Chupacabra

Warning: If you hate mosquitoes, don’t even bother to read this review. You will HATE this place. I sat at four different tables outside and was immediately eaten alive. I then went inside and still my legs were eaten alive.
As for the food, it was average. My Tuesday night dinner buddy ordered the tacos and thought they were meh. I ordered the Cubana and it hit the spot if you want a nothing special, average Cubana.
Sadly, I won’t be back.

Possibly the worst service you can get on H street. If you want to wait half an hour just to order to pay 15 bucks for tacos, if the employees can figure out their POS, about as good as day old Chipotle be my guest. I wouldn’t be caught dead giving these asshats my money ever again. Just watched half a dozen customers leave in disgust like I did because of the terrible service.

This is the food truck listing. To the best of my knowledge the Chupacabra food truck has been parked ever since the bricks and mortar location opened in late 2013 on the corner of H and Ninth streets NE. Still much like a food truck bcos you order at a counter and sit on huge patio, and even has a liquor license.
So as of 2014 you prolly want to read the reviews on that other listing:

Went there on a Friday night with a couple of friends. We didnt have a plan that night so we just walked on H st and ended up there.
Ordered Tacos and Arepa, however the surprise was that they were out of guacamole, rice, and plantains! so that kind of ruined the experience.
The food was not the best tacos I have had, and recently for some reason I’ve been ending up at a lot of taco places so I’ve become a snob when it comes to Tacos :)
The outdoor seating and the communal tables is a nice plus, hopefully they polish up the other stuff this place has a lot of potential in my opinion.

Would have given this place 1 star if not for the cool ambiance and outside seating.
The tacos here are very dull and flavorless. The meat lacks flavor. I got fish tacos and a barbacoa taco. The fish were decent chunks but were not seasoned well or at all. They also could have used some sauce, as the onion and cilantro toppings didn’t do much for it. The barbacoa was extremely bland.
They need better accompaniments for the tacos, such as mango or lettuce or slaw. The onions and cilantro just don’t do enough with the bland meats.
In addition, they didn’t have enough salsas to choose from. Their salsa verde was solid and their red sauce was spicy. But, there was only one each of both and they were almost empty.
The servers are nice, but I ordered and got charged for three tacos, and they only brought me two. Good thing I saved my receipt. They corrected their mistake right away, but overall, I’d say that they were a little aloof and not on top of things.
Much room for improvement, but I think this place is potential for sure!

I went last night at 7:30 pm and they were closed. Who is closed on a Wednesday night?
*edit* Thanks for the response. I will say, however, you had the hours posted on everything… but your own website. In fact, the winter hours are STILL not up there. The summer hours are still listed on the menu. Do keep in mind that not everyone uses Twittagra and Facebook all the time.

Eh.
Barbados was dry and not really that tasty.

I got the pastor with the habanero sauce, $ 3.50 is wayyy too over priced for the size of the taco, however it is loaded with meat. I also don’t like how there isn’t much choice or visual of toppings, u just get the usual. The service was fast, but I can’t get over their tiny 4 inch tacos! I also though the pastor lacked some punch, i prefer my pastor thinly sliced, their version is more chopped.

Influenced by another Unilocaler, I too ordered the barbacoa taco and chicken tortilla soup. Boy was I not disappointed. The barbacoa taco had way more meat than I was expecting and gauc! Topped with a bit of red salsa, this taco was both tangy and satisfying. I wish I had ordered 2.
The soup had WAY more chicken than I was expecting. I’m surprised broth fit into the bowl with the amount of chicken in there. Great light flavor to the broth balanced by the hearty chicken chunks. I would order the soup again if in the mood for soup, but I think that barbacoa taco has my heart.

Really disappointed in this truck.
I ordered the lamb, chicken and pork tacos and I really wanted to like them but it just let me down all around.
The shells the tacos were made out were not particularly good. I don’t know if they use cheap shells or what but they didn’t taste good and I ended up not bothering with eating the shells.
The insides weren’t much better, the lamb wasn’t particular tasty, I felt like it wasn’t seasoned properly. The chicken was spicy for but without the taste deserving of the kick. Same with the pork, not particularly seasoned properly.
Overall these tacos just didn’t hit the spot for me. Not the best use of 10 dollars.

This is a pretty solid taco truck. I got 2 chicken tacos and some chips n guac on the side. My main critique is the guac isn’t that great, and the chips could have used some [more?] salt (maybe that’s too ‘muricanized?)
Speaking of being too white, I’m probably the only one who will complain about the soft shells being corn. I like me some flour shells, as the consistency is just better for me. I won’t knock them down for it, but since I think shells are one of the best parts of a taco, they should take a hint from some of the other trucks that offer both types of soft shells.
Still the ingredients tasted quite good. The generous amount of cilantro was just that — to some may be overpowering, to me it was borderline. I did feel the tacos needed some «zip» and I got a side of the green (milder) salsa, which was spicy enough, but didn’t have much flavor.
On the very rare occasions I go to a place like taco bell (cringe, I know), I always get the Hot sauce instead of Fire. Not because I can’t handle the heat, but the Hot has actual flavor while the Fire is just straight up hot. Something to consider — but again a great truck!

Review for Chupy 2 at the Navy Yard — July 24^th.
The chips are great and only $ 1. I love the flaky salt!
While the «taco filling» was delicious, the soft «taco shell» was a complete FAILURE. The tacos are double-​shelled which sounds like a BONUS, but it’s not. The shells aren’t cooked resulting in shells that essentially disintegrates on contact. That’s why they double up on them.
The shells really ought to be quickly heated. Corn tortilla shells are NOT particularly tasty when they aren’t…in fact they are rather bland. Imagine eating mashed potatoes that haven’t been baked first, or coffee beans that haven’t been roasted first. IT MAKES A HUGE DIFFERENCE what a little bit of heat will do!!! So now they are just doubling up on the blandness which completely dilutes the subtle flavors of the filling.
Of the 3 tacos I had I enjoyed the Veggie the most, Pork was okay, and Chicken the least. Surprisingly the veggie was the tastiest option because of the strong spices they used.

I chanced upon this place while waiting to pick up my family from the union station. It was lunch time, and my tummy was grumbling as I parked the car. The first thing I saw was a line of food trucks right beside me. Lol!!! I decides on tacos, I’d been craving them for a while and this place delivered spot on! Pollo sofrito. Slow cooked chicken, cilantro, marinated in some acidic flavors, topped with radish and wrapped in corn tortillas. Oh my god! Taco heaven! The Chicken was moist and tender, perfectly cooked, te radish neatly grated on top — my only gripe. I am not a fan of corn tortillas and they do not free flour ones :(sad! But just to let you know, they were amazingly yummy regardless!
Loved every bite of it. I secretly licked my fingers once I was done. Yes, sitting alone in my car I felt entitled to it! :):) 2 filling tacos and a coke for $ 7 — big bang for my buck! If I am ever in this area again, u can be sure I will be back! :):)
Thanks for the Aweeeesomeeee lunch Chupacabra! :):)

So the plan was to try out the new truck, Peanut Butter Jelly Time, but Andrew Zimmern of the Travel Channel had to go and take that truck over with his camera crew just as I was arriving. Aaarrrgghhhh! I had printed out their menu and was planning on feasting on a custom concoction with Biscoff Spread, Apple Jelly and Cap’n Crunch on toasted Wonder Bread. Oh well… next time :-(
So, the next truck over was one that has long been on my list… the Chupacabra truck. With the crowd gathering around the PBJ truck, it was smooth sailing ordering from the Chupacabra.
They say that it’s an elusive creature, that it’s a blood-​sucking beast, some say it’s even from another world. But, there it was, just hanging out in the open… this mysterious beast rumbling in it’s dark solace. To my surprise, it was surrounded by smiling people who were more than happy to provide me with some of the best tacos I’ve had in recent memory.
I ordered Pollo Mole & Pork Carnitas… one of each. My only mistake? Only getting one of each! The tacos are made with a double layer of soft corn tortillas and made fresh to order with the meats and the veggies and whatnot with homemade salsas on hand. They provide the little sauce containers, so load up! The meats where perfectly sauced and cooked and the veggies were freshly chopped… not just poured out of a bowl from earlier and scooped from a can. Couldn’t be any better. I would encourage them to post a 3 taco «deal» even if it is no cheaper than a-​la-​carte. Three tacos is the minimum to really feel like you have had a meal… so that would encourage people to order the right amount.
I was pleasantly surprised with this encounter… unscathed by the gargantuan beast of Puerto Rico and the southeastern mainland… the deadly Chupacabra.
As I began my walk back to the office, the Travel Channel cameras (as well as a circle of cell phone cameras) were still focused a few feet away on Andrew Zimmern. A half-​eaten PBJ in one hand, he pulled four attractivhee young ladies from the crowd — shaking hands with each with his free hand as began asking them about the local experience. Touché Andrew, touché.
By scoring the wacky food, you may have thought you won this round Andrew, but in my opinion, I was the real winner! Having discovered the Chupacabra and it’s quality and professionalism, I will return again and again.
Next time PBJ… next time! Unless Chupacabra is within sight!
— — — —
UPDATE
Two hours later I started to hear the distant cry of the Chupacabra. Within minutes it grew to a piercing scream saying, «come back to us… come back.»
So, what the heck, I only got two tacos to start with, so might as well heed this siren call! My second visit I got two Pollo Mole and one Carrot & Black Bean. Magnificent!

Ok, so I’m always willing to eat my words (and a tasty food truck meal). I went back to Chupacabra today to give them a second chance and to get some more of their wonderful tortilla soup. Additionally, one of today’s specials was a Spicy Lamb taco, which. I figured if bland, would likely be my last taco sample from this truck.
First the tacos — I tried the Jamaica Chicken (with Scotch Bonnets) which was nicely spicy though the meat was a bit on the dry side. The Spicy Lamb was fantastic! Tender chunks of meat and very spicy. I must have missed the sauces last time because the red sauce really packs a punch for those that want to «dial it up» on the heat. However, I didn’t need any of it added to my tacos as the spice levels were just fine this time. I did add some of the mild green chilie sauce, however, to moisten up the chicken.
I was disappointed that there was no Tortilla Soup today — however, the special soup of the day was a Chorizo and White Bean soup which was wonderful and made me forget my disappointment. Loaded with bits of spicy sausage in a broth base, the soup really hit the spot. The only improvement I might make, would be adding a few more beans to the mix (and perhaps pureeing a few into to the soup to smooth it out and thicken it a a little more).
I also had them throw in a «side» of pickled jalapenos and carrots for $ 1. I wasn’t sure what to expect and was rather surprised when I got a «soup cup». I was somewhat expecting sliced jalapenos and shredded carrots «slaw» but got about 4 pickled jalapeño halves, with sliced carrot rounds in the pickling «juice» filling about a half of a soup container. I snacked on these with my tacos — somewhat novel, but won’t likely get them again — the carrots could have used more time in the pickle and the jalapenos were hit or miss on the flavor of each.
Adding a well earned «star» to my review — I was happy that the flavors really «popped» this time on the tacos and I am now sitting in a blissful post lunch Unilocal mode with a fine bead of sweat across my brow.

I am not a huge fan of their tacos. They fall apart very easily, I don’t love the corn tortillas, and they’re not flavorful. I’ve had the pork, chicken, and veggie tacos, and I was a little underwhelmed each time.
That said, their fruit salad with cayenne sugar (think that’s what it was called) was awesome. And extra points for them randomly showing up at DC Brau when we visited their brewery this past Saturday.
Looks like I should try the tortilla soup…

Definitely not my favorite taco food truck. After reading a handful of the reviews on Unilocal,I decided to give this truck a try and I was left disappointed.
I got the Barbacoa, Pollo Jamaica & Chips and Guacamole. So here’s the breakdown…
I actually liked the barbacoa meat as it was tender and flavored nicely, however, the accoutrements in the taco were very underwhelming aside from the guacamole AND in the interest of full disclosure, I’m not a fan of corn tortillas.
The pollo was very bland and the texture just made me not want to eat it. Just pico de gallo, cilantro & shaved radish with the pollo.
The guacamole was pretty good, but when I was eating the chips (while waiting for my Popkern) there were some STALE ones. Ugh.
There were two salsas you could serve yourself — a pretty fiery one made with habaneros and a tomatillo one that was more medium in spiciness (is that a word?).
I think I should stick with the tacos that are tried & true from Far East Taco Grille instead…

Nice enough soft taco al pastor, which is pork marinated in orange juice (yeah, maybe it was). It’s supposed to have pineapple in it, and that’s what the sign promised, but if it did, it was a whole lot less pineapple than the amount of salt in my single serving of tortilla soup! If someone oversalts a sauteed, baked, or roasted dish, that’s understandable, particulalry if there’s raw chicken involved (though some French chefs would tell you that they actually salt chicken croquettes to taste). It’s hard to imagine how someone who cooks for a living could oversalt SOUP so much, and then, I presume taste it and still serve it! This was as strong as the salt-​water that I’ve been gargling with during this allergry season!
Did I mention that there was a slice of very nicely ripened avocado in the soup? I will!

This could possibly be my favorite of all the miscellaneous taco style trucks in DC, and yet it’s not actually because of their tacos. In fact, those are what is keeping this truck from getting a 5 from me, although based on the spirit of the owners I have no doubt it will continually get better over time. I really love the flexibility a truck like this allows the owners to constantly change the menu based on seasonality and emerging trends, and their push towards unique vegetarian options is a nice nod for people in search of flavor who happen to have self-​imposed dietary restrictions.
What was really the standout item here for me was the chicken tortilla soup. Given that the tacos are $ 3 a piece, and this is just $ 4, it’s an easy choice for me for return visits. The amount of chicken included is quite a lot and I really love the addition of avocado too. I was worried that on my trek back to the office the crunch from the tortilla chips would be lost, but they managed to maintain a good bit. Best of all was the broth, really loaded with wonderful herb flavors and a good bit of seasoning. During the winter time this may just be one of the best food truck options out there.
But you’re probably not coming here expecting to get great soup, and luckily the tacos are pretty good too. Not quite revolutionary or extraordinary, but good enough to get you by, and not bland or offensive like some others I’ve tried. Of the two I tried, al pastor and barbacoa, I expected the pork to easily be my favorite, since I’m a huge fan of al pastor tacos and pineapple anything. It wound up being the most disappointing as a result, as it was just kind of cold, and the meat texture was really unpleasant. The pineapple even overpowered the marinated flavors, which were far too mild to be noticeable. The barbacoa however was rather nice, even with the addition of raw onion which I normally detest. They definitely don’t go cheap on the guacamole portion, and it adds a wonderful creaminess to the meat.
I can’t wait to come back and see what else this truck is going to offer. I enjoyed both of their salsas, which you can load up as much as you want before leaving, but would love to see them offer at least one truly spicy one for those of us who love to amp it up.

Chupacabra DC opened up today and I was lucky enough that their first stop was right near my work. Specializing in traditional and «not so traditional» tacos and soups, I am in love with DC’s newest food truck!
I showed up late and was informed they only had one pumpkin taco left and tortilla soup — so my decision was made for me. I didn’t see a menu so I don’t know what the other options were, but it doesn’t matter — my food was delicious!
The taco is served the right way (with 2 corn tortillas) topped with spiced pumpkin chunks, roasted pumpkin seeds, onions and some kind of pepper. The crunchy texture of the seeds went well with the soft pumpkin and the flavors all blended very nicely. For a vegetarian taco, it was really filling. My only change here is if the tortilla was a bit toasted, it would be perfection. This taco was $ 2.50.
The tortilla soup was excellent as well with pieces of tortilla floating in a smörgåsbord of ingredients: two thick slices of avocado, cotija cheese (I think), onions, red peppers, and some spicy green peppers. It was also a really filling and flavorful, but not heavy soup. I think some tortilla soups are just too dense and cheesy but since the cheese was in the cotija crumbles and not melted in, it was really great (albeit a tad too salty). The soup was $ 5.00.
The service was great and the owners were friendly.
Their twitter promises pork belly and thanksgiving dinner themed tacos coming up and I can’t wait to try them all!