Sinaloan Sa'Tacos and its next-door-neighbor / sister restaurant, Italian Il Sole, are in many ways…read morequintessential NYC mashups. You find elements of each cuisine creeping into the other restaurant's menu -- and plenty of other influences, too -- to mostly enjoyable effect.
Example: Birria ramen. This dish is brilliant in concept, the logic of rich birria broth with noodles unassailable. Alas, this version was just so-so in execution. We liked the bit of shredded beef birria in the dish, but despite the authentic birria-orange film, the all-important broth had been thinned down and cut with bullion powder / cubes. Noodles were also reminiscent of the kind you'd find in a dried block at the grocery store, sold with a packet of seasoning powder.
Mussels fra diavolo were made with small to medium sized mussels cooked in a lovely, rich, spicy tomato sauce, and reasonably fresh. This dish was on Il Sole's menu, but I think it would've been just as much at home on Sa'Taco' with its spicing (no basil that I could detect, a fair amount of oregano and chili / paprika, garlic, lots of parsley). I really enjoyed the mussels, but if one were to nitpick, it would've been nice to (1) receive utensils to eat with, w/o having to ask for them; (2) have a plate or other receptacle for shells; and (3) have some good, crusty bread for sopping up the lovely sauce. The airy, flimsy (Portuguese?) bread served alongside didn't quite do the trick.
The Pardner ordered and enjoyed his set of three chorizo tacos. They came on small, 3" shells, without accoutrements and were not satisfying as a meal. He was left eyeballing the birria ramen hungrily until it was bequeathed to him.
A side of spinach, ordered for vegetable matter, was just alright. We are ridiculously enthusiastic about silky, well-prepared spinach. The version here was fine, pleasantly garlicky, but tougher and more astringent / tannic than we prefer.
What we didn't like quite as well: We discovered after the fact that we were not offered a brunch menu, though we were well within hours and would've enjoyed many items off of that menu. Also, the "sin tax" was high. Drinks were quite expensive for their average to below-average quality.
You'll receive separate checks for food ordered from each menu, but the outdoor dining space is shared, as are servers.
We once knew this neighborhood like the back of our hands. We plan to again given how much our littles all like Inwood Hill Park and given my memories of perfect Dominican and Venezuelan food in these parts. If you have any suggestions in the neighborhood circa 2023, please hollah!
