Restaurant Review: La Playa Taqueria- In Search of Fish Tacos

Every summer, the school load diminishes and my idle brain begins to reminisce about the ‘golden days’ when I lived in San Diego. Mostly, I think about the gorgeous weather and Baja-style fish tacos. Those crunchy golden fried fillets of white fish crowned with red cabbage and wrapped in a soft corn tortilla. Unfortunately, they are as rare here in San Francisco as the sun on a summer day in the Sunset. Everyone knows that if you want a butt-kickin’ burrito, you truck on over to the Mission. But I have yet to find a decent fish taco in the City. There’s always the drive down to the Half Moon Bay, where I had the closest thing to a San Diego flashback at Flying Fish Grill. But it just doesn’t seem a reasonable option even though I still say those are the best fish tacos in Northern California. It seemed logical at the time (but now seems kinda silly) that fish tacos and other seafood related delectables should be found near the beach, right? Sure enough, I stumbled upon La Playa Taqueria in the Outer Sunset. Would this be the answer to my prayers or a disappointment?

The place was hopping with people as I waited in line to place my order. To my delight, many of the people sitting at the small two-person tables were feasting on fish tacos. From the cursory glances I stole, the tacos looked like the real deal. I scanned the menu and not only did they offer Baja-style fish tacos, but mahi-mahi tacos as well. But I was on a mission and I needed to quell this annual jonesing for Baja style fish tacos. As I approached the register, an impatient man took my order. I ordered the tacos and my wife Lucky ordered a wet super burrito filled with chicken. And just to add a few points to our cholesterol count, we ordered the super nachos.

As we waited for our order, I watched the workers prepare the food. I was particularly impressed with the fact that the tortilla chips were hand made and fried on the spot so they would be hot and fresh. I wasn’t so impressed with the fact that the guy that took my money was using his bare hands to put the chips into the deep fryer. My thoughts took me back to last year’s Therapeutics class as I tried to remember what drugs to take for Hepatitis A. As my mind drew a blank, I consoled myself by thinking, “Hey, it’s going in the deep fryer. Any virus that can survive heat like, I’d be proud to call my own.” It also didn’t quite impress me to see them using a microwave on our order. Sigh… at least they hadn’t screwed up the fish tacos yet.

For some reason, call it false hope, I still expected the Baja style fish tacos ($4.95) to be decent. Well, they were just that- decent. Although the fish was fried to a perfect golden brown and the batter used was light enough to keep it crunchy yet well balanced by the cabbage and tortilla, there was still something missing. It didn’t have the delicious taste I was used to. Well, it didn’t have much taste at all. The special Pancho sauce- something between thousand island and tartar sauce, only thinner- did make it better. But it couldn’t fill the void. Overall, it was a taco I might consider to quell the pangs of addiction in the future, but only if I am in dire straits.

Lucky’s Wet Super burrito was only slightly better. It was one of those gigantic more-than-a-pound two-hander burritos. For $4.25, you get a “Regular” with your choice of meat, rice, beans, and fresh salsa. An extra $1 makes it “Super,” adding cheese, guacamole and sour cream. Add another $1 and it’s majade or wet, which means it’s covered with sauce and melted cheese. Unfortunately the bland red sauce poured over her burrito made it a bit soggy but didn’t add any flavor. The extra $1 for the “Super” is worth it because they are quite generous with the ingredients. The chicken was quite tender and surprisingly flavorful contrasting the rest of the burrito. In comparison to other burritos, I would say it falls short of La Fonda’s burritos, but is superior to Gordo Taqueria’s.

Call me an optimist, but after two disappointments, I was hoping that the Supreme Nachos ($4.25) would at least save the day. The result, though, was somewhat mixed. I would have given it a thumbs up except for the fact that some of the chips were crispy and some were chewy and underdone. Although they fry up the chips fresh, their chips are not necessarily cooked uniformly. One batch may be undercooked while another overcooked, depending on if they are paying attention to how long it’s in the fryer. I assume they are a victim of their own success- since the cashier does double duty, both taking orders and frying the chips, something’s gotta give when you have a steady stream of customers.

And so, my quest for Baja-style fish tacos continues. As for La Playa Taqueria, there are better options available, though it is conveniently located near the beach. At the very least, the service is quick and the food is inexpensive. But for above average Mexican food, you would do best to look elsewhere.

Originally published: http://www.ucsf.edu/synapse/content/2007/07/18/laplayataqueria.html