Tin Star
Tin Star is the newest restaurant to come to San Antonio on the hopes that the “gourmet” taco will catch on. One of my friends had suggested that I check them out as he was possible that I wouldn’t be disappointed. He even promised that there were green chili so I really I decided to go give them a shot to see what they were all about.
When I walked into the restaurant, I was greeted by a lot of people who were very friendly. I even got to talk with the head guy (not sure if he was the owner or not) and he let me know that Tin Star is a regional franchise and that this was its second attempt at trying to relocated to San Antonio. I did ask him about the green chili and it turns out that they did not have any to pile on the tacos, but there were traces of it in their rice.
The restaurant itself has a cool feel with free wifi and is really clean. There were flat panel TVs playing the world cup and really had a nice open, clean feel to it.
As part of this gourmet taco experience, expect to pay higher than usual prices. For two tacos, a side of rice and black beans, my ticket was over $8 with tax (and this is with a water); obviously this is not the prices that a San Antonian is used to paying for two lunch tacos.
They do have some more exotic tacos, and for a full list, I would suggest that you click here to see what they are all about. I decided to try something unusual, since I was at a gourmet taco place after all, and go the pork tacos with honey chipotle BBQ and the fish tacos.
Before eating, you can dish up some chips and salsa (in the same vein as Mamma Margie’s) to take back to your table. I think that the salsa was pretty disappointing as it was sweet with really no spice to it. I don’t know how this salsa will last in this city.
Now, I will have to say that the tacos themselves were not terribly bad, but they didn’t live up to the $8/lunch plate expectations. I thought that the fish tacos were superior and really liked their chipotle sauce that they put on it. The pork taco had a good flavor on the meat, but the sauce really was too much and I didn’t really care for that sweet of a sauce on my taco (I know, I know, this is my own fault for getting the honey chipotle BBQ, I’ll accept that).
Would you pay $8 for two tacos in San Antonio at lunch?
The green chili rice was a little above average but the black beans were awful. Now, I love me some black beans (especially with a lot of spicy seasoning), but these were just way too salty for my taste. I couldn’t get through more than a couple of bites.
While the food isn’t terrible (with the exception of the black beans), I don’t think I will return because as an Average Joe I can’t warrant $8 for basically two tacos at lunch, gourmet or not.
Value: 5/10 ($8 for two tacos in the Alamo City at lunch doesn’t do it for me)
Atmosphere: 9/10 (Really nice atmosphere and is incredibly clean)
Service: 9/10 (Super friendly folks)
Salsa: 5/10 (Not spicy at all)
Taste: 7/10 (The fish tacos were good, pork was above average, but the black beans were awful)
Website: www.tinstar.us
