Let's Taco Bout It!

Atlantic County Magazine - GACCA Article -

Print Date: 4/29/2022

By: Moira Kirkpatrick

Greater Atlantic City Concierge Association Board Secretary

and In- House Marketing Concierge at Wyndham Skyline

Towers

When first asked to cover this weekly article I immediately

knew what I would write about. My favorite week of the year is

coming up soon.

What is my favorite week? The first week of May! Why is it my

favorite? For starters, it’s my birthday week! More importantly, to

the masses, it’s Cinco De Mayo! Both holidays are traditionally

celebrated with my favorite food and drink, tacos and tequila! This

year I have two new local spots to celebrate. When I give a

recommendation for a certain cuisine, I like to give two choices.

One that has a full bar and one that is BYO. Luckily these two

brand new establishments are opposites in that way. While La

Mesa Tequila Taco Bar in Galloway offers a full bar with a truly

impressive tequila menu, Mr. Gordo’s Taqueria is a hip new BYO in

Ventnor that offers virgin Margarita pitchers so you can add your

own tequila!

I first experienced Mr. Gordo’s recently with some friends. We

were having a girls’ night out and were invited to a “Friends,

Family, and Influencers” soft opening there. We grabbed a bottle

of sangria and a bottle of champagne (for our fancier friend) and

headed to the restaurant. The place was packed with locals ready

to enjoy some Mexican cuisine. We were immediately greeted with

a basket of chips served beside a salsa trio with varied degrees of

heat. Considering ourselves nacho connoisseurs we started with

the nacho appetizer. Crispy chips covered in creamy queso,

chopped (not shredded) well-seasoned chicken, and amazing

guacamole made these nachos an instant local favorite. From

there each of us chose something different from the menu. Tacos,

Mexican shrimp cocktail, empanadas, skirt steak entrée, and a

burrito bowl piled high with meat and toppings.

Everything was delicious and the service was great! To top off

the meal, a new friend joined us with a bottle of tequila, so we

made a toast to our new favorite BYO with shots.

Mr. Gordo’s will be offering food specials on May 5 th in honor

of the holiday. Follow them on Insta @mrgordostaqueria for

upcoming specials and info.

Now I needed to plan a dinner at La Mesa (for research of

course) so I invited my sons, Galloway residents in their twenties,

to join me. They advised me that we would need a reservation. I

was skeptical about that on a Thursday in Galloway, but I

searched my OpenTable app and found that the available times

were indeed limited. When we arrived the parking lot was packed.

The interior was dimly lit with string lights, candles, and lively

music.

A full bar took up one side of the restaurant decorated with

their huge selection of tequila bottles. I could see why social

media has been buzzing about this place. We started off with

some street corn and bang bang shrimp, which did not disappoint.

Although there were other entrees to choose from, we all selected

different types of tacos. I was delighted to find that the soft corn

tortillas were handmade from scratch, which is a difference you

can taste. The Al Pastor tacos were the favorite of the table, the

pineapple salsa bursting with flavor. I was also introduced to Birria

tacos, the latest taco trend. These tender pulled beef tacos are

served with a side cup of the stew the meat is marinated in as a

dipping sauce for the tacos. Just as satisfying as the tacos were

the cocktails. They have a tasty selection of specialty cocktails as

well as the option to build your own house margarita by selecting

your favorite tequila. La Mesa is having a Cinco De Mayo festival

with an all-day indoor and outdoor party from 3-10pm!

Reservations are recommended for indoor dining, but they will

also feature an outdoor tent area with Margarita bar, Empanada

Stand, drink specials and Live DJ. Follow them @lamesanj for

more info.

Did you know that Cinco De Mayo is actually not Mexican

Independence day? That is a popular misconception but actually it

is the celebration of one single battle, the battle of Puebla. When

the French sent 6000 soldiers to invade a small town in Mexico. A

ragtag army of 2000 loyal men gathered, and with the help of

heavy artillery came out victorious.

Sometimes we have to focus on one battle at a time.

Sometimes we have to celebrate the little victories. Sometimes

that calls for tacos and tequila.

Feliz Cinco De Mayo!