Chavita’s Foods

I was looking for a new taqueria the other day, hoping that one I’d spotted under construction would be open. It wasn’t, but as I crept around the corner I noticed Chavita’s: panaderia, taqueria, carneceria, tienda.
Normally, at panaderias I will sample the torta, since they make their bread… but I haven’t been hungry enough either time. So I got tacos the first time, and a sope the next.
Tacos. I got two chicken and two carnitas tacos. I got a new question: «white meat, dark meat, or mixed?» I requested one white, one mixed. Honestly, the chicken was moist, but a bit bland. The carnitas were delightful though. A mix of crispy and buttery tender pork over their homemade corn tortillas. They were delicious.
Trip two I got a sope. Pastor. It was good, quite good. I’ve had better, but the tortilla was a good texture, and there were ample veggies. Not too much meat. In case you haven’t had a sope, it’s like a tostada, but the tortilla is way better. It’s thicker, generally firm on the outsides but not crispy.
They have a red and a green salsa. The green is very mild, a nice light tang. The red tastes smoky, fairly like the adobo that chipotles are commonly packed in. Both are thick and go pretty well on the chips they serve.
The service is enthusiastic. Food comes out slow for a taqueria. They are friendly. The place is pretty hot inside… they need a fan (it’s requisite for taquerias anyways!) but there are tables outside.
Anyways, this is the best thing going right now near where I work… so give it a shot. With a bit of improvement, I think Chavita’s could move to 5 stars.

UPDATE: ⁰⁹⁄₁₀
This place no longer exists. There is still a restaurant there but it doesn’t even have the same name. If you drive way over here, then go to one of the taco trucks across the street. There are 3, and 2 are pretty good
:-)
There is a NEW (expanded) Chavitas at 12 050 Allen Ave!
UPDATE: ¹¹⁄₀₉
Changing my score from a 4 to a 2
New owners and that was not an improvement. I don’t know what happened to the couple who used to run the place but food has taken a hit. Most importantly, the handmade tortillas are gone. These come out of bag. The whole mom-​pop, homemade aspect that was so compelling before is gone.
I wish the new owners luck. One can only hope that it will improve. Ironically, I’ve found it busier with the new owners
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Wearing black on black? Like to see and be seen? This place is not for you. This is straight forward fresh Mexican food and bakery. It started out mostly as a bakery but the restaurant is rapidly growing (OK, so it went from 1 table to 5 in 6 months). The food is above average but what really makes this worth the trip is EVERY tortilla is handmade for you. Yes the tortillas are handmade to order and it makes all the difference! Salvador, the owner, is usually behind the counter and makes a mean espresso (or Americano), or you can get one of the more typical Mexican non-​alcoholic drinks.