Acme Taco opens second London site in Dalston
Andrew Clarke's taqueria spin-off from Acme Fire Cult doubles down on regional Mexican cooking, seven months after its Walthamstow debut.
Acme Taco, Andrew Clarke's taqueria spin-off from Acme Fire Cult, opened a second site at 40ft Brewery in Dalston on 1 November, seven months after its Walthamstow debut.
The Dalston kitchen sits next door to Clarke's Acme Fire Cult, inside the same 40ft Brewery taproom, and carries a wider menu than the original site at 40ft's Blackhorse Road brewery. Clarke built the Acme Taco concept around research trips to Mexico City, the same regional repertoire behind AMUSE's own tacos al pastor recipe, and both sites now run under the same brewery partnership with 40ft founder Steve Ryan.
Running the pass is head chef Ernesto Puga, from Veracruz, who previously cooked at From The Ashes and Cavita. His arrival pushed the Dalston menu well past the original taco list.
Double-layer tortillas, suadero with heart and tongue, and a dirty horchata cremeux: Acme Taco Dalston goes bigger than Walthamstow ever did.
Tacos built for the grill
Every taco at Acme Taco Dalston comes on a double-layer soft tortilla with a choice of salsas. The beef suadero taco mixes heart, tongue, cheek and sausage; a ribeye taco adds cheese and poblano; Tamworth pork arrives as castacan with crackling, and Swaledale lamb shoulder as barbacoa. Jalisco-style shrimp and a Westholme wagyu birria round out the list.
Two tostadas, bluefin tuna with avocado and salsa macha, and confit pig's head with chicharrón and habanada quince, sit alongside grills and sharing platters built for up to four: XL shrimp with achiote butter, Tamworth pork ribs, grilled achiote chicken and smoked pork hock in adobo, all served with heirloom corn tortillas, salsas and pickles.
A second site in seven months
Dessert keeps the same regional focus: a chocolate and black mole ganache, and a "dirty horchata cremeux," a custard built on cinnamon, sweet rice milk and espresso rather than the usual single hit of coffee.
Acme Taco's jump from one site to two in under a year points to real demand for the format, after a London taco scene that has already pulled in outside investors elsewhere, including the US private equity money behind Los Tacos No. 1's expansion.
Acme Fire Cult built its name on live-fire cooking and queues; Acme Taco now has to prove that pairing regional Mexican dishes with a brewery taproom works twice over, not just once.
