U of L Cardinal trashes Taco Punk

I have to agree with the article writer's assessment of the food and service. My family really wanted to like Taco Punk, we really did. Given the lack of anything remotely like it near downtown it was supposed to fill that niche for us...but the food just sucked. I make better tortillas and meats at home for a lot less money - with the same local ingredients purchased from a farmer's market. Add to the fact that when we went in we had to order our food twice, because a person that seemed to be the owner or manager was so busy hitting on our teenage server that she continually messed up our order while grown more and more flustered by the clearly unwanted advances. It oozed sleaze to us and we haven't felt any inclination to return since. Obviously it has nothing to do with "Nulu" or whatever the city is calling that part of town these days, but honestly Taco Punk seems to consistently fall short.

I think this review is hilarious and, for the most part, spot-on in terms of its critique of "NuLu" -- man do I ever detest that term. The only thing that rings kinda hollow to me is that NOFX always seemed like lame mall punk to me -- for the kind of kids who think Taco Bell is authentic Mexican, much less a place like Taco Punk.

And nothing against Taco Punk in general, or any other Market-area restaurant (most of the ones I've been to I've enjoyed! What a bougie jerk I am! So un-punk!), but I think the attitude exhibited somewhat in this thread that gentrification, cultural appropriation, and class structure shouldn't be discussed -- or if it is, is somewhat sophomoric at best -- is pretty wrong-headed. I know Louisvillians in general don't like to think about or discuss anything political in a critical way (why else would we have things like Mayor Fischer and NuLu to begin with?), but come on. These are real issues worth talking about, even if the discussion might be uncomfortable for some.

I don't see the problem with people who work downtown wanting to live downtown and therefore shorten the ridiculously long average commute time of americans. Just kinda makes sense to me. without gentrification these buildings just continue to decay. while I have seen some new condos in the area, I primarily see remodeling and restoration of once-beautiful architecture.

I have absolutely no issue with any of that, Joel. I did get a sense that the author in this instance, though, might be a little short on life experience to fit comfortably into her pulpit just yet, but that may just be my Inner Codger talking.

Must be experience talking not codger. I first thought was "writer lacks life experience".

I love what is happening on Market Street after years working on barren Clay Street Live! I do not like the forced name NuLu. It is not organic.

According to the Facebook posts the Louisville Cardinal has pulled all the comments for this article off their site - nice....

Here is what I posted there, it is still "awaiting moderation":

"Grow up little person – when you start earning a living and leave your college cocoon, you may understand the real world. This “gentrification” brings money and jobs to the “downtrodden” you claim to be so concerned about. It saves historic buildings and I will bet those businesses will be here long after you graduate and take a job that barely covers your student loans before you default. The opinion of the food is one thing, that is NOT related to the bashing an entire area."

While I am not a big fan of the NuLu name either, I really like seeing the old bulidings used and have enoyed several of the new restaurants and galleries. Geez, would they rather we all be the same and all eat Taco Bell?

I hate to turn this into a NuLu discussion, but my main problem is that they have built a LOT of condos for no one to live. I'm not sure there is as much demand for living downtown as they are trying to manufacture. There is a lot of mindset to change before people will flock back to downtown, and that is a slow process. It doesn't happen in a couple of years.

Side note, from what I hear that new barber shop is also a bit pricey...

As for the article, I think she is fine to express her opinion, regardless of her experience or the axe she has to grind. I think it is smart that we listen to what the younger (groan as I get older by the minute) generation is thinking. Even if you don't lend much weight to her evaluation of Taco Punk, there is much between the lines to hear and understand.

Closing: Hipsters are like art, you know them when you see them. My wife is one.

Side note, from what I hear that new barber shop is also a bit pricey...

You get what you pay for. I know exactly how much the Market St. Barbers cost. My husband went there once a few months ago when he couldn't get into the normal old man barber shop he'd gone to for years and years. Market St. gave him such a damned fine haircut that now he has to go there every time.

Side note, from what I hear that new barber shop is also a bit pricey...

You get what you pay for. I know exactly how much the Market St. Barbers cost. My husband went there once a few months ago when he couldn't get into the normal old man barber shop he'd gone to for years and years. Market St. gave him such a damned fine haircut that now he has to go there every time.

So does my 17 year old - I live cheap without hair!

I thought I was going to bust a gut on this one!

Do we know this is real and not some kind of Nat'l Lampoon / Sacha Baron Cohen raspberry to credulous readers? Admittedly no eatery would like to see a "review" like this, if you can call it that. It seems to be a 10% review of the cuisine and a 90% combo of social commentary and thinly veiled cry for help for loved ones to put her in a facility for mental observation. How much credibility can an author have when she criticizes makes of cars parked nearby and gets so worked up she fantasizes about making a Molotov Cocktail with a bottle of Shock Top that has nowhere near the ABV to make it effective? I put little stock in how this mess of an article could affect Taco Punk one way or another.

I am torn between hoping she gets into therapy and hoping for more such diatribes till I get tired of the schtick.

One way or another, put on or not, one thing is for sure - the article is getting the reaction the author hoped for...

The more I dig the more I find and the more I worry...

TWITTER: @raehodge Col. Rae Hodge. Colonel of what?

The Louisville Cardinal's Editor-in-Chief elect. Intern Public Affairs reporter for The Kentucky Gazette. Former LRC PI intern. EMPHASIS ADDED

Is that LRC as in Legislative Research Committee? Public Information?

Generally NEWSpaper writers don't do self promotion. At least that was the rule when I was in college journalism.

Up for some tacos? Rae Hodge takes her beef to the review page in "Taco Punk: Hey, Ho, Let's Go somewhere else" louisvillecardinal.com/2012/06/taco-p…
RETWEETED BY COL. RAE HODGE
The original Tweet was by the @TheCardinalNews. Now tell me, who controls that Twitter acocunt?

Actually I feel kind of sad for her. Then I get this... this... She's Playing All Of Us Feeling.

I have to agree with the article writer's assessment of the food and service. My family really wanted to like Taco Punk, we really did.

Passing on the gentrification discussion for now and focusing on the food, our experience was similar. I have to echo Kat's sentiment - we wanted to like Taco Punk, a fresh take on Latin food is an addition to the culinary scene that we welcome. However, on our visit, we found the meat dry, the salsas bland, the cheese uninspiring and were annoyed by the crumbling tortillas that refused to hold our meal inside. We both work hard for what we have, and so don't mind spending a little more for an inspiring culinary experience. However, if you can't at least meet what we get on a regular basis at Las Gorditas for half the price, we probably won't be back.

The more I dig the more I find and the more I worry...

TWITTER: @raehodge Col. Rae Hodge. Colonel of what?

The Louisville Cardinal's Editor-in-Chief elect. Intern Public Affairs reporter for The Kentucky Gazette. Former LRC PI intern. EMPHASIS ADDED

Is that LRC as in Legislative Research Committee? Public Information?

Generaly NEWSpaper writers don't do self promotion. At least that was the rule when I was in college journalism.

Up for some tacos? Rae Hodge takes her beef to the review page in "Taco Punk: Hey, Ho, Let's Go somewhere else" louisvillecardinal.com/2012/06/taco-p…
RETWEETED BY COL. RAE HODGE
The original Tweet was by the @TheCardinalNews. Now tell me, who controls that Twitter acocunt?

Actually I feel kind of sad for her. Then I get this... this... She's Playing All Of Us Feeling.

In the past, people used college newspaper experience to acquire traditional newspaper jobs. With that industry in the toilet (oh how I remember all those sent applications with no response), I'm not sure how people make use of college newspaper experience these days. She's garnished herself plenty of attention that is for sure, and I'm sure someone out there is impressed.

Or, put differently, a traditional restaurant review isn't hard to write (sorry Robin). And it's not going to get a college student a job. I do find it moving toward unethical to play loose-and-fast with the review genre so as to turn it into a social polemic. But I'm sure she's on someone's radar now that she wasn't on a few days ago.

I don't feel sad for her, because I think she knew what she was doing. And if it goes badly, well she will learn something from the experience. It is a college newspaper after all.

She MUST be related to my ex-wife.

Oh, look, another "contrarian" in training.

I have never eaten at Taco Punk the restaurant, but I was unimpressed with Taco Punk the food truck. Honestly, I've been unimpressed with most of the local food trucks. I think it's neat that we have them, but I can wait a long time for over priced food at plenty of places in town without having to track the place down first.

I have family in Austin, TX and Portland, OR and have visited both. The reasons the food truck scenes there work so well is that they focus on CHEAP, QUICK, quality food. A bunch of actual Mexican immigrants piled into a truck, sweating over hot grills slinging quality tacos for $1-2 each and coming out as fast as you can order them. Imagine ordering 2 tacos and an (authentic mexican) Coke, eating them, deciding you wanted to try one of the other ones so going back up and getting a third, all for about $7 and all in a span of about 15 minutes. Wow. Novel. For some reason all of our food trucks think they need to be expensive, slow and focus more on the "artisan" ingredients going into the food than quality of the plates coming out. Using local products is nice, making them into good food is better.

Admittedly I haven't tried all the trucks, but the only one I've visited more than once is Lil Cheezers, cause my man makes a mean grilled cheese, though with Tom+Chee in town I may not be as inclined to track him down anymore. I always know where they will be parked.

Having said that, Taco Punk is clearly of the expensive, slow variety. I can get better tacos a lot of places for a lot less money. Hell, $2 Taco Tuesday at Crafter's is a much better deal and the tacos actually taste good.

I agree with the others here though, the rest of this review is a teenage rant against the establishment, thought I find it interesting that were we discussing Wal-Mart or big chain restaurants, many of the same people taking this person to task would be climbing up on their own soap boxes yelling almost word for word right with them.

Funny how things turn ugly when it's a known local business person being taken to task for making the same over priced, mediocre food that most of the chains do and for being more buzz than actual quality product.

Funny indeed.

The reasons the food truck scenes there work so well is that they focus on CHEAP, QUICK, quality food.

BING! BING! We have a winner!!

I thought the review was immature and shallow. She also bragged about it on her personal fb page which was another let down (since has been deleted. hmmm...). I have my issues with TP (never understood why they went with the Qdoba style set up). But they were packed Saturday so something is going right or they fixed whatever was wrong.

Dolce and Busta Grill (Dolce since '04) have been housed in the East Market District (see what I did there? for a long time now and I remember when the Skate Park was not there (have fun walking though that area back then), Clarksdale Housing Projects was our neighbor, and NOTHING except Artemesia was around. I remember when Garage Bar was an actual garage and now it is a jewel. Those against gentrification would you like that old, nasty, EMPTY garage back? I don't. Put some affordable housing and something on the Northwest corner of Shelby and Mkt and it should only get better.