Tucson is quite the hotspot for taco trucks, shops, and stops. So we included a handful — 15 to be exact — of the best crunchy, soft, deep-fried, reimagined, fresh, and fantastic tacos this side of the border. Check out our much larger tacos guide for more tasty options.
This Guide is part of a series that honors Tucson as the home of America’s Best Mexican Food.
The signature Taco Yaqui has roasted green chile, mesquite-grilled carne asada, mushrooms, stringy white cheese, and even bacon crumbles, all spread atop two flour tortillas.
With birria in the names, they naturally shine with their braised stews and soups. Gravitate towards the birria and cabeza, but don’t sleep on their carne asada.
Pork is prince here. While it is a humble taco shop, if you arrive early Sunday morning, be prepared to wait in a long line of regulars dressed in their Sunday best. Order the classic carnitas. For a gelatinous combination of textures from different cuts, order the mixto.
While their base shrimp and fish tacos are more than good enough, you can indulge with the Taco Quesadilla stuffed with fish, shrimp, or both. Just be aware they close in the late afternoon.
While Tucson prides itself as a Sonoran town, El Antojo Poblano brings flavors from the Mexican state of Puebla. Rarer options include the spicy pollo en chiltepín and beefy suadero.
Try not to get carried away with $1 cabeza tacos on fresh handmade tortillas. For a little more funk, get the goat birria.
It’s hard not to appreciate Chef Juan Almanza’s journey from his early cooking days in Mexico to making waves in Tucson. His slow-cooked beef ribs and the quesabirria tacos are out-of-this-world good. It’s no wonder they’re cranking out over 100,000 of them a year. Plus, the menu hosts a variety of vegetarian and keto options and fantastic crispy flour tortillas.
The Tarascan tacos, inspired from the indigenous Tarascan community in Michoacán, feature a layer of corn masa sealed around a filling of choice and pan-fried. The Indian taco features fry bread topped with beans, red chile beef, cabbage, and cheese.
The food truck “Carnitas El Michoacano” officially completed its transition into its first brick-and-mortar location — rebranding to Las Originales Carnitas El Michoacano. With tacos and an array of salsas, the familiar and beloved menu is all there with the addition of an air-conditioned dining room. The menu has remained simple: tacos de carnitas, tacos de chicharron, tacos de birria, and tacos de cabeza.
Imagine getting a mighty whiff of delicious quesabirria while cruising around Fourth Avenue, or perhaps being greeted by the heavenly aromatics of Sonoran tacos while attempting to parallel park your vehicle.
The dynamic duo of Patricia and Ron Schwabe brought this concept to life in 2013, serving up traditional Mexico City-inspired cuisine with a dash of Spanish and French influences. Make sure to try the rajas y papas (queso, chipotle crema, avocado crema, green onion) or the guajolote (turkey, red cabbage, and chipotle crema).
Despite being on the eastside, their mesquite-grilled carne asada holds its own against Tucson’s best. Chopped into small dice, find the tender bites in the name sake or on tacos. Also order a rib-eye taco and al pastor taco. Make sure to take advantage of their salsa bar — grab some of their salsa seca (chili oil) for the beef and some pineapple chiltepín salsa for the al pastor.
Rollies is the spot for Rolled Tacos, Birria Ramen, and outstanding Birria Tacos. Chef-owner Mateo Otero has put his own spin on Tucson’s classic Mexican flavors. Their birria is slow-cooked for 14 hours until it’s so tender that it falls apart.
Their mesquite-grilled beef and costillas have a magnetic hold on even fancy pants chefs like Janos Wilder. Sleeper hit: the taco chino, which features beans in a lightly fried flour tortilla.
This south side taco truck naturally specializes in cabeza tacos. They even offer funky brain (referred to as sesos, definitely an acquired taste) and other offal such as eyeballs (ojos), lips (labios), and even roof of mouth (paladar).
A staple in South Tucson for over three decades thanks to its freshness and authenticity, the Baja-style fish tacos, fried shrimp, and cabeza tacos are crowd favorites. The real stars of the show, though, are the hand-pressed, thick and sturdy yellow corn tortillas with a delightful corn aroma. The horchata, made fresh daily, and their eponymous spiced fruit salad, Pico de Gallo, ought to be enjoyed, as well.
With the blackboard menu changing often, find specials ranging from mahi mahi tacos to vegan Cuban tacos. Its westside location makes it a convenient destination after a Tumamoc Hill hike.
