José R. Ralat

Texas

Taco editor, @TexasMonthly. Author, American Tacos. 2x James Beard Award winner. Taco Chronicles 3. Panzón. Highly opinionated. Opinions mine. RT≠endorsements.

Articles

10 Essential Texas Experiences

1 month ago | cowboysindians.com | Ellise Pierce |José R. Ralat

Texas is Big Bend’s marvelous night sky, Caprock Canyons’ awesome isolation, Gruene Hall’s joyous revelry in music. It’s the celluloid cowboys and Indians who characterized the state’s past and contemporary films’ oil men, down-and-out singers, and quirky criminals. It’s a comfortable pair of boots, a brain-freezing margarita, a steak so big it’s free if you can finish it, a lazy river float with a cooler full of cold ones.
This “Taco Passport” Turns the Concept of Proof of Citizenship On Its Head

2 months ago | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

As deportations and ICE raids frighten Latino immigrant communities, the co-owner of Austin’s Vaquero Taquero is pushing back in a creative way. “Latino immigrants, whatever their status, are the backbone of the service industry,” says Miguel Cobos. So he wants lovers of Mexican food to put their money where their mouths are by participating in his “Estamos Unidos Americanos” Taco Passport project.
Here’s How the Taco Industry Is Poised to Change in 2025

2 months ago | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

My fellow Texans and taco lovers around the world: Since my tenure as the first taco editor in the country began, in 2019, the state of the taco has only been strengthened, and nowhere more than here in the Lone Star State. That standing has as much to do with you, the diners, as it does with the hardworking folks who do the cooking, serving, and cleaning. I think a lot about tacos, but it doesn’t stop at the food—I think just as much about the people behind the tacos.
Nothing Says “I Love You” Like a Heart-Shaped Box of Tacos

2 months ago | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

The first time I saw tacos nestled in a heart-shaped box was in 2020 on the Netflix series Gentefied. The show focuses on one Mexican American family’s struggles to save their taqueria while their Los Angeles neighborhood, Boyle Heights, undergoes “gentefication”—a Spanglish twist on gentrification driven by the return of grown Latino children resettling at home. Character Ana Morales offers tacos instead of the more traditional bouquet of flowers as a romantic mea culpa.
Why Yes, You Can Put Peas in Guacamole

2 months ago | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

If you think guacamole should consist only of mashed avocado, lime juice, and pico de gallo, I ask you to reconsider. Despite what some purists say, the ingredients for the vibrantly green condiment vary regionally throughout Mexico, and what counts as traditional is wide-ranging.
A Few Months Ago, She Had Never Made a Taco. Now She Has a Thriving Asian-Inspired Taqueria.

Jan 22, 2025 | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

In March 2024, Aree Thao, the owner of a Milwaukee accounting firm, was restless and wanted to leave her home state. It didn’t matter where she ended up. Thao—four foot ten, with long, jet-black hair—felt stuck. She sent out lease applications for apartments in Arizona, Montana, Utah, and Texas (specifically El Paso). The last was where one of her applications was first approved.
This Taco Truck’s “Bloody Potatoes” Are a Sweet Addition to New Tejano Cuisine

Jan 14, 2025 | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

Some of the best inventions were accidental. Consider Popsicles. In 1905, in Oakland, California, eleven-year-old Frank Epperson absent-mindedly left a powdered soda mixture with a stirrer in a glass outside during a freezing night. The next morning he found what would be the first Popsicle. Closer to Texas, nachos were a rush job by Victory Club maître d’hôtel Ignacio Anaya—in 1940 he had last-minute customers at the Piedras Negras, Mexico, restaurant where he worked.
This Canned Agua Fresca Company Has Entered the Sparkling-Beverage Wars

Jan 7, 2025 | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

Victor Guardiola remembers the aguas frescas his mother made when he was a child, particularly the horchata and pineapple varieties. The 26-year-old, who was born in Monterrey, Mexico, moved with his family to Texas when he was two and subsequently traveled frequently between the two countries. This binational existence gave him a strong connection to his roots, and especially to Mexican food and drink.
Taqueria El Arquito's New Location Proves Tacos Are For Everyone

Dec 17, 2024 | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

Nancy Reza smiles a lot, even when talking about the family rift that created Taqueria El Arquito. Her large family is best known for owning 23 locations of Taqueria Taxco (established 2009) across Dallas–Fort Worth. In 2020, though, Reza, several siblings, their parents, and other relatives broke from the family’s chain to open their own operation.
A Dallas Taqueria Settles Into Life After Viral Fame

Nov 14, 2024 | texasmonthly.com | José R. Ralat

In 2017, Gustavo De Los Rios had a brush with death. The Monterrey, Mexico, native had recently spent close to twenty years working in the hospitality industry, doing everything from being a partner in a restaurant near Mesquite to DJing and booking music acts. Unfortunately, the money De Los Rios made from his various jobs hadn’t been sufficient to support his family. When his wife had become pregnant with their daughter and couldn’t work, the family began falling behind on the bills.