Brian Nagele
Torchy’s Tacos is a fast-casual Mexican-inspired food establishment with locations across 11 states.
They are primarily known for their wide array of comically-named tacos. However, they also serve non-taco items like queso, burritos, sides, and salads.
They are also known for their love of hot sauce and jalapeños, and some of the best Torchy’s Tacos may set your tongue on fire. Thus, if you are not a huge spice fan, be sure to request the removal or avoidance of these items just to be sure!
Another interesting fact about Torchy’s Tacos restaurants is that all of their napkins, cups, and cutlery are made from 100% renewable resources. They also support many notable charities and causes across the States.
Thus, if you’d like to support a mission-oriented taco brand, or you are simply hungry and looking to try out this restaurant for the first time, check out my list of the best Torchy’s Tacos menu items.
Trailer Park Tacos
Torchy’s Tacos Trailer Park Tacos are hilariously and cheekily named, as long as you don’t find it offensive.
This taco is named Trailer Park because it is “trashy” and has an array of sloppy yet delicious ingredients all mixed into one taco.
The ingredients — including fried chicken, green chilies, and Cheddar Jack cheese — are more aligned with American culture than a traditional Mexican taco.
And if you ask to make it “trashy,” your taco won’t come with lettuce but with an even sloppier and, arguably, tastier queso instead.
Green Chile Pork Tacos
Green chile sauce is a wildly popular ingredient in the Western and Southwestern US — and with good reason.
It’s punchy, saucy, and oh so flavorful, especially paired with pork as it usually is.
Torchy’s Tacos Green Chili Pork Tacos meets the mark when it comes to offering a delicious green chili pork option, as the spicy green chili and savory pork are complemented well by salty cotija cheese and zesty cilantro.
If you’re in the mood for a beverage, these tacos are known to pair well with a house margarita on the rocks. And if you don’t have enough green chile, these tacos pair nicely with Torchy’s Green Chile Queso and Chips as well.
The Matador
If you’ve been to Torchy’s Tacos and have never seen the Matador on the menu, it’s because this taco is not on their regular menu.
Instead, it’s on their select “secret menu,” meant only for the most faithful taco lovers who can handle these more innovative and daring taco combinations.
The Matador is aptly named, as you’ll receive a taco stuffed to the brim with chopped brisket.
The spicy jalapeños complement the creamy and light sour cream in both flavor and texture. But the most amazing dynamic duo in this taco is the crispy corn tortilla layered inside a soft, warm flour tortilla.
They work together to provide a more intriguing biting experience, as well as strive to hold all of The Matador’s juicy goodness together.
Chicken Fajita Tacos
The Chicken Fajita Tacos is a safer, more standard menu item with a lot of flair and flavor, especially with additional tomatillo sauce drizzled all over them.
There’s something special about getting grilled onions and peppers on your tacos as opposed to the more typical pico de gallo, and with these Chicken Fajita Tacos, you’re lucky enough to get both!
The chicken is also well-marinated and nicely grilled for juiciness that goes well with the consistency of the peppers and onions.
I recommend grabbing a classic margarita on the side to complement this classic taco style.
The Wrangler
If you’re a huge fan of breakfast tacos, then meet The Wrangler. It’s not your typical bacon, egg, and cheese wrap — far from it.
You’ll get a taco with the classic eggs, potatoes, and cheese. But it’ll also have a respectable serving of smoked beef brisket to make sure you start your day with a satisfied smile.
And if you’re such a massive fan of breakfast tacos that you’ll eat them at any time of the day, you’re in luck. The Wrangler is one of the best Torchy’s Tacos, and you’re able to order it all day long!
It pairs well with Torchy’s Refried Beans if you’re extra hungry. Otherwise, I suggest simply getting a Direct Trade Coffee to go with this breakfast taco.
Tipsy Chick
The Tipsy Chick is another humourous taco, named accordingly because the protein base is chicken and includes a side of bacon bourbon marmalade.
Before realizing the bourbon-based addition, one might interrupt the name further, perhaps assuming the taco seems to be “tipsy” itself, or a “tipsy” person must have invented it.
Regardless of how you interrupt it, it’ll come with a heap of chicken, spinach, green chiles, grilled corn, cheddar cheese, and chipotle sauce.
Pair it with the Street Corn side dish if you just can’t get enough of the corn or the green chili queso because there’s no such thing as too much cheese.
Democrat
The Democrat is one of the best Torchy’s Tacos items simply due to the barbacoa alone, which seems to be added liberally — pun intended.
The savory and salty barbacoa mixed with the soft, fatty avocado and the flavor-inducing cilantro and onion is a winning combination every single time.
Add the tomatillo sauce for extra flavor and kick, although it doesn’t necessarily need it.
I think this taco is best on its own or with a second serving of the same taco. But if you want to get something else with it, I recommend the Hillbilly Queso and Dip, especially since the cheese on this taco is relatively lacking.
Airstream Salad
I wouldn’t usually recommend getting a salad at a taco place, especially not a taco place with as many options as at Torchy’s Tacos.
However, Airstream Salad is not your typical salad by any means.
Filled with flavor ingredients such as mint, peppadew peppers, arugula, cotija cheese; filling ingredients like pistachios, grilled corn, and avocado; and the delectable taco toppings like chipotle sauce and champagne vinaigrette, you’ll surely be in for a treat with this salad.
You can get it with chicken or salmon, but I believe the chicken pairs better with these particular flavors.
This salad is clearly filling and satisfying, but if you’re extremely hungry, you should add a side of chips and salsa.
Chipotle Sauce and Chips
When you order salsa and chips at Torchy’s Tacos, you get to choose between six different salsas depending on your spice level and flavor preferences.
The options include roja, poblano, avocado, tomatillo, diablo, and chipotle.
I think that the chipotle sauce is my favorite for the chips because they pair well with the chips, they pair well with almost all of Torchy’s other menu items, and they aren’t too spicy to get sick of before you’re finished.
Punchier than the roja, more flavorful than the tomatillo, and more manageable than the diablo, the chipotle sauce is truly a crowd-pleaser.
Chorizo, Egg, & Cheese
The Chorizo, Egg, & Cheese taco is a more traditional take on a breakfast taco than the Wrangler, but sometimes simple, classic, and reliable is just what you need.
Plus, you can start with this taco as a base, then ask to add other items for an extra fee, such as green chiles, queso, onions, or multiple different sauces.
The sky’s the limit when you have a solid foundation.
And if you decide to get the green chili queso and use it as a dipping sauce for your breakfast taco, I won’t judge you for a second.
Mad Cow
Lastly, the Mad Cow is another specialty menu item that’s so secret that it’s not even on the secret menu.
It consists of skirt steak as the base and includes black beans, corn, jack cheese, ranch, and cilantro on top for a fatty, juicy taco that will simultaneously fill you up and leave you wanting more.
If you don’t know whether or not the location near you will serve this, remember that asking never hurts!
Torchy’s Tacos has become an increasingly popular name on the fast-casual taco scene because their tacos are delicious, intriguing, and just the right amount of innovative while staying true to some classic pairings.
Additionally, the best Torchy’s Tacos menu items are the best due to their ingredients as well as their hilariously applicable names.
If you’ve never tried Torchy’s Tacos, we hope that this list of the best food on Torchy’s Tacos menu has helped you decide what you might try first.
And if you’re a huge fan already, perhaps this article has piqued your interest in a new item — or one of the secret items we’ve exposed!
Still hungry? Check out another west coast chain like In-N-Out Burgers and other items!
