La Monarca Tacos and Ice Cream, located at 276 Linden Ave., is unassuming from the outside, but after the first step through the door, one can tell they are somewhere special.
The restaurant is a delight for the senses. Brightly-colored banners, a wide display case and a large dining area make the interior feel inviting–to say absolutely nothing of the incredible aromas that can be detected from the parking lot.
La Monarca is an example of a simple concept with great execution. True to their name, they specialize in Central American street food and a variety of crafted frozen treats.
The wide-ranging menu includes familiar comfort foods like fried chicken and loaded fries, as well as mash-ups like Doritos con Elote.
Using these basic building blocks, La Monarca’s staff takes obvious pride in every order. During our first visit, we tried two types of tacos: steak and QuesaBirria. These were all sweet and simple, with perfect flavor and crisp texture. Each of the tacos had the perfect (which, for me, means heavy) amount of cilantro and diced onions, and the birria dipping sauce was an authentic, crowd-pleasing recipe…