The puffy taco makes its return at a San Antonio-style restaurant north of Fort Worth
The much-missed puffy taco has made its comeback, and now we have a choice.
Las Palapas, a San Antonio chain newly open in Keller, is the latest outpost of Alamo-City-style puffy masa tacos, fresh from the fryer and meant to be eaten in seconds before the soft shell falls apart.
For nine years, Fort Worth had to live without puffy tacos.
Oh, sure — we’ve got dozens of taquerias.
But we didn’t have anywhere serving the South Texas legacy that diners still remembered from now-gone Caro’s Restaurant, closed after 60 years but still open in the Rio Grande Valley.
In 2020, a chef at the now-91-year-old Original Mexican Restaurant came up with a recipe. Weeks later, a Lupe Tortilla opened in north Fort Worth, bringing Houston’s version of puffy tacos.
But San Antonio remains the home of the puffy taco, and the only San Antonio-style restaurant for more than 200 miles is Las Palapas, a small, simple cafe now open at 455 Keller Parkway.
Las Palapas is not like most Tex-Mex restaurants here. It has a drive-through window like a fast-food taco stand. But inside, there’s table service and even a small bar, all tucked into what used to be a Dairy Queen.
The menu is encyclopedic: 25 platters including everything from stuffed avocados to a rib-eye with enchiladas ($18.95), 25 different tacos and burritos, 10 breakfasts (served daily from 6 a.m.) and specials for seniors, children, emergency workers and military members.
Most Keller customers so far order familiar dishes such as enchiladas or fajitas, but the menu beckons with guisados, salsas, “artisan” tacos (meant to appeal to Torchy’s regulars) and sopes with chicken soup or tortilla soup.
About the puffy tacos ($9.89):
▪ They come in either beef, chicken or mixed.
▪ They’re not as puffy as those of Caro’s legend, but they’re comparable to others in San Antonio.
▪ They come apart within minutes after they’re served, so slip a tortilla underneath.
Also, eating a fried masa ball is not exactly a light dinner.
The menu also offers veggie enchiladas, chicken fajita salads, fajita-stuffed avocados and grilled cod or shrimp.
There are throwback specials for 99 cents to $3.99 Mondays and Wednesdays, the prices when the original Las Palapas opened in 1981.
The stews, soups, salads and tortillas are made from scratch daily in the kitchen, said Brad Peak of San Antonio, a company official.
“We’re not like the places here that just mainly have tacos and queso and very small menus,” he said. “We have everything, all day, every day.”
Las Palapas is open for breakfast through dinner daily. The location is on Farm Road 1709, 4 miles east of Interstate 35W; 682-334-4203, laspalapas.com.
This story was originally published November 17, 2021 at 5:45 AM.
