A welcoming entrance to the tiny space on Pershing.
I first ate at Taco Buddha on their opening day in August, 2017. Their menu was simple and the food packed with incredible flavor. Even so, the limited parking and dinky-space were troubling. But owner Kurt Eller didn’t see those as handicaps. He still sees his tiny taco shop simply as “encompassing a small footprint.”
Quaint Neighborhood Cafe
In case you’ve missed it while in University City, the quaint little neighborhood cafe bumps up against Cursed Bike and Coffee Shop on Pershing. Since it’s located along the route I drive to my condo, I pass there often. If it’s noon-ish, I look to see if there’s space in the park lot or on the street. Too often the place is bustling, so I drive on.
Tiny but terrific!
Pull Over on Pershing
But last week I stopped—there was a parking place turning over on Jackson, the side street. I headed for it. I even thought of using my car’s auto park just for fun. But I figured I needed the parallel parking practice. Actually, I’m pretty good at getting the car to the curb, not on it. But you know what they say: use it or lose it.
Despite the lunch hour bustle, the line moved quickly. I even found a table outside. It was such a lovely day no one seemed to want one of the dozen spaces indoors.
Fish Taco and Vegetable Taco.
Two Taco Lunch
When my two tacos arrived—which they did quickly—I recalled how messy they were to eat. Each overflowing taco comes swaddled in a double tortilla, which means you can easily turn the concoction into two regular size tacos. But I didn’t. Instead, I used only one of the shells for each and chowed down. Come to think of it, had I used the pair of shells, as was intended, I might have had more leverage and less leakage.
My choice this day was one Vegetable Taco and one Fish Taco. My favorite—the fish—brimmed with goodness from the zippy sauce. The server who brought my order said the Fried Chicken Taco was a favorite of many customers. It’s on my list the next time I spot a parking place.
A pleasant addition to the patio at Taco Buddha.
Taco Buddha. 7405 Pershing Avenue in University City. Open: Lunch: Tue-Fri 11a-8:30 p; Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner on Sat 8 a-8:30p; Brunch: Sun 9:30-2p. Closed Monday. Owner: Kurt Eller.
