The shrimp, grilled steak, and grilled chicken tacos at the...

The shrimp, grilled steak, and grilled chicken tacos at the new Taco Fresco in Babylon. Credit: Newsday/Melissa Azofeifa

Bask in the warmth of Northern Mexico at Babylon’s Sonoran-inspired taco spot, Taco Fresco.

Taco Fresco is on Railroad Avenue in the space that used to house Supreme Philly cheesesteak. The fresh taco concept was inspired by a trip part owner Mike Tochluk and his business partner Charles Kwon took to Las Vegas and Southern California. The pair had run franchises such as Wing Stop for a long time

"We don’t see anything like this on Long Island, so we decided hey, why not take a stab at it,” Tochluk said. "Trying some of these taco places that we were very impressed with on the West Coast, a lot of them were very simple menus, but just really focusing on the taco ... we really wanted to keep it simple, but make sure that it was the best that it can be at a reasonable price as well.”

Handmade flour and corn tortillas (using nixtamasa, a corn flour made of corn treated with limewater, typical of Sonoran-style food) were also a source of inspiration when curating the menu, Tochluk said. He worked for months with Taco Fresco’s chef and business partner, Benito Vazquez.

Vazquez came to the United States from Puebla, Mexico, about 22 years ago. He now lives in Elmont where he and his wife own Elmont’s Café de Hoya. He’s currently full time at Taco Fresco.

"The concept is to make everything fresh, if you understand the concept that everything is fresh and this is not fast food, you’ll wait for the tortillas to be made,” Vazquez said in Spanish. "That’s the concept we bring to Long Island; it’s not fast food, this is a spot where you come to enjoy fresh [food] made in that moment.”

Their street taco options include carne asada or grilled steak tacos ($4.99) made with cilantro, onions, salsa and guacamole. They also have pollo asado or grilled chicken tacos ($3.99) and seared shrimp tacos ($4.29) served with cabbage, pico de gallo, chipotle crema and guacamole. The al pastor taco ($3.99), also a highlight on the menu, is marinated pork, pineapple, cilantro, onions, salsa and crema verde.

Meat-free options include the grilled cactus taco ($3.99) served with cilantro, onions, salsa and guacamole.

But tacos aren’t all Taco Fresco is offering, there are also mulitas on their menu. They offer various stuffings for what can be considered a tortilla sandwich, such as cheese ($3.49) and mar y tierra, which translates to land and sea ($6.49) made of grilled steak, seared shrimp, pico de gallo and chipotle crema. 

The salsa bar at Taco Fresco in Babylon with salsa...

The salsa bar at Taco Fresco in Babylon with salsa verde, pico de gallo and salsa roja. Credit: Newsday/Melissa Azofeifa

In keeping with the Sonoran-style concept, they also have a salsa bar offering radishes, limes, salsa verde, pico de gallo and salsa roja.

While Taco Fresco is takeout oriented, Tochluk said they hope to expand to other Long Island areas in the future.

Taco Fresco, 20 Railroad Ave., Babylon, (631) 983-8985, tacofrescony.com. Open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

 
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