By Denise Ortuno
Nothing can compare to cozying up to our favorite comfort food when we’re in need a of a big food hug. One place that offers big Mexican themed food hugs is Taqueria Tlaquepaque in Palm Springs, ready to nourish your body and nurture your soul.
I was leaving the doctor’s office the other day after having a small procedure (nothing serious), and found myself feeling a little needy, a little down, and very hungry. I wanted something that would not only fill up my belly, but also make me feel warm and fuzzy…like a food hug. To fulfill my need, I took inventory of what was available in the part of town that I was in, and realized that in Palm Springs, there was a place that would make it happen.
It was as if the car knew what I wanted as I drove effortlessly to Taqueria Tlaquepaque for my favorite Bean and Cheese Burrito. It was the perfect elixir to quell my neediness and fill me up completely. I had discovered the popular Mexican eatery 15 years ago when I was living in the Warm Sands area of Palm Springs, when the restaurant was at their former location on Sunny Dunes, long before they moved to larger location on Palm Canyon. I would often go there as it was in walking distance from my cute little bungalow. At first I explored their menu a bit before I landed on the item that would bring me back like some sort of addict. Everything I ordered was ultra-delicious, from their Carne Asada Nachos, to their El Pastor everything, I was hooked. But when I had one of their simplest dishes, the Bean and Cheese Burrito, they immediately had a loyal customer.
It has to be the beans that make the burrito so good. Or is it the cheese, or the soft tortilla? The truth is, is that it’s a concerted effort by all of the ingredients that make this burrito something I run to when I need a food hug. The beans are old school Mexican crack beans, slow cooked, smoky and velvety with that habit forming flavor I can’t get enough of. It’s a big bean and cheese pillow of goodness. The Monterey cheese embraces the beans as it melts, creating little globs of perfectly oozy satisfaction. As I usually get the burrito to go, the cheese gets even better as it continues to dissolve into the burrito cradle, aided by its foil cocoon. Red or green salsa is offered as an accompaniment to the burrito, and although they are both refreshing and savory, I tend to lean on the red variety. It all adds up to me being wrapped up in a blanket of burrito love, and receiving a gratifying food hug.
Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, the long standing restaurant has many more traditional Mexican dishes that are sure to inspire a cozy comfort food feeling. Dishes include, Chilaquiles (with their special sauce, with rice and beans), Machaca Con Huevos (shredded beef, onions, green peppers, eggs, with rice and beans and tortillas), Queso Fundido ( melted cheese with chorizo, served with tortillas), Chimichanga (stuffed burrito with choice of meat, rice, beans, cheese, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, deep fried and topped with sour cream and guacamole) a variety of Taco’s (Pastor, Carnitas, Chicken, Birria, Barbacoa, Chorizo, Lengua and many more), and even the savory Menudo on Saturday’s and Sunday’s, and the list goes on.
We all have that special restaurant that is there to embrace us with our favorite comfort food, to make us feel that everything is going to be alright. For me, one of them is Taqueria Tlaquepaque in Palm Springs, with their Bean and Cheese Burrito. If you’re in need of finding some Mexican comfort food of your own, I highly suggest them, and hope that you enjoy their food hug.
Taqueria Tlaquepaque is located at 362 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs 92264
