The FIRST and ONLY Authentic Mexican Restaurant in Kharkiv, Ukraine...

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The craving for auethentic Mexican food has only increased over time due to the lack of quality service in Kharkiv.

3 Weeks ago the keen eyes of my friend noticed a sign board hanging on the top of the Opera Theatre of Kharkiv - "Taco Loco".

The entrance to this restaurant is through the back of the opera theatre that lead us to the stairs that climb up to the roof where we are welcomed by a beautiful fountain.

The path splits in two directions one leading to the sserving area of '"Taco Loco" and one to "LA Grill".
The restaurant is open from 3 P.M. and also hosts Mexican style parties at night.

I was given a tour of the restauarnt by the owner and head chef, Timothy.
This was indeed the first and only authentic Mexican restaurant in the city. Even the chef was flown in from Mexico who gave us a brief of the menu.

At first look the prices were considerably more affordable than any other restaurant in general. I had my eyes stuck on the Tacos, Nachos and sizzlers. The prices were too good to pass.
The chef of the day explained us what we could expect since I had no experience with Mexican cuisine.

The menu has a variety to offer from the popular tacos, nachos, burritos to Chimichangas, Mexican desserts and a wide range of Mexican coctails.

We decided to go with Taco Arrachera, Nachos, a Fajita Arrachera and a Pina Colada for myself.

I cannot get over the fact of how cheap and how brilliant the service is. Not to mention that the location and environemnt was just phenomenal.

The seating area is very spacious...I appreciate my privacy. It has a lot to enjoy and appreciate, from the Mexican decoration to the tiny details such as the Mexican football Jersey hanging on the top.

Most of the decoration is done by hand and the eintire restaurant was up and running with just four weeks of work put into it.

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The bar has a an appreciable number of seats and is taken care of very well. The barman was super entertaining for the short amount of time we had to wait for service.

All of the food was made fresh and on-order, which was a pleasant surprise. It did take longer than 15 minutes for service but the environment made it worth the wait.

Enter Nachos;

A small, freshly made, single-person serving size topped with guacomole, salsa and cheese.
I must say there isn't a better guacomole in the entire city...since there isn't guacomole at all! Unless you want to make it at home.
The nachos were just the right amount of crunchy and the salsa was the right amount of juicy and lumpy. 10/10 would recommend.

A few minutes later came the very appealing Fajita Arrachera;

Sizzling and smelling as brilliant as it could. The Fajita comes with a bowl of rice and kidney beans and bread and a tiny amount of guacamole.

The Fajita itself was both juicy and colorful, topped with parsley. The red and yellow peppers really acceneuated the entire dish.

I was awestruck by how tender the beef was and the spices weren't aggressive but smooth and liberating.

The beans were a bit salty for my taste but overall a perfect recommendation by the chef. At the price of 120 Hryvnias, it is a very tasty and filling meal.

Enter tacos;

Soft shell tacos with a slice of lemon and a small wooden bowl of salsa. The chef did mention that tacos are supposed to be just palm sized and soft shelled.
The ingredients were very familiar, but the collage of it made it an exceptional experience.
I tried one with squeezed lemona and salsa, one without. The one with lemon and salsa did taste better since it brought out the flavors more expressively.
The tacos are priced at a mere 40 Hryvnia which makes it a complete 'MUST' on my list.

The food really was exceptional and one of a kind. The type that most restaurants in Kharkiv fail to provide.

However, the food is not the only thing I look for in a restaurant. It is the aggregate experience.

The environment was stunning.

From the personal catering through waiters and chefs, to the tiny details spread through out. The touch of Mexican culture in the paint job on the tables to the murals on the walls, the Mexican music and the food. All added up to give me an experience I cannot overlook.

Taco Loco, has risen to the top of my favorite restaurant list because of all the boxes it checks out - the price range, the quality of food, the service and the environment.

The entire meal cost me not more than 500 Hyrvnia (+/-18 USD) and gets a 5 tacos out of 5 tacos rating from me.

Here is the man behind the scenes, Timothy. His hard work eanred him a permanent client.