I have a confession to make. If you start interrogating me on the ins and outs of fish tacos, you’re going to make things awkward between us. If that’s the case, my apologies in advance, because I just haven’t had that many tacos pescado in my life, and I’m the only one to blame. As a native of Southern California, it’s something that I’m working on in my life.

I like fish tacos. I do, but for the most part, my experiences are limited to the combo meals of Wahoo’s, Rubio’s and the occasional familia restaurante. My only real credential might be the one time my friends and I trekked to East LA for Tacos Baja Ensenada and to this day, those 99-cent fish tacos on Whittier Blvd are the best I’ve ever had. Then again, what do I know? Standing on my southern-exposure balcony in San Diego, looking out at the distant Baja sky, I tackle that one question in life that never gets any easier: What should I have for dinner? These days, more often than not, tacos mariscos has been the quickest answer… There’s hope for me yet.

When I reintroduce seafood into my dynamic diet, I go straight for the old favorites: smoked fish on bagels, sushi, tuna melts and Friday’s discounted Filet-O-Fish at McDonald’s. A month later, I order the occasional shrimp dish at Thai restaurants, stock my pantry with cans of chunky tuna and watch out for mercury poisoning, but for the most part, life as a pescetarian isn’t too different from the March-thru-May meatless months. Fortunately, El Zarape’s assortment of seafood tacos has been keeping my to-go diet on the more exciting side.

A popular lunch spot in University Heights, El Zarape’s most impressive item is the menu itself, a kaleidoscope of traditional Mexican fare with an expanded selection of protein choices. That said, it’s not the soy products on the menu but the seafood options that have earned El Zarape its reputation. The sign on the front, “Scallop Tacos,” drew me in, and I immediately fell in love with a taco spread that includes mahi mahi, salmon, shrimp, scallop and lobster. When I saw the reasonable prices – ranging from 99 cents to $3.99 for a seafood taco – I made myself comfortable at the back of the line, and I’ve been returning ever since.

My first impression of the lobster and scallop tacos was simply, “Why is there so much cheese?” The starkly cheeseless images of the scallop and lobster tacos above were taken during my second visit, when I ordered each plain. However, trying both tacos bare convinced me that a little bit of cheese can be well worth the compromise. When all the factors are balanced – that is, when there isn’t too much cheese, and the tortillas are at their freshest – El Zarape’s tacos are fantastic. I am particularly fond of the scallop and salmon tacos, both offering a richer, more full-bodied taste that lends itself well to the handheld taco format.

When it comes to the 99 cent fish taco, I can’t help but draw contrasts to Tacos Baja Ensenada. El Zarape’s version of the fish taco doesn’t measure up to the one dollar deliciousness of Whittier Blvd, and if it weren’t for the 99-cent price tag, I’d sooner go back to Wahoo’s. The rest of the menu is good, but there are better taquerias in the Mexican food Heaven of San Diego, so when it comes down to El Zarape, I stick to the two-thru-four dollar segment of tacos mariscos and especially that scrumptious scallop taco.

Then again, what do I know? Living in view and under scrutiny of the Baja Californian sky, I feel obligated to find the best fish tacos that Los Angeles and San Diego have to offer. El Zarape’s shellfish tacos were a great find, but I still have a long way to go.

El Zarape
4642 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA 92116
(619) 692-1652

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This entry was posted on Friday, July 10th, 2009 at 12:13 pm and is filed under San Diego.