Diego Pops

A happy-hour margarita is a persuasive little devil and at Diego Pops, it has accomplices:

1. Amazing atmosphere
2. Service with a big smile.

Those are winners for me every time! But this is Taco Bill and the tacos themselves still have to earn their passage.

On deck: Charred Skirt Steak and Grilled Plantain tacos. The steak takes a familiar route with red onion, caramelized onion, and cilantro. That pairing has a purpose: raw onion brings bite, while caramelized onion brings sweetness. No treasure map needed to understand the appeal. The plantain takes the scenic route: pickled onion, corn salsa, salsa verde, and house slaw on a corn tortilla. There’s some thoughtful taco engineering here. Sweetness from the plantain, acidity from the pickles and salsa, and crunch from the slaw. A reminder that a taco doesn’t an animal aboard to deserve your attention.

My verdict? Genuinely good tacos. Worth eating, worth coming back for, but they haven’t seized command of the entire taco fleet just yet. Now, a confession: the amazing service, great patio and cool vibe slightly influenced this 7.8. Put these same tacos through the window of a back-alley taco truck, without the atmosphere and happy-hour margaritas, and I doubt I’d score them quite as high. That’s no knock on taco trucks, some of my favorite foil wrapped treasure comes from busted up trucks and carts. I’m scoring the tacos fairly, but I’m also a human having a good time. Pretending the rest of the experience had zero influence would be lie and I'm not willing to go there.

I really do love this place, the people, and those margaritas. Diego Pops earns a return voyage from me. And, there are more taco options for me to choose from where the next round could hit GOLD. We are close but not there yet. TBD!!

Worth the Voyage: A genuinely good taco. If you’re nearby, change course and make the stop. Your stomach will thank you. 🏴‍☠️🌮