Since Guinness is about as Irish as I am these days (read: not very), I decided to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by stopping into the Flying Saucer for a pint. And when my server told me that the Saucer was doing a taco plate special, I figured why not do something even more non-traditional and order the thing. So that’s how my St. Paddy’s went — white people tacos with multi-national conglomerate beer.
It was glorious, if not exactly “good.”
What do I mean by that? To paraphrase Confederate Railroad, I have a deep-seated love for food that’s a little on the trashy side. Blame a childhood of Spam-topped mac n’ cheese and dinners at the Western Sizzlin’. These tacos were exactly that sort of thing — Taco shells from a box? Check. Oddly-seasoned ground beef? Check. Pre-shredded cheese from a back? Oh, man, check. Give the Saucer a lot of credit for using a decent shredded lettuce instead of the usual iceberg, but that’s just Dior lipstick on a trailer park princess: These bad boys were Taco Tuesday at your mama’s house tacos, not the authentic (and also delicious) versions available elsewhere town.
Does that sound like I’m dissing those Saucer tacos? I’m not — I ate every bite of them, and all the tortilla chips, too. They were served with lightly seasoned sour cream that made a perfect accompaniment, and I was very happy with the tangy, spicy salsa. I tucked into those tacos like I hadn’t eaten in a week, and washed it all down with that creamy black elixir that still claims St. James Gate, Dublin. It seemed an appropriate way for my Scots-Welsh self to pay homage to my Irish cousins.
So Éirinn go Brách — and let me know how you celebrated St. Paddy’s. Or barring that, let me know where you get your white trash tacos — I know Homer’s out on Roosevelt does a mean Anglo “Mexican” plate (with a deep fried burrito-type-thing, natch), but I’m sure there are other versions out there.
Oh, and final note to the Flying Saucer? Put these tacos on the menu full time. They’re a Hank Williams, Jr. song in a corn shell, and I celebrate them.