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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now It’s no secret that Mexican eateries have boomed in Indy over the last 10 years. Whereas Acapulco Joe’s and El Sol
De Tala used to be about it when you craved a tortilla stuffed with anything, now there are intersections
with multiple Mexican options, from Chipotle to Adobo Grill and dozens of mom-and-pop joints.
With all those options, why add another to your
culinary rotation?
I’ll
make the case that Roscoe’s Tacos (642 S. Madison Ave., Greenwood) deserves a spot there because it knows what it wants
to do and does it well. This quick-serve eatery focuses on the quality of its core meals, offering them in customer-friendly
combinations at reasonable prices.
Don’t worry that many of the dishes are named after non-Mexican personalities. You don’t go to Roscoe’s
for a cultural experience. You go for good grub.
My guest and I started by sharing a half-order of Chicken Nachos ($5.39). It looked like the kind
of chips-and-cheese platter you’d get from a concession stand at a high-school sporting event—until
we hit the marinated shredded chicken. It didn’t quite redeem the platter, but it pointed toward a more
promising future for the meal.
That promise was met in my Super Sampler platter ($7.89), which featured a trio of tacos. The Chicken Paul Bunyan Taco encased
the same shredded chicken as the Nachos, but to a more unified effect. The Paul Bunyan Taco offered chili in addition to the
usual toppings. But the big winner was the Tesla Taco, with tender and juicy slow-cooked beef. Black
Beans and Rice and a fountain drink were included in the well-worth-it price.
We also sampled the Black Bean & Rice Burrito ($3.99), which was plenty satisfying even without
any meat. The sizeable tortilla held up well despite being stuffed with its namesake ingredients and
an ample representation of Roscoe’s version of "everything"—sour cream, cheese, lettuce,
tomatoes, black olives and onions.
Of course, your experience will largely depend on whether you match the right
sauce to your taste. The six squirt-bottled offerings here range from the extremely mild Cincinnati City
Slicker and Texas Brushfire to Tonsillectomy and its stronger cousin, Lava. Proceed with caution.
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First
in our month-long series of reviews of "possessive" restaurants.
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