I never said I didn't love flavor. I asked for mild spice and was told "No."

Being a vegan establishment, you'd think you'd be kinder to people in the vegan community trying to pick small, minority owned businesses for meals and special occasions. I would've tried the "mild" food if I wasn't made to feel stupid by him asking me "Do you eat normal food?". Maybe as a business owner, take some time to educate your employees on how to describe their food in more elaborate ways than "normal food". And educate them to be kind to interested customers that may as for accommodations. When people enjoy flavor, just not outright heat, there is no reason to belittle the customer for a difference in heat tolerance. There is no explainable reason me saying "no spicy food for me" triggered your employee to get so upset.

The attitude here was such a disappointment! Excited, I picked this unique place for my birthday dinner with my friend, and I'm happy we walked out after the guy behind the counter made me feel stupid for saying I didn't want spicy food.

Here's what happened: We walked inside to an empty restaurant at 6pm on a Friday night. (first red flag) We were hit in the face with a smog of weed coming from behind the counter/back area where they cook. Whatever, it is legal, but a little strange for a first impression inside of a restaurant. This is not my reason to leave a poor review.

The guy behind the counter says they have a new taco he recommended that he described as spicy. I said "ohhh not for me, I don't like spicy" he goes "everything here is spicy" so we go back and fourth questioning that there are no mild options. My friend asked if any tacos can be made or adjusted to be mild and he said "no, none of our food is mild, it's all spicy" I was so confused at how this was possible. So he looks at me and in a condescending tone he asked "what do you eat, do you eat "normal" food?" And I'm like "yeah.... normal mild food." So then he's like "oh okay, you can order this taco. It's mild"

My friend and I were so confused by his attitude and insults. He was so abrasive and triggered by asking for "mild heat" accommodations.

We then gave him back the menus politely saying "sorry, we are going to pass tonight, but thank you" as we were leaving he threw up his hand towards the door and said "go down the road to Surf & Turf and get yourself a grilled cheese!"

What kind of service is this!? This poor guy must have been having a bad night because there is no other reason for him responding this way.

As a new customer, this is how I get treated.... on my birthday!? Wow. No wonder there was NO ONE in there on a Friday night....

I reviewed this place on Yelp last week, after finally getting to try this Indian-Mexican fused vegetarian restaurant. Went again today with my family, after giving many local options in the area (although this was on the top) since my sister-in-law is vegetarian. Knowing that Friday night is Classic Car Night, we went on the early side, even although the restaurant is on the East end of Main St. We were greeted by the owner Amish, who is super friendly, engaging, an makes you feel at home. He explained the menu, asked my neice (who is 9) if she would like anything added to her choices & brought water for their dog. Not only are we huge Indian & Mexican cuisine lovers, we both like to cook certain dishes also. We are familiar with the flavor palates. The three adults chatted about the different combinations of their taco’s and quesadillas. We had guacamole, chips & salsa while we waited for our meals. The salsa had a nice kick to it (may be a little spicy for most kids) chips were made there. My neice had the bean & cheese taco Brother had two Mushroom Carnitas Tacos Sister n Law had Paneer al Pastor Taco &!Authentico Esquites (Mexican Street Corn) I had a Black Magic and a Papas de Tamarindo Taco

Everything was delicious! As Amish said, we serve these not to be easy to eat, the corn tortillas are full of ingredients, prepare to be messy! There are lots of napkins! We ate every bite! The little bit of salsa that was left, I even brought home, that’s how much I enjoyed it.

The place is decorated in bright colors, with fun murals and a flower wall that spells out Taco Love. It’s kept very clean. The food is served on silver trays with parchment paper for easy clean up at the back of the restaurant. They have both laminated & hands free scan menus.

The menu isn’t huge, but it has enough options so not to confuse you. They have vegan & gluten free options also. It’s definitely a different concept but it totally works. Can’t wait to go back again.

The only thing I’d say to improve on is maybe add a few more drink options. They have water, sparkling water, and Mexican Soda’s. Possibly add some juices or green & chai teas?

I will post the photos of the food we ate last week also! Definitely check out Tacowala you won’t be...

There were eight of us at Tacowala in Somerville, and they made it so easy for a big group to be accommodated. We all just ordered and paid at the counter, so we didn’t have to worry about splitting the checks.

Since I’m vegan, it was a little more difficult to accommodate because the tacos I would have liked that were less spicy had cheese on them. The chef accommodated me by adding more beans and rice in the taco, and it turned out really good.

I also tried the Black Magic tacos. These were a little spicy for me, but I could really taste the deep flavor. They were just too spicy for me to finish, so I gave them to my friends. My friends who love spice tried the Black Magic tacos and they loved them. In fact, they were their favorite thing on the menu. And they’re not even vegan.

I like how it’s a casual environment where you pick the table you want to sit at. You can combine tables if you need to, grab your forks and knives, get your drinks from the refrigerator, and then order at the counter.

This is a good spot for groups because the tables can easily be put together and you can pay at the counter. It’s a great place for people who love spice. If you don’t like spice, there are a couple things on the menu that aren’t spicy and are still delicious, so everyone can be accommodated, whether you love spice, don’t love spice, are vegan, gluten-free, vegetarian, or love to eat meat. The restaurant also provides hot sauce if you want your food even spicier, and my friends told me the hot sauce is really, really good. I also love that it was easy to make things vegan here since everything is already vegetarian. We all enjoyed it so much, and we’d like to...