Machetes and Strawberry Masa Lure Diners to Tortilleria el Maizal in North Dallas

Hidden away in the same small strip center in North Dallas where you’ll find Agoza Kitchen Ethiopian restaurant is Tortilleria el Maizal, one of those small taquerias that are so prevalent in this area. The better the spot, the busier it is in the early morning and at lunch, when it will be jam-packed with workers trying to refuel for the rest of the day ahead.
Every time we go to a place like this we’re reminded of how dumb we were for taking French instead of Spanish in high school. Sure, sure, we can say “le crayon est sur la table” but that isn’t really helpful when trying to order at places like this. Luckily, however, the staff are patient and Google Translate is your friend.

Corn of all forms is a dominant feature of the menu — no surprise since it’s right there in their name, and what brought us here on this day was hearing about a tamale fresa (strawberry masa tamale) that was available, along with a masa-based drink, atole champurrado. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
We started with a taco plate and chicken enchiladas verdes. But first came a small basket of chips and some salsa verde. The chips were obviously made in-house, multi-colored and crisp, and the salsa was bright and fresh.
The taco plate rings in under $10 at lunchtime and comes with rice, beans and three tacos. We mixed and matched the proteins, opting for one each of barbacoa, carnitas and pastor. Served on a couple of corn tortillas, each taco brought the flavor one expects from a place like this, but the moist barbacoa with a healthy portion of grilled and charred onions stood out the most, finished off in two or three bites and leaving us wishing for more.

Other taco fillings include chorizo, asada de res, chicken, chicharron, nopalitos and tripa.
The enchilada plate came with rice and four enchiladas for $12. The chicken was not shredded as usual but sliced in strips, fajita-like. The verde sauce was spot-on, and they didn’t skimp on cheese. If anything, the cheese overpowered the dish a bit.

Other menu options include flautas, chilaquiles, gorditas, sopes, huarache, tortas, chile rellenos, quesabirrias and a machete. Someone next to us (there are not many tables, so there's often a communal seating arrangement) ordered the latter; it's shaped quite like an actual machete — a long slender tortilla a bit like a quesadilla, stuffed with cheese and protein. It could feed a small family.

There are also bowls of menudo, pozole and caldo do pollo available, and desayunos (or breakfast) is also on the menu.
The strawberry tamale was bright red as one would expect and not overly sweet. It was just masa, however, and did not contain a strawberry-filled center. Still, it was a nice way to end the meal.

Finally, we got an atole champurrado to go, a chocolate-based hot drink prepared with masa, cinnamon and other spices that is a sort of comfort food for many and often the main component of a breakfast on a chilly morning. But it works on a warm afternoon as well.

Highly recommended.

5528 Alpha Road, No. 103. Monday – Saturday, 7 a.m. – 8 p.m.; Sunday, 7 a.m. – 6 p.m.