These 5 Arizona restaurants were ranked among best taco shops in America

Bahar Anooshahr, Arizona Republic
·3 min read
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To celebrate National Taco Day, which falls on Oct. 4, Yelp released a list of the Top 100 Taco Spots in America with a companion piece that listed Top 15 Taco Towns. Arizona restaurants and cities made both lists.

To identify the top taco cities, Yelp looked for cities with the highest search for "tacos" by consumers between August 2022 and August 2023. To be considered, cities had to have a minimum of five million searches. Phoenix came in third, behind Austin and Los Angeles. Tucson took fifth.

To curate the list of best taco shops, Yelp looked at a number of factors including volume and consumer rating. In addition to the best restaurants, Yelp also identified three taco trends, noting that cheese, seafood and "demanding and delicious" are highly prized. The last category referred to the perceived work that went into making the tacos, from 30-hour cooked pork to fresh ground heirloom corn for masa.

As usual, we're surprised by the omission of classics like Ta Carbon and Tacos Chiwas, but it's always interesting to see what makes a data-driven list like this.

Here's a look at the five Arizona restaurants that made Yelp's list of best taco spots in the country.

La Chaiteria in Tucson ranked No. 48

La Chaiteria is a Mexican restaurant in Tucson’s Menlo Park, a historically Latino neighborhood in the city’s west side.
La Chaiteria is a Mexican restaurant in Tucson’s Menlo Park, a historically Latino neighborhood in the city’s west side.

Rating: 4.7 stars from 121 reviews.

Reviewer comment: Bill L. wrote: "The food here is wonderful, extremely well done complex and bountiful. Based on the kind of ratings we are giving out in Tucson now it should be seven stars."

Details: 1002 W. Congress St., Tucson, 520-400-7127, lachaiteria.com.

El Rustico in Tucson ranked No. 74

Rating: 4.6 stars from 226 reviewers.

Reviewer comment: Brandon L. wrote: "Who knew Tucson had such a great taco scene! I've been to so many spots all over California and I can easily say that Tucson tacos are better than anywhere in the Bay and on par with those in LA and SD. To compare to popular spots, these definitely beat out tacos el gordo and Leo's."

Details: 2281 N. Oracle Road, Tucson. 520-623-3478, tacorustico.com.

143 Street Tacos in Sierra Vista ranked No. 79

Rating: 4.6 stars from 429 reviewers

Reviewer comment: "Being that I only stopped in for a short time while passing through from California, I had no idea much of what Sonoran style Mexican food was," Marc C. wrote. "The only thing I can say is that the food is phenomenal! Portions are extremely generous and most importantly delicious. You can taste the passion that they put into cooking their food."

Details: 80 S. Carmichael St., Sierra Vista. 520-227-2267, 143streettacos.com.

El Fogon in Phoenix ranked No.86

Rating: 4.7 stars from 130 reviewers

Reviewer comment: "Just dropped in this afternoon and ordered the al carbon, 2 to be exact," April Q. wrote. "Holy moly that was delicious!"

Details: 1327 E. Chandler Blvd., Suite 108, Phoenix. 480-228-9496, el-fogon-taqueria.square.site.

Taco Culture Taco Shop in Phoenix ranked No. 93

Rating: 4.7 stars from 131 reviewers.

Reviewer comment: "Just tried this little taco shop for the first time," wrote Marybeth M. "Oh my goodness! The food is soooo good."

Details: 3233 E. Chandler Blvd., 6-A, Phoenix. 480-706-1387, taco-culture.business.site.

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Reach the reporter at BAnooshahr@azcentral.com. Follow @banooshahr on X, formerly Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix and Tucson Mexican restaurants ranked among best tacos in US