100% Taquito may not be well aware of me, but I’m 100% acquainted with it. The Mexico City-style taqueria off the Southwest Freeway has been a consistently good lunch spot since my work moved to the former Houston Post building at 4747 Southwest Freeway some 10 years ago. It hasn’t received much press in recent years, but it’s been doing some interesting things ahead of the FIFA World Cup.
The history of 100% Taquito, like many of the other restaurants I’ve visited along Houston’s major roadways, is a little obscure. Siblings Karla and Marko Garcia started the first iteration of the business in 1995 as a food truck and University of Houston student project via the Center for Entrepreneurship. The truck was parked on Westheimer Road across from a Super KMart. The Garcias’ effort was covered by the Houston Chronicle as part of a wider narrative about Gen Xers wanting to be their own bosses.
“Why am I working my butt off if I’m going to get treated the same way (as other employees who don’t work as hard)?” Karla Garcia asked in the 1995 article. “Companies can decide tomorrow your job is over—or if someone else comes in who’s willing to accept less money, you’re out of there.”
In 1998, 100% Taquito moved into its present digs at 3245 Southwest Fwy., just across the highway from Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church. This time, the restaurant was owned and operated by Marko and his parents, Manuel and Susana. They designed the interior to resemble an exterior, turning the dining room into a rough facsimile of Mexico City. The seating areas look like a busy street. (There’s even a car!) The back of the restaurant, where customers order food, resembles a food trailer. All around, TVs are blaring fútbol matches, boxing events or music videos. There’s a ofrenda near the condiments section, various skeletons, and other colorful decorations scattered around the restaurant…