Taco Battle #1 Chili's vs. El Tacotote

Last night I treated my mom out a Chili's for her birthday. Instead of ordering my usual Mushroom Swiss Burger, I wanted to try their new Mini Tacos. I have to say they were actually pretty good and I didn't have that same heavy feeling I would've gotten had I ordered a burger. And then today after riding my Trikke down the Embarcadero for 2 hours, I stopped over to my favorite taco truck, El Tacotote. Now it might not even be fair to compare these two, but let's see how they stack up against each other.

Chili's Mini Taco Combo - $8.99. Choice of two flavors. I picked 2 Classic Chicken Tacos (Smoked chicken topped with applewood smoked bacon, cheddar cheese, green onions and cilantro sour cream) and 2 Crispy Shrimp Tacos (With spicy cole slaw and tequila lime sauce. Topped with cilantro.).


It's always nice to have a side of rice and beans with your tacos. The Crispy Shrimp Tacos were really good. Almost like the one's from Rubio's. The Classic Chicken Tacos were just okay to me. They didn't have much flavor even though they had bacon and ranch inside. I should've just ordered all Crispy Shrimp. Maybe next time.

El Tacotote's street tacos - $1 each. Small description here, 2 Chicken and 2 Steak tacos.

Obviously, the big sell here is that they only cost $1. And they're really fat tacos for that price. So worth it. I could've bought 9 of these for the price I paid for the Chili tacos, though smaller. However with these tacos, these are the type of tacos that you don't really eat to enjoy and just stuff your face with them. Not too much flavor unless you dowse your tacos with hot sauce.

The verdict: Well like I said earlier, it's hard to compare these two because one's of restaurant quality while the other is made in a truck. But I'm gonna have to declare El Tacotote the winner here since you can totally load up on their tacos because they're cheap and are really good!

Ike's Birthday Gift to me.

Did I already say that I love Ike's Place? Tip: if you love their sandwiches, sign up for their mailing list for more free sandwich offers. Today was another pig out session for me as I picked up another King Koopa and tried the Eli Manning for the first time for my free sandwich. The Eli Manning was good but since they didn't have any avocados, I didn't get the full effect. Next time. It's pretty much like the Nacho Boy Supreme but with chicken instead of roast beef. Still my favorite sandwich shop!

Here's my birthday coupon. Thanks Ike's Place!!

#100 Eli Manning: Halal Chicken Breast, Zesty Garlic and Herb Sauce, Mushrooms, Avocado, Cheddar (minus avocado, they ran out)

Here's another crazy thing, right when I got home they sent me another email saying that I could get another free sandwich if I bring in a friend. Anyone wanna go ?

Restaurant.com 80% sale going on right now!

Hey everyone! Just spreading the news about Restaurant.com's current 80% off sale. Now's the time to act on getting 80% off their gift certificates. This is a really great way to try out some restaurants that you've been always curious about and have your bill slashed. Just enter in the the code SANTA when you're at the shopping cart page to apply the discount. Enjoy!!

Merry Christmas!

It's Christmas Day! Did you get something good under your tree? My sister got me a Trader Joe's gift card so she's saved me from spending money on groceries for one week. A couple nights ago, I got two emails from two places offering free food for my birthday with is coming up on Dec. 31st (Mark your calendars folks!!). The first one is for Ike's Place offering a free sandwich with the purchase of any sandwich and the other one is from Rubio's for a free meal up to $7. I love free food! Sparing no time to waste, I quickly used the Rubios coupon for lunch yesterday and picked up their Cabo Plate which includes a Grilled Shrimp Burrito and one of their famous Fish Tacos along with a side of chips and refried beans. The tab ran up to $10 but with my coupon brought it down to $3. Score!!! However, I must say that although the meal filled me up nicely, both the burrito and the taco didn't really taste all that great to me. Which is a sad shame because I use to always go to Rubio's. I guess I got so used to eating at many great taquerias in the S.F. Mission District and in my neighborhood in the last 7-8 months that my taste in burritos and tacos have changed greatly. Oh well, I got a great discount and it filled me up!

I'll probably drop by Ike's next week over in Redwood City to get my sandwiches. And their sandwiches are insanely good! Here are some that I've enjoyed in the past:

#86: King Koopa - All Beef Meatballs, Mozzarella Sticks, Stuffed Jalapeno Poppers, Marinara Sauce


#155: Nacho Boy Supreme - Roast Beef, Bacon, Mushrooms, Avocado, Havarti


#111: Menage a Trois - Halal Chicken Breast, Real Honey, Honey Mustard, BBQ, PepperJack, Swiss, Smoked Gouda


The Menage a Trois seems to be the employees' pick based on reviews I've read on the place. It's also the most unusual tasting in my opinion. I'm wondering what I'll get this time. Stay tuned!

Have a Merry Christmas everybody! Stay safe and eat well!!

Hi y'all!!!

Finally putting up my first posting and I'm really excited yet nervous while I'm writing this. It's gotta shine!! I guess an introduction is necessary. My name is Rod and I'm basically writing this blog to showcase two hobbies in my life that, as of this past year, have pretty much made a name for myself within my network of friends. Those two hobbies are Trikking and taking pictures of my food adventures. Thus, the Hungry Trikker was born. So as you follow this blog, I'll be posting updates of places I've eaten great food and where I've carved through with my trusty Trikke, albeit not at the same time as that would result in an ugly crash. So let's get started. Also, check out the Yelp Tracker on the right side for reviews on places where I've gone to have a bite to eat, you might find something new that you may want to try someday. Thanks for reading this and let's rock and roll!