Habaneros Mexican Food, tucked on the corner of the Shell gas station off Orange Avenue, is evidently on fire, but perhaps also boiling under pressure.
On a Wednesday night at 6 p.m., 19-year-old Landon Sako bounced from the kitchen to the counter, taking orders in person and over the phone, checking in with the staff and directing the evening rush.
A member of the Bahri family, which owns the business, Sako seemed overwhelmed, taking several large online orders and facing a line of customers that spilled outside onto the patio.
“I’m sorry, but the wait time is going to be about 25 minutes,” Sako told those crowding around the counter and studying the extensive menu of street tacos, quesadillas, rolled tacos, breakfast burritos, nachos and nearly every other taqueria item one could think of.
Outside sat a group of young teens raving about the cheap tacos. Beside them, couples and families gathered around metal tables with mustard yellow, citrus orange and fire-engine red chairs. Their eyes gawked over the massive burritos and street tacos coming out of the kitchen.
Lured in by the unheard of price of $1.05 each for al pastor (shepherd-style) tacos, I ordered a selection of street tacos — one pollo asado, one al pastor, one carnitas and one carne asada. Apart from the al pastor, the other tacos cost about $4.95. A bit steep for a typical small street taco, but these were generously portioned.
After also ordering a drink I studied the selection of aguas frescas — jamaica, pineapple, cucumber-lime and horchata — I pressed my cup against the horchata spout, watching it fill with a silken white liquid.
Later, Sako told me that nearly everything is made in-house except the tortillas and desserts. The latter – packaged puddings, crème brûlée and rice pudding – are sourced from grocers.
My tacos arrived within 10 minutes despite the long line and dramatic warning about the wait time. The four tacos sat neatly in a plastic container with a juicy green lime on the side and guacamole, green cilantro and diced onions on top — a polished presentation. I tenderly unwrapped the carnitas taco from its paper lining as if it were a fragile baby. The first bite was packed with juices — tender, molten fat. No dryness here. The carnitas melted as if they were soaking in a slow cooker for hours.
Also, heat, heat, heat. Not the temperature kind, but the spice kind. My tongue couldn’t differentiate whether it was the signature creamy salsa verde, named “Crown Landing,” or the pork itself, but the spice sparked a fire across my tongue. I grabbed the horchata to soften the buzz and cooed with relief. It tasted like liquid rice pudding, with notes of vanilla and cinnamon in every sip.
A similar theme carried into the next taco — the carne asada. A juicy, deeply smoky burst of flavor paired with cilantro, diced, fresh onions and an array of red and green salsas.
There is a distinction worth drawing between simplicity and complexity. A gas station taco shop can produce some of the most intricate combinations of citrus, spice and salt, but restraint and balance matter too. When not done right, it’s obvious — too salty, under-marinated or undercooked. But the savory, tangy pollo asado was neither overcooked nor undercooked. Instead, it tasted marinated long enough to produce layers of spice, citrus and smokiness. Somebody knew what they were doing.
My only disappointment came when I tried the $1.05 al pastor taco. It was overly rich with rendered oil and lacked substantial pieces of meat. Combined with the pork not tasting particularly fresh, I found myself remembering that I loved the dried achiote flavor and texture that defines a good al pastor. This one, dominated by oil, paled in comparison to others. Still, for $1.05, it was hard to complain.
Either way, the buzz and popularity of this taco shop, which opened just six months ago, felt right. What started as a gas station’s side business has become a taco shop with high standards. It may be simple, but it holds its own fire.
