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Antong Y. Hou:
As a freshman, the debate of Felipe’s versus Jefe’s was all the rage when I first arrived on campus. Now, there’s a new kid on the block… Achilito’s! As college students, we have no money to waste. And nothing hurts more than paying for something that is just okay. In a world of PSETs and midterms that are literally just before reading week, we can’t afford (literally) to take any more L’s.
Here are some of my food critiquing credentials: I eat a lot of food.
Daisy S. Gonzalez:
Coming to Harvard, I had no hopes for either Felipe’s and Jefe’s. I’m Mexican-American and have eaten authentic Mexican food my entire life. If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that fast-food Mexican restaurants cater towards a certain audience that doesn’t always include me. So when a new restaurant emerged, I was ready for change.
Here are some of my food credentials: I only eat Mexican food unless I’m forced to eat Berg.
Achilito’s
AYH: Our first stop was Achilito’s. Upon first entering, the atmosphere was very vibrant and filled with more natural light than its counterpart. It only has one floor that isn’t all that spacious, making it very easy to be overheard. Overall, the vibes are good but not anything extraordinary.
DSG: As soon as you enter, you get a more modern look than other locations. For example, the menus were on TV. I thought that was nice. I loved the brightness and the different shades of colors displayed on the walls. One thing I care about is the decoration of these restaurants. I feel like most of the time they tend to decorate Coco-like… but here they had Aztec symbols to pay more of an homage to the country’s heritage. One thing that’s noticeably different: the lack of space and privacy to gossip.
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AYH: The service was pleasant and we ordered a large ancho steak quesadilla and two shrimp tacos. I know you’re asking why we would ever purchase shrimp tacos–just trust us on this (I don’t even like shrimp). In total, the bill was $25.68. This price hurts the soul. Let’s be so for real, two tacos should not cost $11.
Grilled Shrimp Tacos ($5.50 Each)
AYH: Before we talk about the taste, I would like to note that the shrimp are grilled to order. I literally watched them take them out from the shrimp drawer and slap them on the grill. Immediately, the shrimp smelt amazing and the char was beautiful. Although size doesn’t always matter, the shrimp were MASSIVE. These are not shrimp. They are SHRIMP. The taco was filled with three of these monsters and was bursting at the seams. Biting in, the shrimp juices started to stream out of the taco. It was truly amazing. Despite the heft of the shrimp, the taco was extremely light. You could definitely jump after eating a few of these.
Overall, I give this a strong 8.35/10. Again, I don’t even like shrimp, but this is just so good. However, I am not sure if it is good enough to justify the price. You can be the judge.
DSG: I was pleasantly surprised by the look of them. I’m not going to lie. I wanted to hate shrimp tacos. What are shrimps doing on my tortilla? The flour tortillas used… well, I’m not a fan. I find all flour tortillas have a weird smell to them. However, one bite and I was lowkey left speechless. The juiciness of the shrimp combined with the salsa verde was actually ripping my tortilla in half.
Overall, I rated this a great score of 7.85. I like shrimp; I guess I’m not used to this size… anyways I hated the price. But hey, what I will say is you will NOT be disappointed.
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Ancho Steak Quesadilla ($13.00)
AYH: Right off the bat, the quesadilla looked really good. It was cut into three sizable rectangular pieces. Personally, I think the triangle cut tastes better, but I’ll let this slide. Right away, though, the steak was not steak-ing. In my humble opinion, I like when the steak is in chunks (refer to Chipotle). However, Achilito's seemed to be more on the shredded side. If you tried hard enough, you probably could have gaslit me into thinking it was something else. If I’m paying for steak, I want it to be unmi-steak-able. Honestly, it was alright. Unlike the shrimp tacos, however, it was extremely heavy. We split this quesadilla three ways, but I think it would definitely be subject to diminishing marginal returns on taste (for all you Ec 10-ers).
Overall, I give this a 7.1/10. If your friends are coming here, the quesadilla isn’t a bad option. However, I wouldn’t go out of my way to get one.
DSG: I’m a huge fan of steak quesadillas, so I only think it’s fair that you as the audience know I have my biases. I got my regular and I immediately noticed just how full my quesadilla was. There was not one bite I took that lacked any of the ingredients I added. What I will say is I am a fan of shredded steak pieces as it makes it easier to chew and in my opinion, enjoy your food. The shredded steak allows it to blend into the meal and not completely overtake it. The salsa verde is “watery” but in my opinion that just gives you a more authentic taste. I was legit sweating because of how spicy it was (not that I can’t handle my spice, it’s just been too long with Berg food). What I’m saying is that I have high expectations because I’ve had my mother’s food. Achilito’s at least met my expectations with this quesadilla.
Overall, I give it a weaker 7.001. Why? Just because it reminded me of my mother’s food and I got sad. I wanted to tear up but didn’t… but if you ever do need to eat and cry, this is the perfect place as you are not likely to run into opps at this location.
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Achilito’s Side Note
AYH: Many months ago, I noticed a beautiful poster outside of Achilitos that pictures three tacos perched beside a mango slushy. Also on the sign is the price of $10. However, when you walk in, the slushy is not included. It’s three tacos and a can of soda or water. If you do want the slushy, it’s $15. First of all, three tacos for $10 isn’t even that good of a deal. Second of all, that slushy is misleading.
Next Up: Jefe’s
AYH: After Achilito’s, we made our way over to Jefe’s. Most of you likely know what Jefe’s looks like, but I really enjoy the atmosphere of the place. And, I LOVE the second floor. They even have plants! Overall, the vibes are great.
The service was alright and we ordered the exact same stuff to keep the review consistent: one supersize steak quesadilla and two shrimp tacos. In total, the bill was $19.42, which was $6.26 cheaper than Achilito’s.
DSG: I walked in and well, like it’s food, it’s bland. And while there’s definitely more space to avoid your opps in here, I would just be sad knowing I’m in the same place as them. Yes there’s color but it looked like those abandoned amusement parks. However, on a late Friday and Saturday night, I just might not care.
Grilled Shrimp Tacos ($3.95 each)
AYH: Unlike the freshly grilled shrimp at Achilito’s, the shrimp at Jefe’s are cold and sit in a little container. Before eating, I dug around and counted three shrimp. While the quantity is the same as the Achilito’s taco, they are TINY. Upon taking my first bite, I was upset that it had no shrimp. After taking my second bite, I was even more upset that my second bite had shrimp. The shrimp were cold and tasted extremely fishy, not in a nice ocean-y way but in an old fish type of way. I did not finish it.
Overall, I give this a 1.3/10. Literally minutes before this, I said that nothing could get below a 5. I was wrong. I know you probably weren’t planning on it, but don’t order this.
DSG: Absolutely not. Jefe’s greatly disappointed with this meal. First of all, I hate double tortillas. I get that it’s there to avoid your taco breaking but the tortilla’s overpowered every other ingredient I had in my mouth. I felt like I was just eating bare tortillas. ESPECIALLY because the shrimp was incredibly small… and while some of you are okay with that, in my food, it is not appreciated. I just preferred the taste of Achilito’s shrimp. Jefe’s Taqueria is definitely a place you go to for a late night snack and if you’re intoxicated, then this food’s taste won’t matter.
Overall, the limit of HOW BAD this taco was just doesn't exist. Think about how hard you may have worked on a pset just to fail it. That’s how disappointed I was, times 128329131. I had originally given it a 3/10 but the more I thought about it, the angrier I became. Just don’t get this. It’s not worth it.
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Steak Quesadilla ($10.25)
AYH: Unlike Achilito’s, the Jefe’s quesadilla was cut into four triangular pieces — just how I like it. I was also happy to see that the steak was in chunk form. However, I quickly noticed that nearly two inches of the outer edge of the quesadilla had no filling. In fact, you could fold it into what resembled a piece of pie. I would appreciate it if a math concentrator could let me know how much quesadilla surface area we lost because of this. Also, for all you health nuts, the outside of the quesadilla was far less oily than that of Achilito’s. After taking my first bite, I continued to chew on the same piece of steak until I gave up and swallowed it whole — disappointing. Like its chewiness, its lack of taste made me think of an old piece of bubble gum.
Overall, I give this a 5.7/10. Certainly better than the shrimp tacos but also just barely mediocre. If you ever want to build your jawline without mewing, just order this.
DSG: Because I am an avid fan of steak quesadillas, I was not as harsh with this tasting. I took a bite of this and legit all I tasted was steak. I felt like Goldilocks: Achilito’s didn’t have enough and Jefe’s had too much. Jefe’s steak is just soooo hard to chew. My jaw was definitely proving its strength during this. Don’t get me wrong, the taste was not bad but it definitely depends on the bite. Like three of my bites were just tortillas with nothing else, not even cheese. The salsa verde is great and that’s why I highkey hogged it. It was the only amazing thing about this quesadilla.
Overall, I gave this a 4.5/10. The taste is definitely there but with restrictions. This was WAY better than the shrimp tacos but just several steps down than what I’m used to.
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Overall
AYH: If I’m being honest, I came into this thinking that I would like Jefe’s more. Especially because of its price, I didn’t want to prefer Achilito’s. Nonetheless, it appears that the difference in price translates into a difference in taste. In the case of the shrimp taco and the steak quesadilla, I crown Achilito’s the winner. When I can’t stomach the high price, I will still go to Jefe’s (just not for shrimp tacos). However, when I want to eat for taste, I will walk the extra distance to hit up Achilito’s.
DSG: Achilito’s is just better. Yes, it's more expensive, but it’s worth the price. I am a person that loves to spend money on food. This entire semester I’ve spent it on Jefe’s, but after exploring Achilito’s, that’s where I will be taking my business. I mean, you get what you pay for. That’s not to say Achilito’s is this perfect food place — just like every restaurant, it has its flaws. But I found that it has less flaws and more food variety. I suggest you take the extra two minutes to walk there from the Yard and enjoy a great, more authentic meal. Go to Jefe’s for the vibes, but go to Achilito’s for the taste.