In the food world, there are certain things that are just so dang awesome it becomes an unspoken truth that these foods just need to be offered everywhere. Thankfully, tacos have achieved this status in America, but there are times when 50 cent tacos at Taco Bell just won’t cut it. Simultaneously, it gets expensive to go out to a Mexican restaurant whenever you get a craving. Luckily for you, Clemson offers quite a bit of taco deals downtown. In fact, yours truly was willing to eat tacos for four days straight to give you the down low about who to give your hard-earned pesos. Now come on and vamanos, as we break down the best places for your next meal!
MONDAY DEAL:
Backstreets
Despite being slightly more out of the way compared to normal favorites like Tiger Town Tavern and TD’s, the additional story and patio that it offers, alongside a great selection of mixed pitchers and a relaxed atmosphere really makes it a nice place to hang out when the other bars start to get too crowded. However, that makes it a little disappointing that their taco deal was kind of lacking. While it makes sense that a dollar taco would be on the economical side, the lettuce was fairly cheap looking and the meat wasn’t anything to call home about either. The Bud Lite and Yuengling deal is a little subpar too, considering it’s offered more than once throughout the daily deals. However, the queso and chips are surprisingly great, and well worth the two dollars, and the tacos, while a little lacking, are decently filling, taking around two and a half for me to feel satisfied.
Verdict: He tenido mejor …
TUESDAY DEAL:
Loose Change
Although the venue is pretty small, the Tuesday deal at Loose is anything but. The tequila drink deal alone would be worth stopping by for, but the tacos themselves are where it is at. The meat was much higher quality than what I was expecting, and the additional toppings that come with it (cilantro, onions and jalapenos) offered a nice shake up from the traditional lettuce and cheese. The only problem? They are SUPER tiny. I ate around three and still felt like I could easily have another one or two without feeling bloated. In addition, sides of salsa and sour cream cost a little extra, but hey, for a dollar each taco, you at least won’t be spending too much!
Verdict: ¡Lo compraría por un dólar!
WEDNESDAY DEAL:
Monterrey’s
It would make sense for a Mexican restaurant to be on top of their taco game, so it wasn’t really surprising when Monterrey’s turned out to be pretty solid. Considering they had some beef and chicken ready to go, it took less than five minutes for the food to get out, which means that you won’t get glared at as much from your friends if you decide to order some more. Only sporting cheese and lettuce, Monterrey’s doesn’t go quite all out in terms of toppings, but being able to choose between beef and chicken or a hard and soft shell is certainly a perk. The only real negative is that there isn’t too much on the alcoholic side that you can save, especially considering the margaritas are only a dollar off from what they are normally.
Verdict: ¡Es la caña!
THURSDAY DEAL:
Kung Fu Cantina
Word to the wise, Kung Fu Cantina is no longer running their BOGO tacos this semester (despite still being advertised on their website), so beware deal savers! I unfortunately didn’t know about that until I already ordered a drink, so I decided to stay and test their normal taco deal, the Tres Tacos. While costing around three dollars per taco, Kung Fu does offer the most meat options out of the local joints, boasting steak, chicken, pork and cod, with no extra cost for jalapeños. The ever so popular pregame starter, the fishbowl, is already great on its own, and the fact that it’s only five dollars here is even better. However, while the drinks got out quick, it took thirty plus minutes for the tacos to get to my table, which, considering the empty restaurant at the time, was unacceptable. While bad service is certainly not indicative of an entire restaurant (the other employees were much more helpful to us than our designated waitress), the decent tacos weren’t enough to keep me coming back in the future.
Verdict: ¡Ay Caramba!