Why Restaurant Tacos Taste So Much Better Than Homemade Ones

You can't go wrong when you're going out for tacos. There's no better feeling than seeing them arrive at the table steaming, wrapped in warm, tender tortillas and filled with perfectly seasoned meat or veggies. But when taco night rolls around at home, you might find it hard to replicate the magic of eating out, even if you're using the best cuts of meat. So, what's the secret? Food Republic spoke with Mexican cookbook author and founder of Muy Bueno Blog, Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack, who revealed several key distinctions between restaurant and homemade tacos.

"Restaurants often have the advantage of working with fresh, house-made tortillas or sourcing from local tortillerías," Marquez-Sharpnack explained. Homemade tacos often use store-bought tortillas to save time, but they can be dry and lack flavor due to starch retrogradation — the process of going stale. To get the most out of your tortillas, eat them shortly after cooking.

Marquez-Sharpnack added that "restaurants usually work with prime cuts of meat, authentic marinades, and long, slow cooking methods." For the best, most authentic barbacoa, you need to cook it overnight, which is tough to replicate at home unless you've got a lot of time on your hands. In similar fashion, she warned against using time-saving pre-mixed seasonings, emphasizing that restaurants "use simple, fresh ingredients" to season the meat. All in all, it seems that restaurants have the time and resources to give their tacos a rich depth of flavor that can be hard to replicate at home without making a major time commitment.

Even if you don't have the time to make restaurant-quality tacos, you can still level up your homemade meal by following a few simple, no-fuss techniques. Yvette Marquez-Sharpnack revealed that "griddling a tortilla ... adds smoky flavor, softens the tortilla, and brings out the aroma of corn or flour." She recommends forgoing the microwave for this — instead, use a comal or dry skillet to warm them "until they puff slightly and get a bit of char."

Another effective hack is to marinate the meat overnight with ingredients like "citrus, chiles, and spices," keeping in mind that the general rule of thumb is that the longer you marinate, the more flavorful your meat will be. To give your meat that restaurant-quality feel, "high-heat searing also makes a big difference," she added. This technique will give your meat a flavorful, smoky crust that is notably absent with standard pan cooking. You can also elevate the flavor of your taco meat using stock.

Other small steps to upgrade your tacos are investing in "a bright, freshly made salsa" — or at least choosing a great salsa from the grocery store — and using fresh garnishes. "Cilantro, onion, radish, or even a quick pickled red onion" will take your tacos to the next level, Marquez-Sharpnack told us. These small but intentional steps can make a big difference. Finally, make sure to always round off your dish with a squeeze of lemon or lime.