Breakfast tacos are, blissfully, exactly what they sound like: Breakfast ingredients, like eggs, potatoes, refried beans, and/or sausage, are piled into a tortilla, which in Austin is usually made of flour, and served with various hot sauces for about $4 a pop. This delicious no-brainer of a combination—a marriage of Mexican and American fast-food tendencies—is hugely popular in Texas, particularly in Austin, San Antonio, and Houston. You’ll never look at breakfast the same way again.
Good to know: Tacos of all stripes are everywhere in Austin, so it’s only natural that a few good taco-centric websites have popped up to help you navigate the landscape. Taco Journalism is a good place to start.
Where: We liked the foil-wrapped breakfast tacos at no-frills Porfirio’s (512-476-5030; 1512 Holly St., map) in East Austin; alas, we’ve since learned this place has closed. Please see our alternatives for more good breakfast taco options.
Order: Pictured is the potato-egg-bean taco, encased in a soft, fresh-tasting flour tortilla and enhanced by the very spicy, jalapeño-based green sauce, which is made in-house. Beans are refried, of course, and corn tortillas are available by request. We also loved the potato-egg-bacon taco here. But it’s a personal choice: We’ve heard good things about the bean-cheese, the egg-chorizo, the potato-bacon taco. As for lunch tacos, the carne guisada is rumored to be best.
Alternatively: Equally frill-less Tamale House No. 3 (512-453-9842; 5003 Airport Blvd., map), home of wonderful migas, also does great breakfast tacos—we loved the generously piled potato-bean variety—with awesome hot sauce at what’s likely the cheapest price in town: 85 cents a pop. Fancier are those at popular Tacodeli (multiple locations including 1500 Spyglass Dr., map), where we liked the Jess Special (scrambled eggs with migas mix, Monterrey Jack cheese, sliced avocado) and the deceptively simple potato-bean taco, made with “Mexican mashed potato,” a kind of soft, tasty potato puree. Tacodeli also has a nice variety of salsas on offer, including the creamy, spicy “doña” and a fiery habanero. There are so many breakfast tacos out there—why not make it your mission to find your very own favorite?
