We are not going to tell you our margaritas are the best on Whyte Avenue. We are going to tell you we squeeze every lime by hand, we use 100 percent agave tequila in the house pour, and the only thing from a bottle is the tequila. The classic is lime, agave and Tromba blanco, shaken hard and served on…
We did not design the room for Instagram, but we are not going to pretend it hurts. Here are the five spots our guests photograph most. One: the neon TACO REPUBLIC sign over the bar on Whyte. Two: the birria consommé pour at the table. Three: the pink and green tile behind the downtown counter. Four: the patio in July,…
Every week someone at the bar asks which taco is the best one on the board. Chef Mateo refuses to answer, so we polled the staff. Birria won on comfort: six hours of braising, a crispy cheese edge and a cup of consommé do a lot of work on a January night. Al pastor won on craft: marinated pork shaved…
Taco Tuesday at the Republic is the only standing appointment I keep. Two-dollar street tacos, a cold Pacifico and the whole Avenue in one room.
A Whyte Avenue regular since 2021
Taco Tuesday runs all day at both locations: two-dollar street tacos on corn tortillas, any protein, no limit. Trivia starts at 7 pm on Whyte and the downtown spot runs a build-your-own nacho special until close.
Dessert is where our pastry cook, who would prefer not to be named, gets to show off. The churros are piped and fried to order, rolled in cinnamon sugar and served with cajeta, the goat milk caramel we cook down in house. The tres leches cake soaks overnight in three milks and comes out with a torched meringue. For something…
This started as a staff meal and ended up on the fall specials board. Here is the version you can make at home. Halve a pound of Brussels sprouts and roast them hot with a little oil until the edges blacken. Cook four slices of thick-cut bacon until crisp and chop. For the salsa, char four Roma tomatoes, half an…
Our guacamole has four ingredients: avocado, lime, salt and white onion. Everything else is optional, and here are three variations the kitchen stands behind. Classic: mash two ripe avocados with the juice of a lime, a quarter cup of minced white onion and a good pinch of salt. Leave it chunky. Smoky: add a charred jalapeño and a spoonful of…
This salsa shows up on our spring specials board the first week the farmers market reopens outdoors. It is sweet, salty and a little hot, and it goes with fish tacos, grilled chicken or a bag of chips on the patio. Dice two ripe mangoes and half a red onion. Mince one jalapeño, seeds in if you like heat. Crumble…
Small changes, big difference. Here are six things we do in the kitchen that work just as well at home. Warm the tortilla on a dry pan until it blisters. Double up corn tortillas for anything saucy. Salt the onion and cilantro, not just the meat. Add acid at the end, always lime, never bottled. Keep the salsa on the…
Mexican lagers are the obvious pairing and we keep plenty on ice, but Edmonton brews some beer that belongs next to a taco. A crisp pilsner from a local brewery cuts through carnitas fat. A hazy pale ale stands up to the chiles in birria. A gose, salty and sour, is the best thing we have found for fish tacos.…