BETHLEHEM, Pa. – A new fast-casual eatery is serving up tasty tacos, burritos, quesadillas and other Mexican favorites in the Lehigh Valley.
A new location of Taco Tek Mexican Grill, offering freshly prepared halal Mexican food, held a soft opening on Saturday at 3211 Schoenersville Road in Bethlehem, Manager Jerry Patel told 69 News.
The new restaurant occupies an updated Schoenersville Centre space that previously housed a Moe’s Southwest Grill location, which closed in the spring after about 14 years of operation.
The new Taco Tek restaurant is the brand’s first Pennsylvania location, supplementing four locations in New York City and another in Paterson, N.J. that have opened over the past year.
Taco Tek restaurants serve up authentic Mexican dishes, “made fast without cutting corners,” according to a message on the business’ website.
“Big portions, real heat, and a crew that treats every order like it’s going to someone they know,” the online message continues. “Come hungry.”
Taco Tek offers made-to-order Mexican dishes, including build-your-own burritos, burrito bowls, tacos (soft or crispy), quesadillas, loaded nachos, salad bowls, crunch stacks and loaded fries.
Orders can be customized with choice of rice (cilantro lime rice, Mexican rice or brown rice), beans (black beans or pinto beans), protein (grilled chicken, shredded chicken, honey chipotle chicken, ground beef, steak, steak birria, chicken birria, sweet spicy shrimp, tofu, fajita veggies or fried cauliflower) and toppings (pico salsa, corn salsa, spicy salsa, jalapeno, cilantro, red onion, romaine lettuce, spring mix, lime wedge, Mexican cheese, Monterey Jack cheese and guacamole).
Additionally, individuals can also choose their sauce (sweet mango verde sauce, chipotle sauce, habanero sauce, cilantro sauce or sour cream) and optional queso or spicy queso.
“We don’t do freezers and we don’t do preservatives,” an online message reads.
“Just honest ingredients prepared fresh daily. Choose from our signature slow-cooked proteins, house-made salsas, and endless toppings to build your perfect meal.”
One of the business’ most popular features is its birria menu, which includes chicken or steak birria tacos, quesadillas and pies, Patel said.
Birria meats are braised in a mouthwatering chili sauce, freshly served in broth-immersed corn tortillas along with a side of consomé (broth) and pickled onions.
“All of our meat is halal, and we also make all of our own sauces,” Patel said. “Our biggest seller is the birria tacos. They are so delicious. Everyone who tries them loves them.”
Other menu highlights include sides such as seasoned fries, fried cauliflower and chips with salsa, queso or guacamole; and desserts such as dulce de leche churros, Oreo churros and tres leches cake.
The Bethlehem location features seating for around 50 guests, and takeout, delivery and catering are also available.
During its soft-opening phase, the Bethlehem restaurant is open 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily, Patel said.
Later this fall, hours will expand to 10 a.m. to 3 a.m. daily, Patel added.
“We are looking to hire more workers, and after we do that, we’ll be able to expand our hours,” Patel said. “Anyone interested in applying can stop in the restaurant.”
The Taco Tek team is looking to expand the brand’s footprint with more locations in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Maryland, Virginia and Delaware.
The team hopes to open additional restaurants in the Lehigh Valley, but no other locations have been nailed down yet, Patel said.
At the Schoenersville Centre, Taco Tek joins other food and drink spots, including Haaz’s, Saladworks, Starbucks and Manhattan Bagel.
For the latest Taco Tek updates, follow the restaurant’s pages on Facebook and Instagram. Info: tacotekus.com.