Tacosssssss!

A new taco joint has popped up in Bay Ridge, but it took a friend of a friend's rave reviews to get me to stop in one night.

The three of us met for drinks & dinner last night-- during a brief break from recent rain. Ho Brah (surfer speak for "Hey, Brother") offers tacos, empanadas, salads, desserts, Mexican sodas (Jarritos!!) and Mexican Coca-Cola, as well as beer & margaritas. It's not a large space, but it's family-friendly, a great spot to meet for drinks or a light bite, and it will definitely be a new stop for me.

K & I started with the classic margarita, rocks & salt. This was insanely delicious. Bursting with fresh lime juice, no sicky-sweet tang, just enough tart to make your lips pucker. Wow. And a great deal at $8!

Our friend J showed up and we moved to a comfy booth. Jen had the cucumber margarita, which was like the most heavenly cucumber water with a kick. Sweet but not too sweet, and so refreshing!

We started with some guacamole (huge amount, perfect for 3 to share) which came with a smoky-sweet mango salsa, and a smooth red salsa that tasted, to me, like shrimp cocktail sauce with a kick. I stuck mostly to the guac, which was ridiculously delicious, citrusy, and creamy with just the right amount of texture.

The tacos are small, but not mini. 2 per person was a great pick. They all come out on the same platter, unless you ask otherwise (no allergies or anything in our party, so we said bring it on, brah!)

I ordered the Diablo Diego ($3.95), which was 'double-chili marinated shrimp, California cole slaw, pico and chipotle crema. I also got the Bohemian ($3.50) with jalapeno-lime braised chicken, California cole slaw, salsa verde, diced white onion, and chipotle crema. I want chipotle crema on just about everything, please!!

The shrimp taco was okay, but not spicy at all. The chicken had a good zing to it but was not eye-wateringly hot. Note to world--want to shut me up for a few minutes? Slide a Bohemian taco my way! It was, however, so delicious that I barely made a peep. These tacos are super-fresh, just the right amount/ratio of toppings, and I loved the succulent, delicious chicken. Yum.

As you know, I love spicy things, so for my second margarita I ordered the jalapeno. It's described as being 'infused with homemade jalapeno extract and a splash of ruby red grapefruit.' Instead, it tastes like someone took a can of pickled jalapeno juice and stirred some dirt in there. Just awful. That is probably one of the harshest things I ever said on this blog. They need to rework this one, IMHO. I took 2 sips and told our server that I didn't like it, and could I have a cucumber instead? He said no problem, and took away the clearly-unfinished rita, but we still had the drink on our bill. Sure, only $8.00, not a huge thing, but I wish they'd removed it. It was not good. I did not like it or enjoy it. At all. And it takes something being pretty bad for me to even say that on my blog. We ended up leaving a 15 percent tip when I usually leave 20-25 percent, which I opted to do instead of going through the whole "can you take this off the bill" dance which I generally try to avoid. I made it clear that I didn't care for it, I wasn't happy with it, and afterwards, I wasn't thrilled to pay 8 bucks for a margarita I didn't even finish. Oh well--at least it was reasonably priced!

We wanted something sweet for the end of our meal, and we chose the key lime cheesecake. It's really just plain cheesecake with a key lime glaze on it, but we liked it. One round slice (?) was enough for us 3 gals to have a few delicious bites. This is my kind of cheesecake--super firm and cheesy. Yum!

Overall, I'd give Ho'Brah a must-visit rating. You can't go wrong with their standard rita or the cucumber--so fresh and invigorating! I'd go back for the Bohemian taco again, and I'll have to one of their fish tacos next visit (which is probably going to be, I don't know..Saturday?)

Ho' Brah A Taco Joint

8618 3rd Avenue

Brooklyn, NY 11209

(718) 680-TACO

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