Have you ever wanted both Japanese food and Tex-mex, and couldn’t decide between the two?
Well Miso Taco has you covered as they offer their blend of both, done street food style with plenty of drinks to accent the experience.
The space is very lively with a colourful mural of dragons, nostalgic arcade games, and rave beats playing overhead. The latter of which, did eventually wear thin or our more causal dining venture.
For a person who loves fusion and trying new things, their menu was an interesting read. Predominately Mexican at its base, but with familiar Japanese and Korean ingredients sprinkled throughout.
For example, the Kimchi Nacho Fries. A mound of food that is best eaten warm, as the fries get soggy fast. Potato fries topped with refried beans, shredded cheese, kimchi, fresh red onions, and cilantro. Served with salsa and the option to add on pretty much anything they have available on top. We would crown our order with an egg, cause we could, but sadly it didn’t add any value to things.
There is lot going on on top of these fries which I found overwhelming. I would have preferred this as nachos for some crunch, as everything was mushy and heavy with all the sauces. The kimchi was also served in large sheets of cabbage. Given that it was meant as a topping, I would have like it in smaller, one bite chunks. Overall not something I would order again, and could in fact make to my tastes, at home, by myself.
Given the restaurant’s name, we had to order the Miso Taco. In fact we were able to try one of each of their taco options, for the purpose of writing this review. However if you were to order one, they come set in a group of 3 of the same flavour per plate.
The Miso Taco is deep fried cod tacos with coleslaw, green onions and cilantro topped with miso dressing. Crispy battered fish. The tangy salsa is what gives it interest. I didn’t get any miso and wouldn’t know it was a miso marinated taco, if I didn’t read it in the name.
The Chicken Karaage Taco was fried chicken with a mix or greens, house made tartar sauce, tonkatsu sauce, and green
onions. The thick breading on the chicken was dense and burnt, plus salty with soy. Sadly I enjoyed this taco the least.
I liked the Teriyaki Cheesy Taco for its chewy texture and crispy smokey burnt cheese flavour. Teriyaki style beef, crispy cheese crust, green onion, cilantro, and chipotle.
The Ebi Fried Taco was the lightest of the bunch. Ebi and shredded cabbage topped with pickled, red onions, and chopped cilantro.
The Chashu Style Carnitas Tacos was an interesting take and I liked their fusion idea of this. Pork carnitas served with spicy mayo, chopped onions, cilantro, and pineapple relish. Although given the natural gristle of the meat used, I found this taco on the greasy and fatty side with extra oil. It needed more of the pineapple relish to balance things out.
The Tuna Tataco was fun to say. Seared tuna topped with greens, sweet soy dressing, cilantro, red onions, and wasabi mayo. This was another salty bite, but probably intended to be paired with drinks. The one taco was a lot, and three to myself would be too much.
Everyone loves a good taco dip and the Birria-Dilla is Miso Taco’s version of it. Flour tortillas filled with melted cheese, birria, onions and cilantro; served with a dipping consome. I appreciated that they were not stingy on anything here. Generous on the cheese, plenty of shredded pork, and a thick coating of gravy that reminded me of Korean short rib sauce.
What makes this specifically unique for Miso Taco is the ability to add instant noodle to the mix. And it is exactly as it sounds, a serving of instant Mi goreng noodles that you can have with what remains of your dipping consome, when you are done your taco. Not the best tasting of either, but a fun idea together, and one we opted in for and found the most memorable.
For something less hands on, look to their Fried rice taco bowl. Exactly what it reads like. A taco’s worth of topping in a bowl, over rice. Mushroom fried rice, topped with their secret sauce, shredded lettuce, and pico de gallo. Great as a base or side, I would advise adding on some meat to make it a meal. We would order more of the pork chashu here, and found it a better match for the fatty chunks, having the rice as a base to hide some of that unwanted gristle. As for how it all tasted, it was a facsimile of Chinese cuisine, with familiar sweet and salty flavours; but overall burnt and smokey. The add on of an egg did help to brighten the dish, but I find an egg helps most things.
Something less exotic is the Ultimate chicken wrap. Flour tortilla with chicken karaage, rice, lettuce, tomatoes. onions. chipotle mayo, and cheese. It reads and eats like a chicken bowl with rice, bundled up in a wrap. I could have used more sauce or something on the side to dip it into. Pretty basic as is.
From here, I thought about trying some of their sushi rolls or fish from their raw bar; but at this point I wasn’t too impressed so decided to shy away. After all, anything here would not be authentic and there are so many other fusion sushi shops offering something similar, that are probably doing better because they are focused on that one task. And here they are offering a lot to be all for many.
One part of the menu I had no issues with were the desserts, done creatively and wonderfully. The Banana Tempura ice cream is a familiar fresh meets satisfying option. A whole banana halved and coated in tempura batter, then topped with vanilla ice cream and a caramel sauce. A little too sweet for me with the extra sticky drizzle, but I liked the starchy banana and the melted vanilla ice cream as a sauce of sorts.
My favourite of the two dessert options was the Kinako mochi and churros. Eight house made churros and a handful of grilled mochi dressed with condensed milk, and kinako powder. This was a surprisingly fun mix of crunchy and chewy all wrapped in honey-like sweetness. I just wished there was a more mochi of a more even ratio of it to churro.
In summary, a fun and lively spot for some interesting eats. More so a bar than a restaurant, and not a place I would immediately think of when craving either Asian fusion or a taste of Mexico. But if you are looking for a rowdy night out, this one I can recommend. A solid destination with their beat heavy techno beats and their long list of cocktails that will only elevate their street style dishes.
Miso Taco
219 Union St, Vancouver, BC V6A 4C3
(604) 336-4757
misotaco.ca
