Tacoomar Makes the Finest New Burritos in NYC

Earlier this yr, a brand new taqueria appeared in a slender storefront in Windsor Terrace. From the surface, Tacoomar offers no indication that it’s among the many rising variety of nice Mexican spots popping up across the metropolis — Taqueria Ramírez, For All Issues Good, Sobre Masa — however I not too long ago realized that I had been overlooking this hidden gem after ordering the ridiculously easy beef burrito.

burrito is, in and of itself, an ideal meal: warming rice and beans sit alongside vivid salsa and wealthy guacamole. When it’s made with care, and within the correct proportions, there may be nothing higher.

Tacoomar’s beef burritos begin with skirt steak, which is braised in well-seasoned jus for 5 or 6 hours till its pure taste is concentrated and the meat pulls proper aside. Pinto beans are tender and scattered alongside white rice for bulk and absorption, with — and that is crucial half — an equal quantity of chopped tomato, onion, and jalapeño, pico de gallo that’s chopped to order. Subsequent: lettuce, bitter cream, and guac are distributed throughout the cylinder, ensuring there’s a little bit in each chunk of the mushy flour tortilla. It might be one of the simplest ways to spend $15 on lunch and certain dinner, too.

Considerably surprisingly, Tacoomar’s proprietor, Omer Gormus, is from neither the Baja peninsula nor Northern California. As a substitute, he was born in Turkey, and that is his first time cooking Mexican meals professionally after a two-decade profession spent cooking largely Italian and Mediterranean meals within the metropolis’s eating places. He now lives in Windsor Terrace and says that he “noticed the neighborhood wanted a taco store.” As a substitute of ready for another person to come back to the identical conclusion, he determined to open it himself.

He didn’t develop up consuming birria or al pastor tacos, however he retains his menu easy and focuses on freshness, evident in even little touches like his salsa verde. His recipe — Kermit inexperienced in shade — favors jalapeño and garlic, with out the mellowing affect of tomatillo. There’s a sharp and lingering warmth and a brightness that pops in opposition to the nice and cozy, mushy steak.