Last Updated on February 23, 2024, 10:57 AM | Published: February 23, 2024
It took me way, way too long to try Taqueria Mi Ranchito.
2023 was a busy year for me. I got married. I bought a house. I started a new job. And those are all the reasons I can think of why it took me so long to eat at what has become my go-to for tacos.
Literally “My little taco shack,” TMR has both a brick-and-mortar location and a taco truck. The truck, which sits in a gas station parking lot, is ridiculously close to where I live. (Yes, I live in the gas station.) But for at least half a year, I just kept driving past it without ever stopping.
Finally, one afternoon last summer, I was headed home from work a little early. I hadn’t had lunch and my wife was already home, so I decided to grab a pile of tacos for us to try.
We spent the next week kicking ourselves over and over again for taking so long to get to Taqueria Mi Ranchito.
The menu is fairly simple. Tacos, burritos, tostadas—meat and tortilla variations galore, basically. For larger meals, they have plates of carnitas, carne asada, or pollo asada with rice and beans, as well as hamburguesas (both Mexican and regular with cheese) and a hot dog and fries.
They also sell big taco packs, which has come in handy when entertaining people at my gas station home. The only problem is that the best meat is not available in those taco feasts: carnitas.
I love carnitas. It’s the best of the taqueria meats, in my opinion. It’s pork, seasoned and cooked until tender, then grilled until crispy. And Taqueria Mi Ranchito has the carnitas I love most. I make carnitas at home and my best batch pales in comparison to what they turn out every day.
For the value, I recommend the five tacos for $8. If only having carnitas doesn’t appeal to you, the carne asada is tasty, if not as tender. The taco plate gets you two fewer tacos, but the addition of rice and beans, if you’re craving a little more variety.
The al pastor (that’s shawarma-style pork with onion and pineapple) is also good…just not as good as the carnitas.
The pollo? Juicy, but not as flavorful as the other options. There’s also tongue and stomach, but for an upcharge. Lengua (beef tongue) is a fine choice if that’s what you’re into. Buche (pork stomach) is just not something I’m interested in. Sorry to let you down.
The tacos come with sauteed onions, charred hot pepper, and pickled carrots and radish, as well as a smoky red sauce and a creamy and spicy green sauce—both of which are excellent.
For a meal on the go, I think the burrito is my top choice. It’s not quite Chipotle-size, but it’s substantial and stuffed with meat, beans, rice, sour cream and onions. I’ve even had luck holding one in the fridge overnight and making an extremely filling breakfast out of it the next day.
If you haven’t tried before, get some mulitas. They’re kind of like mini fried quesadillas. The fat from the meat greases up the corn tortillas, making them crispy and a bit pliant. I’m obsessed with these.
Gorditas from Taco Bell and gorditas from a taqueria are vastly different. At Mi Ranchito, the gordita is a thick, round tortilla that is fried and split open, then stuffed with meat and cheese. There’s definitely more crunch to these than regular tacos and the glistening fried corn tortilla has a mild sweetness to it.
I’d not tried sincronizada before this, but it’s a nice change if you’re not feeling the usual taqueria meats. It’s a grilled ham and cheese with veggies in a tortilla, so it’s a bit lighter than the usual taco truck fare without being too little to satisfy.
Another one I haven’t seen a lot is the gringa, which is kind of a quesadilla stuffed with al pastor, onion, pineapple, and cheese in a flour tortilla. The added crunch and freshness vs. a traditional quesadilla is a nice change, but your mileage may vary.
But, and I cannot stress this enough: bring cash. They don’t take cards and you don’t want to miss out on these tacos.
- Taqueria Mi Ranchito
- Truck – 10900 North Western Ave. in Oklahoma City
- Mon-Sat 10:30 a.m.-11 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.-10 p.m.
- (405) 766-1377
- Store – 3644 Northwest 50th St. in Oklahoma City
- www.ordertaqueriamiranchito2.com
- Mon-Sat 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Sunday 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
- (405) 679-5911
Long-time food enjoyer Greg Elwell writes about food, restaurants, and trends. He has his own blog "I Ate Oklahoma" and has written for The Oklahoman, The Oklahoma Gazette, and others.
