How Casa Reyes started
Esperanza and Ramón Reyes opened a six-table taqueria on Broadway in 1979, cooking the food of Puebla for a neighbourhood that mostly ate Tex-Mex. The mole was Esperanza’s grandmother’s; the puffy tacos were a concession to San Antonio. Both are still on the menu.
Their daughter Lupe runs the kitchen now, with the same clay pots, the same molcajete and a tortilla press that has outlived two stoves. The room holds 60 and on a Sunday morning it is full by nine.
What we insist on
- Masa ground here for tortillas, tamales and puffy tacos, never from a bag
- Mole made over two days with 28 ingredients, no paste from a jar
- Pork cooked in copper, beans cooked in clay, nothing from a can
- Salsas made each morning and thrown out each night
Who cooks
Lupe Reyes on the stove, her husband Tomás on the grill, and six cooks who have been here between two and 22 years. Her mother still comes in on Tuesdays to taste the mole.
Good to know
Do you take allergies into account?
Every product lists its allergens. The mole contains nuts and the tamales are made with lard; add a note to your order and the kitchen reads it before they start.
How hot is the food?
Most plates are mild to medium; the salsa roja is the hot one and it comes on the side. Say in the note if you want it hotter or not at all.
Is there anything vegetarian?
Chiles rellenos, enchiladas with cheese and onion, queso fundido without chorizo, and the beans are cooked in lard, so ask for black beans instead.
How do I pay?
Online at checkout, or by card or cash at the counter.