Photo: The $1 tacos from Guera’s Tamales & Tacos, a drive-thru taco stand at 9002 Mansfield Road in Shreveport.
First of all, I should come right out and admit that making this blog post was just an excuse to use the (made-up) term “tacontroversy.” I could not resist.
However, for local taco fanatics, the $1 tacos at Guera’s Tamales & Tacos are genuinely likely to be pretty divisive. Guera’s is a drive-thru taco stand located at 9002 Mansfield Road – an address that has previously been called home by such awesome local restaurants as Greek Corner and Real BBQ. Their tacos are unlike any others I’ve eaten locally, for the following reasons:
1. They’re smaller than the average tacqueria-style taco. I believe they’re served on four-inch tortillas. Folded up, they can be eaten in two or three bites.
2. They combine elements of authentic, Mexican-style tacos (they’re served on steamed corn tortillas with cilantro, onion and wedges of lime) with one major “gringo” adaptation – the meat is covered in melted cheese.
3. They are $1.
There was time in my life, shortly after quality taquerias like Taqueria La Michoacana and Sin Fronteras #2 started popping up in Shreveport-Bossier, when I would have turned my nose up at any taco laden with cheese. I’ve always been told that, as a rule, good tacos don’t have cheese. The tasty little tacos at Guera’s seemed to defy that rule. When I opened the box, looking at my three tacos, I thought “Dang it, there’s cheese on these things.” When I closed the box, I thought “I should have ordered seven more of those tacos.”
I think we love tacos so much because they’re fun to devour, unwieldy little bundles packed with sizzling, spicy meat and fragrant garnishes. My pet theory regarding the tacos from Guera’s is that I’ve been waiting for a chance to say “I’d like eight tacos, please,” without feeling too guilty about it. While the cheese kind of threw me for a loop, I ended up a fan of these little guys. If you’re really adverse to the idea of cheese on an otherwise authentic taco, I suppose you could always ask them to cut it.
Gueras Tamales & Tacos is located at 9002 Mansfield Road in Shreveport. It is a drive-thru only restaurant, there is no seating. At the time of this writing, Gueras is open, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday and Saturday.
