Pronto's Tacos

The last restaurant that was at this location, a Salvadoran place called Costa Del Sol, was gangbusters, but no one knew about it and they couldn't stay in business. So after eating at Pronto's Tacos, the new occupant, I feel a need to spread the good word.

Despite the huge Latino community in San Pedro, the Mexican & Central American food scene here has always been disappointingly weak. Sure there are standouts, like the taco trucks of Pacific, Las Brisas and Baja Fish, but the majority of Mexican food in this town just doesn't cut it.

Enter Pronto's Tacos. The minute I saw the words "tortas, lengua, cabeza" on their sign, I knew that I had to check the place out. Although I haven't crossed the "I'm into brains" line with cabeza yet, I consider a good selection of traditional meats an indicator of quality in any ethnic restaurant.

So a couple of weeks back, working late, a couple of friends and I scooted on down Pacific for some late night dining. The minute I walked in and saw the 4 hanging boards of their menu, I was in hog heaven. Burritos, Tacos and Tortas each have an entire board to themselves, with the fourth board being devoted to other delicious things that don't fall into those three categories.

I've only eaten here three times, but I'm in love. Their lengua is so good it's hard for me to try other things, but as far as I am concerned their three stand outs are carnitas, their beans and their rice. Now Mexican food is a pyramid that is build upon a base of rice and beans. Fail to do these things justice, and your pyramid will fall apart. The beans have that smokey flavour that you only get when they are cooked in small pots, when the bottom of the pot burns a little and the rest of the beans become better for it. Their rice has what I look for in Mexican rice, not little fake saffron strands that suck up to proper Spanish rice, but little bits of corn, lima bean and peas, giving the rice a more substantial texture and good flavour to boot.

On to the portions and the meats. All I can say is that the Pronto's crew really knows how to pack meat into a taco. Their carnitas comes in big, fork torn chunks, not oozily moist, but not dry either. All they need is lime. If what you are craving is a decent belly filler of a meal at a good price, this place kicks ass.

The wierdness. Every restaurant has a darkside, the slight wierdness that takes it down a notch or brings it up. In Pronto's case, two wierd things stand out. First, their counter girl is obviously someone's daughter who has been drafted into the family busines, and she's at the bottom of the learning curve. So dealing with her requires a little patience. Second, their Cuban sandwich is bizarre. Maybe they are on the cutting edge of Cuban sandwich technology, maybe where they are from in Mexico a Cuban sandwich is a vastly different thing than the standard Miami style. No one knows for sure. I'm not saying that it's a bad sandwich, but it is marketed under a misleading moniker. In Pronto's defense, they do list the ingredients, so they aren't hiding anything from you on that one.

Getting there? Pronto's is located on the East side of Pacific Avenue, between 14th & 15th, and it looks like the picture above. They are open till at least 10 PM, and they do deliver, but I haven't tried their delivery service yet (but I will be). Next time you are comprimising between the bland food at Jolly Burrito and The Brite Spot, mosey over to Pronto's instead and get youself a treat.