What college student does not like a good taco? In Tuscaloosa, the place is Taco Mama.  In college, we really had only two choices for “Mexican” food, Del Taco and Taco Bell. Having these 2 in town was a good thing. Especially when ey got into a price war on Taco Tuesdays.  At one point we were getting 10 tacos for $1.  Now there are so many better choices for Mexican food despite the fact that somehow in 2018 Taco Bell managed to get voted “Best Mexican Resturant” in a Haris Poll.

My son attended orientation at the University of Alabama.  We quickly learned that the place to go for Mexican food in T-Town is Taco Mama.  Chase is a real Mexican food addict, so it was Taco Mama for lunch after the last session of Bama Bound.

Taco Mama opened its first store in 2011.  The story goes that the founders took a road trip or two to Texas and California.   On this trip, they fell in love with the hole in the wall laid back, funky, fun taquerias with great tasting, fresh food, and a simple approach.  Taco Mama has taken this idea and ran with it.  All of the stores have that funky flair both in decoration and in the music they play.  To ensure good tunes the music is hand-picked and definitely not the typical muisak stuff you hear in so many eateries today.

The Food at Taco Mama

The funkiness continues on the menu.  We both had the Yo MAMA burrito (Ground beef, shredded cheddar, lettuce, tomato, sour cream with

a side of queso).  The burritos were thick with good portions of beef, lettuce, tomato, and sour cream.  The beef is seasoned with a very flavorful blend of spices.  The queso is thinner than some other restaurants, however, it tastes great. The burrito comes with a side item, we each got a different one.  I tried the cilantro lime rice.  it was pretty good.  The rice could have used a little more lime flavor for my taste.  My son ordered Mexican Mac and Cheese.  This is completely awesome.   Mac and cheese with chile and other flavors, really a unique taste.

We ate lunch at Taco Mama, so it was too early for alcohol, but they have a very wide selection of beer, cocktails and of course the margaritas.

Read more about fun food in college towns check out this post on Triple X in West Layfette, IN