Boka vs. Nate's: Critics' Take on Bestie Tacos

Make a trip to almost any spot in California, and one culinary trend that will pop out to you is the ubiquity of taco stands. Ask any Angeleno in the know about where to find the best tacos, and they’ll likely point you to some shack off the freeway with picnic tables out front and a crumbling hand-painted sign. If you follow their advice, you’re likely to taste bold Mexican flavors unlike anything you’ve ever tasted in the Mid-Atlantic.

Ask any taco enthusiast in Richmond about tacos, and you’ll likely hear a similarly fabled story about how we are a taco desert and you can’t get a proper taco in town. While a lot of folks are still probably getting their Mexican food fix in the form of a Speedy Gonzalez, the recent addition of food trucks in Richmond is bringing a little bit of the West Coast taco scene home to RVA.

It’s no surprise to us that roving restaurateurs Nate’s Taco Truck and Boka Truck squashed any other competition in our Besties taco poll. But, once the winners were announced, the Internet debates started on who truly was the worthy winner.

Just to be clear, there is certainly room for both Nate’s tacos and Boka’s takos—the products are pretty different. Call us purists, but Nate’s has just the right combination of what we think a taco should taste like.

We tracked down the Boka truck at the recent Dominion Riverrock festival, but they can be found criss-crossing the city to various offices during the week by checking their website. Anxious to sample as much as we could, we ordered the "gauntlet" for $10, which gave us one of each of Boka’ standard takos: Asian, Mexican and American. You may notice taco is usually not spelled with a "k," which is an indication that Boka does not serve your usual taco. Each can be ordered with choice of protein chosen from Korean beef, chicken, pork, or tofu.

The American, with sherry slaw, smoky barbecue, jack, cheddar, and caramelized onions, which we ordered with pork, was our favorite of the three. The barbecue sauce was tangy and sweet and in just the right amount to keep the corn tortilla from breaking apart.

We had a hard time distinguishing between the Asian tako with kimchi, sesame aioli and herbs and the Mexican tako with Chihuahua cheese, habanero-lime chili, cilantro and chipotle crema. We ordered each with chicken and, while they were good, they were dry compared to the American with the tangy barbecue. Each was advertised to have a little bit of spice, which we found lacking.

Fans of creative fusion will enjoy the Boka tako, especially the specials, which include everything from pork belly to duck confit. They are open for catering or scheduled stops, or sometimes you can get lucky and catch a tweet looking for a last minute opening.

While Nate’s Taco Truck also goes mobile for festivals and markets, he can be found at the Taco Truck Stop on 315 N. 2nd St. on weekday afternoons. We made a pit stop at the truck stop recently, and sampled everything from a chicken skin taco to a chorizo. Each variety is $3 and is served with a choice of corn or flour tortilla with lettuce, cheese, and lime sour cream. Veggie options include potato and textured vegetable protein.

Each variety we tried had a great blend of tender marinated meat, fresh cream and standard toppings. Our favorites included the chicken with tender dark meat and the carne adovada with chili-laden marinated pork.

While we dig the authentic Southwest style of Nate’s, Richmond is lucky to have both of these taco trucks. If you’re into authentic flavors, track down Nate’s on the road or downtown, but if you like a bit of world fusion flair to the standard model, Boka is the way to go. Next time you find yourself at a festival or farmers’ market, seek these guys out and try them for yourself.

Critics' Winner: Nate's Taco Truck Stop