100% Taquito may not be well aware of me, but I’m 100% acquainted with it. The Mexico City-style taqueria off the Southwest Freeway has been a consistently good lunch spot since my work moved to the former Houston Post building at 4747 Southwest Freeway some 10 years ago. It hasn’t received much press in recent years, but it’s been doing some interesting things ahead of the FIFA World Cup.
The history of 100% Taquito, like many of the other restaurants I’ve visited along Houston’s major roadways, is a little obscure. Siblings Karla and Marko Garcia started the first iteration of the business in 1995 as a food truck and University of Houston student project via the Center for Entrepreneurship. The truck was parked on Westheimer Road across from a Super KMart. The Garcias’ effort was covered by the Houston Chronicle as part of a wider narrative about Gen Xers wanting to be their own bosses.
“Why am I working my butt off if I’m going to get treated the same way (as other employees who don’t work as hard)?” Karla Garcia asked in the 1995 article. “Companies can decide tomorrow your job is over—or if someone else comes in who’s willing to accept less money, you’re out of there.”
In 1998, 100% Taquito moved into its present digs at 3245 Southwest Fwy., just across the highway from Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church. This time, the restaurant was owned and operated by Marko and his parents, Manuel and Susana. They designed the interior to resemble an exterior, turning the dining room into a rough facsimile of Mexico City. The seating areas look like a busy street. (There’s even a car!) The back of the restaurant, where customers order food, resembles a food trailer. All around, TVs are blaring fútbol matches, boxing events or music videos. There’s a ofrenda near the condiments section, various skeletons, and other colorful decorations scattered around the restaurant.
Since the beginning, 100% Taquito’s menu has revolved around regional Mexican cooking. Unlike at Tex-Mex restaurants and taquerias, you’ll find things like sopes, tortas, molletes and a judicious use of Chihuahua cheese. Even the name of the restaurant is meant to evoke that simple premise.
“You always hear ‘100 percent cotton’ and ‘100 percent pure,’ ” Marko Garcia told the Chronicle in 2005. “In this case, we’re 100 percent authentic. I’ve been told that it’s a brilliant name. I’ve also been told it’s foolish. But the thing is, people grab on to it.”
I’ve sampled a good chunk of 100% Taquito’s menu over the years. On a recent visit, I fell back on an old standby: a spicy brisket tinga torta. I’ve always admired the heat and stew-y tomato flavor of the mixture when combined with fresh avocado, lettuce and soft French bread. I usually order the mangonada, a mango “slush” with mango chunks flavored with chamoy and served with what I assume is a tamarind-wrapped straw. They used to serve it with a lollypop, but I guess they switched it out.
100% Taquito is in World Cup mode ahead of this summer’s festivities, which include several matches in Houston. Soccer-themed ornaments and displays adorn the restaurant, such as flags of Mexican clubs and national team draped along the windows. It’s a vibrant and colorful display that transforms the restaurant into a must-see destination before it all will inevitably come down.