The Carrie C Feared No Tacos

Though you can’t see me in the photo, I’m there on the bottom left. The Carrie memorial tour is the only taco tour I’ve been on. The tacos were good everywhere, and the event was sad, yet also had the feeling of being a celebration of Carrie’s life. I did not get to know Carrie well, although we were Facebook friends and did play Farmville together. She had a very artistically designed virtual farm, actually.
At any rate, on this taco tour, I appreciated Mary Jo driving me around from place to place and back to the Market St. Station. I don’t drive to Denver or in Denver so I couldn’t have done it without Mary Jo!
Thanks also to Doug for putting the event together.
Here’s to the spirit of Carrie…

to all my carrie c. colorado peeps, merry christmas!!!

This was my first taco tour, but I’m sure it will not be my last. Thank you so much to Doug Y. for organizing this! I discovered taco places I would never make it to in my normal daily life. I ate some delicious tacos and will likely return to our second stop on the tour if I ever find myself in the area. The tacos, chips, and salsa bar were fantastic and dirt cheap!
While I did not have the fortune of getting to meet Carrie C., it was evident on this tour that she was loved and missed.

Saturday February 16^th 2013…
Thank you Doug Y for organizing this event. The event was indeed a Success, dedicated to our Late fellow Unilocaler named Carrie C. I knew Carrie C as a Unilocaler. Met her especially at one of the UYE Taco Tours and several times during Elite Unilocal Events. She was indeed a cheerful young lady and we shared several conversations when we met. The last I could recall was during one of the Elite Events @ Le Grand Bistro & Oyster Bar when Carrie C and Mark T were standing with me all the way throughout the Elite event.
All the Tacos eateries suggested by Doug Y, I hope Carrie had liked them all. From Tacos Junior (1^st Stop), Carnitas Estilo Michoacan (CEM) (2^nd Stop) and Gorditas Dona Lidia /​Tacos Y Salsas (3^rd Stop/​FINAL Stop). With fellow Unilocalers who had met Carrie personally, who enjoyed her presence, this was indeed a dedication tour for you, Carrie… With awesome conversations we shared about Tacos and Carrie, indeed put a smile on my face though I cant deny I shed a tear inside…
Carrie C, You are Definitely Missed but NOT Forgotten…
*HUGS*
@45/2013

We were on the first tour together. A tour that seemed to bond the group of us forever as we all hug when we see each other and share in each others happiness and sadness. This time, we shared in each others sadness over the loss of Carrie with something that made us all happy… a taco tour. I hope this made you smile Carrie.
As usual, I did not stray and ordered taco asada at the first two stops.
Taco Junior had my favorite tasting meat; I like the large clean interior and the menu presentation. I also liked the Mango juice drink that I had. What was missing was the salsa bar of Carnitas Estilo Michoacan. And at Carnitas Estillo Michoacan, I liked the abuella who came up to me and told me the green salsa was no mas caliente. So I took the green and then this tasty red sauce that I could only taste a drop at a time. It was here that we paid tribute to Carrie with a group photo. It was so good to see everyone again and I am looking forward to another tour and hug. And thank you Doug for organizing this special event.

Thank you Doug Y. for setting up this most awesome magical taco tour! What better food to do a tour of than tacos?! I had been getting frustrated with the taco scene here in Denver, but this showed me the light.
Taco Juniors was a good start to the day, with a very tasty al pastor taco. After you’re done you can head over to the market next door to grab some deals on things for your own Mexican food creation.
Carnitas Estilo Michoacan took home the gold with crazy cheap tacos ($ 1!) and an extensive salsa bar. Their carnitas were so flavorful and juicy. The barbacoa was alright too, though I’m going to have to try their al pastor next time. The whole menu looked super tasty. And who would have thought they’d have awesome chicken wings? But they do, and it’s a mountain of them loaded with neon orange sauce… as they should be.
Gorditas Dona Lidia was the last stop, and had a very good carne asada taco. But overall was probably my least favorite. Still good though, even with a vintage Fanta (I think it was from 1997… for real).
Great company, a food coma, and getting to know another part of Denver I probably would have never gone to on my own. What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon. It was a very nice gesture of Doug to honor Carrie C. with such a great event. Looking forward to the next adventure!

I didn’t know Carrie. But, this sounded like a very worthy event, and I am glad that I could be a small part of it. Having been on previous Taco Tours organized by Doug Y., I knew that this UYE would not disappoint. And indeed, it was very enjoyable.
Taco Stop Summaries:
–Tacos Junior was the first stop on our Taco Tour of 2÷16÷13. I had been here before. The tacos were good, but a salsa bar would be helpful.
–Carnitas Estilo Michoacan was the second stop on our Taco Tour of 2÷16÷13. The tacos were great, and the prices were amazing. The salsa bar was very good.
–Gorditas Dona Lidia was the third (and last) stop on our Taco Tour of 2÷16÷13. The tacos were large, meaty, and good. The salsa bar was just fine.
Doug, thank you for putting this together.

We weren’t close friends, best friends, or long time friends, but I think we were good friends. We seemed to bump into each other on FB or Unilocal at the oddest hours of the night and day and at the far too infrequent face to face visits. Anytime I did have interaction with Carrie it would always bring laughter and put a smile on my face… until she posted the picture from the hospital. Even then she was upbeat and made light of her condition. It was a mind blowing shock to hear she had passed. You’ll be missed girl.
I met Carrie because of tacos. I saw her review for a place near where I was lliving for years and was never brave enough to venture there. I tried it and loved it and that’s when the rapport began. The first event I met her at was on a ice cream tour. She was shy and softspoken in person but with a little prodding opened up and although she never said a lot, she was quick witted and at times hilarious. She could crack you up with a smile or a sneer.
«Geez get to the taco tour». Is probably what she would be saying so…
This edition of the taco tour took us further south along Federal then we’ve gone before. I wanted to try places I had never been to before in the spirit of Carrie’s fearless approach to finding the good shit. I drove all the way down to Hampden and looked for promising looking spots to try. The majority of the places seemed to start at Evans so I concentrated my looking around there. After trying some spots I think I found a few that were probably ideal for a good sized crew of taco eaters.
We started at Tacos Junior (3 to 3 ½ stars) which like it’s sister store in Aurora shares the space with a Mex supermarket, walked around the corner to Carnitas Estilo Michoacan (4 to 4 ½ stars) which is a deluxe small cafeteria style place that reminds me of places in Ensenada, and then drove down to Gorditas Dona Lidia (hmm when I tried it the first time it was 4 stars because the gorditas were griddled and not deep fried i’d say 3 for the deep fried gorditas) which is part of the Tacos y Salsas franchise married with a soup and gorditas joint.
It was a great time and we had both new and veteran tourers with us and I think we found some good food too! Thanks to all that could make it out.