I am attempting to be more social in my office. Despite being "the face" of my office, I don't have a whole lot of social contacts. I don't really get invited to lunches, and most people don't talk to me beyond "hey how are you doing" as they sprint past my enormous desk; so I decided to stop throwing myself a pity party and instead invite someone else out to lunch! After much deliberation and research, I settled on Virgil's Original Taqueria.
Virgil's Original Taqueria
Décor: Virgil's is located at 126 S Salisbury St, Raleigh, NC 27601 and shares a building with 2 other establishments. The Virgil's side of the building is long and narrow with a "living wall" covered with leaves and foliage. There were only a few inside tables inside the restaurant with a 6-seat bar in the middle. There were also a few tables available outside.
Food appearance: The plating is about a half-step above taco truck. There are real plates and silverware but that's where the fanciness ends. The flavors and interesting takes on street tacos are the star in this Taqueria.
Food taste: I was feeling fancy and ordered a Mango Pina Aqua Fresca. The flavor was amazing! The mango was fresh and fruity, there were subtle notes of coconut and a warming kick of ginger to round everything out. I had to stop myself from chugging it all immediately.
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| Chips and Guacamole with a Mango Pina Aqua Fresca |
After seeing the giant bowls of guacamole being carried though the dining room, I decided I needed some in my belly ASAP so I ordered some to share with my lunch date. The guacamole was fresh, chunky and bursting with fresh lime juice and chunks of tomato; also did I mention how large it was? For $6 I think I got the equivalent of 4 avocadoes plus a mountain of fresh tortilla chips! What a bargain! The chips were also a delight - they were crisp, crunchy and slightly sweet. It was an unexpected but appreciated take on your classic tortilla chip.
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| Left: Poblano Rajas Con Papas Right: Fried Avocado Back: Sweet Plantains with Chili Vinegar |
After much debate, I settled on 2 street-style tacos for my entrée. I ordered the Fried Avocado and the Poblano Rajas Con Papas. Let's start from the bottom with the tortillas: the white corn tortillas were definitely not your average out-of-a-bag job. These were tender, delicious and warm. The Fried Avocado Taco was by far my favorite with the great texture of the breading, the spicy refried beans, the crunch of the fresh cabbage and the vinegar from the pickled onions. Everything about this taco had me salivating. I would return to Virgil's for this taco in a heartbeat. The Pobano Rajas Con Papas could definitely use some work. Everything in this taco had the same texture - mush. The poblanos were mush. The potatoes were mush. This taco desperately ached for crunch. Maybe fry the potatoes instead of steaming them? It was also somehow very, very bland. Maybe rethink this taco, Virgil.
My date ordered a Torta, which was also massive and one of the items I was also eyeing. I'll have to order it myself the next time I venture and report back! As a side she ordered the Sweet Plantains with Chili Vinegar. Normally I do not care for sweet plantains and instead opt for their starchier cousin, but these were great! The Chili Vinegar really helped to make them savory and let's be honest, in my opinion, palatable.
Service: This was definitely a sore spot for Virgil's. However, it's possible it was just our server wasn't the best because the rest of the restaurant seemed to not have our issues. After being greeted and choosing a table, we were left alone for at least 5 minutes. A bartender took pity on us and brought us some menus and water, there was then more waiting before 3 separate servers came by to say "I'll be right with you!". After another few minutes we were greeted (for real this time), we ordered our food and were left to chat.
Noticing we were short on time, we asked for our checks as soon as our food arrived. As it was not extremely busy inside the restaurant, I didn't think this would be an issue - evidently I was wrong. After our server assured us he would bring that right back, he disappeared for another 10 or so minutes. He returned to check on us and I asked again if we could bring our checks, this time he actually did. However, they were not correct and we had to flag him down a third time to correct them. We also asked for boxes several times which was a little ridiculous.
Being as I managed a restaurant, I can forgive a lot of things when the place is busy, however this was just laziness. We saw him routinely go back to the bar to check his phone, pal around with co-workers and generally just ignore us. Not a great time. But like I said, no one else seemed to have this issue.
Cleanliness: everything was neat and tidy, down to the living wall.
I would very much like to return to Virgil's to try more of their tasty treats and indulge in one of their many margaritas and other specialties. My advice? Maybe go at dinner time.
Stay tuned to read all about our trip to Washington, D.C.!
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