My favorite restaurant in the entire city of Richardson, hands down.
I've been coming to Ocho for a few years now, but during the pandemic it became something of a comfort food constant for me. There's a lot of Tex-Mex in Texas of course, but Taco Ocho is a true Mexican restaurant.
Their menu gets deep into their Mexican roots, with cuisine that reflects specific regional favorites of Mexico, as well as pan-Latin offerings inspired by Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. Rest assured though, the menu is very accessible even if--especially if--all you know of Mexican food is "tacos".
Their slow cooked chicken, beef, and pork all burst with flavor without giving you soggy, fall-apart taco disasters. Their tortas taste as good as any I've had in Texas without greasy feeling some places can leave you with.
And their tostadas are the stuff your stomach dreams of: light but deeply fulfilling offerings that curate those regional flavors like nothing else on the menu. The smoked chicken elote tacos are fantastic, but the tinga tostada gives it room to breathe with the added depth of their refried black bean spread beneath it.
Where Taco Ocho really shines is in the impressive creativity on display in their brunch menu. A lot of kitchens would be happy to offer you chilaquiles on the weekend and call it quits--and Taco Ocho does have an excellent plate of chilaquiles on offer.
But the options spread out confidently from there: the Buenos Dias knows brunch is often the breakfast of the unfortunate souls with hangovers, and brings a combination of a fried egg atop breakfast potatoes pulling double duty soaking up the delicious Argentinian sauce from the ample amounts of slow cooked brisket underneath it all.
The Vegan Dream is a killer chickpea scramble, vibrant and surprisingly spicy, packed with bright vegetables and accompanied by the crowd favorite black frijoles and breakfast potatoes.
But my all time favorite dish at Taco Ocho is one they're proud to give their name to: the Ocho Stack. The name might conjure images of an eight-layer monstrosity daring those who claim to have bottomless stomachs to pick up the gauntlet, but that couldn't be further from the truth.
The Ocho Stack is only three crispy fried tortillas tall. the bottom and middle layers are filled with just the right amount of carnitas on top of perfectly spread layers of, you guessed it, black frijoles, and topped with a fried egg, drizzled with a bright avocado crema, finished off with a finely diced pico de gallo. It is very nearly enough by itself, and for most people it will be, but for those (like myself) who love a good side, the stack comes with their Yucatán potatoes (potatoes and red onions in a creamy, spicy Yucatán sauce) and plantains given their own drizzle of sour cream and a sprinkle of crumbly cotija cheese.
All in all, it covers almost the entire spectrum of flavors all on one plate, and is well worth a try no matter how wild your Friday night beforehand was. Whatever you choose, you literally can't go wrong at Taco Ocho!
P.S. - Their black sweet tea is literally award winning and should not be slept on! If I could buy the tea leaves directly or gallons of the stuff, I absolutely would. read more