I joined Haley and Sara for a Warehouse Sale in Dallas’ Design District last Friday, and at Sara’s suggestion, we decided first to visit Velvet Taco off Knox/Henderson for dinner, since no girl should shop on an empty stomach. Haley and I had never been, so we were especially excited because we’d both heard great things. Also, who doesn’t love tacos?
The first (and best) thing I noticed about Velvet Taco was the variety. As I poured over the huge menu on the wall, I saw as many as 20 different types of tacos. There were a ton of ethnic cuisines represented on the menu, spanning a huge breadth of flavors from classic Indian and Mediterranean fare to Thai curries. They had every kind of meat you could want, as well as seafood and vegetarian options for the non-meat eaters or fish taco lovers.
Haley and I both opted for the Rotisserie chicken taco with herbed goat cheese, lettuce, tomato, smoked bacon, avocado, and basil crema in a corn tortilla. We also ordered a side of Rotisserie corn, "elote-style", which was piled high with queso fresco, asadero, Valentina, crema, and lime. The taco had the right balance of chicken to goat cheese and bacon, both of which are flavors that can overtake a dish if it’s too heavy handed. The corn tortilla was just slightly crispy, which made for a nice bit of texture alongside the basil crema and avocado. The elote-style corn was especially delicious, creamy yet crunchy with a dash of acidity from the lime.
Sara ordered two tacos, both in lettuce wraps instead of corn tortillas: the Ahi poke with ginger-soy vinaigrette, avocado, golden beets, pickled fresnos, sesame seeds, and pea tendrils, and a Roast Pulled Pork with Thai basil, grilled pineapple-habanero salsa, and a spiked BBQ sauce. I snagged a bite of the Pulled Pork taco and it was delicious, though extremely spicy due to the habanero salsa.
We all ordered frozen margaritas, which were nice and strong and pretty inexpensive at only $5.00 a pop. The tacos range in price from $4.00 to $7.00, so you can get a couple of tacos and a margarita for around $14.00. Well worth it considering the quality of the food and the overall pleasant atmosphere.
Velvet Taco is a casual dining experience with an “order at the counter” system. If it’s crowded like it was on Friday night, you may have to wait a few minutes to order, but the line moves quickly and the cashier and food runners are pretty on top of their game. The only drawback is finding seating. On a crowded evening, you may end up standing awkwardly in a pretty small space waiting to pounce on empty seats like a cougar on the prowl, but it’s not such an inconvenience that it should be a deterrent from going. Velvet Taco is definitely worth a trip if you like creative takes on the classic Mexican dish.
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