Giving up meat for Lent? Where to get good fish tacos in Cincinnati

On a recent Wednesday afternoon at Bakersfield in Over-the-Rhine, the Little Feat song "Dixie Chicken" rang out of mounted speakers as old episodes of "The Rifleman" played on a silent television with the closed captions turned on. Instead of chicken – Dixie or otherwise – I ordered one fish taco and one shrimp taco ... because the fish and shrimp tacos at Bakersfield never disappoint.

The former is served with a tangy tabasco-lime sauce brightened with citrus cilantro slaw, the latter with crispy shrimp, spicy chipotle lime crema, creamy guacamole, crisp red cabbage and pickled Fresno chilies. Washing them down with a Dos Equis Amber, I almost felt like I was in Bakersfield, California, itself.

Fish tacos are a go-to for me, especially during Lent when all those Friday fish sandwiches leave me longing for viable alternatives. Sure, the catfish and grits entree at Nolia Kitchen would be nice – as would some sea scallops from Le Bar a Boeuf. But fish tacos are a quick and easy get. While the ones at Bakersfield are among my favorites, there are others I crave, too (we'll get to those later).

– Speaking of fish: Check out our map of fish fries in Cincinnati –

Like a lot of Midwesterners my age, I didn't grow up eating fish tacos and probably didn't sink my teeth into one until I was well into my 30s. Even though they've been around forever. There’s no real origin story, per se. At least not one any historian could prove. Many point to their birthplace as Baja California, Mexico, where – according to an article in the San Diego Union-Tribune – Mexican vendors tried to appeal to Japanese fishermen (who came to the Baja coast to fish for tuna in the 1920s) by frying fish in Japanese tempura and folding it into tortillas.

True? Likely not. An old Sunset magazine article informed me people have been eating fish tacos in the coastal areas of Mexico for thousands of years, ever since "indigenous North American peoples first wrapped the plentiful offshore catch into stone-ground-corn tortillas.”

The Baja-style tacos we know and love (white fish lightly fried and topped with cabbage and some sort of white sauce) were popularized by the San Diego restaurant Rubio’s Coastal Grill, which, according to the Tribune, started serving them after founder Ralph Rubio and some of his college buddies from San Diego State took a spring break trip to San Felipe, Baja California, in 1974. According to the Tribune, Rubio saw fried fish tacos at a local taco stand and wondered why he couldn’t get them in San Diego.

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When did fish tacos arrive in Cincinnati?

The first mention I can find of fish tacos in Cincinnati was a rather derogatory comment from former Enquirer columnist Paul Daugherty. After trying them at the 1992 All-Star Game in San Diego, he said the following:

“We tried the fish tacos. Yes, fish tacos. This is California. They were greasy.”

Seems Doc was not a fan.

In 1996, The Enquirer ran a recipe for them. In 1999, a Baja fish taco from La Salsa Fresh Mexican Grill – a chain that once had locations in Hyde Park Plaza, Westwood and Deerfield Township – won a Best of Taste award during that year’s Taste of Cincinnati. By 2009, they were on the bar menu at McCormick & Schmick’s.

These days, you can find fish tacos just about everywhere, from Northern Kentucky to Norwood. Some come with fried fish, some with grilled. The fish varies from tilapia to cod to shrimp to redfish and even crawfish. Along with the Baja-style tacos at Bakersfield (mentioned above), here are five more of my favorite fish tacos in town.

Where to get good fish tacos in Cincinnati

Jorge's Taco Truck, Madisonville

Stationed inside a food truck next to the Shell station on Erie Avenue, Jorge's serves some of the best tacos in town. I especially love the grilled tilapia taco, which comes with charred and juicy nuggets of fish folded into blistered corn tortillas. They also provide plenty of fresh radishes and limes for added texture.

3980 Erie Ave., Madisonville.

Nada, Downtown

On the cheffier end of the taco spectrum, Nada never disappoints. Here, crispy mahi-mahi (or shrimp, it's up to you) is topped with cabbage, spicy chipotle crema, pico and pickled red onions. Be sure to order them with the crispy potatoes that are coated with Asian chile glaze and scallion crema.

600 Walnut St., Downtown.

Tacos el Joven, Queen City Avenue

When people ask me what my favorite Greater Cincinnati taco truck is, Tacos el Joven is always the first that springs to mind. While I love the barbacoa and al pastor tacos best, they do serve great shrimp and fish tacos, too. Be sure to stop by the Ethiopian grocery store behind el Joven, which serves fresh Ethiopian breads, including injera.

2157 Queen City Ave., East Price Hill.

Golden State, Terrace Park

I'm a big fan of the entire menu at Golden State. While their fried avocado taco is my go-to, coming in a close second is the Baja fish taco, which is served with tender little chunks of mahi-mahi with a cilantro crema, shredded red cabbage and pico de gallo.

704 Wooster Pike, Terrace Park.

Shango’s Urban Taqueria, Norwood

When it comes to riffing on fish tacos, this new spot at the Gatherall in Norwood lets its creativity shine. The menu includes the Son of Sori with red snapper, red cabbage and pickled red onion with fire-roasted corn and cilantro in sweet, spicy bang-bang sauce. But what I really enjoyed was the Buddy B with Creole shrimp, crawfish, nutty Caribbean callaloo, avocado-lime ranch, Chihuahua cheese and scotch bonnet peppers. So much flavor!

2750 Park Ave., Norwood.

Video: That one time we reheated tacos in an air fryer

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Where to get good fish tacos in Cincinnati