Checking in on NYC Favorite Tacombi Taqueria's Major Miami Expansion

Yet another New York City import is expanding across the Magic City — this one by way of the Yucatán.

If you've chowed down at this popular taqueria with locations across Manhattan — or tasted Vista Hermosa tortillas and tortilla chips — you're already familiar with Tacombi, the fast-casual restaurant that bills itself as an authentic taste of Mexico.

Founded in 2006, Tacombi at first operated from inside a converted VW bus along the beaches of Playa del Carmen, Mexico. In 2010, the brand expanded into New York City, where it now operates a dozen taquerias.

Now, thanks to massive capital investment from Shake Shack founder Danny Meyer, Tacombi is looking to become the next Chipotle. In December 2021, Bloomberg reported that Meyer had invested more than $25 million in the fast-casual chain via his company Enlightened Hospitality Investments.

The move has allowed Tacombi founder Dario Wolos to upgrade the restaurants' ordering technology and build out his packaged-goods line, Vista Hermosa, as well as expand the brand nationally with more locations in NYC, the Washington, D.C., area, and Miami.

The first Miami Tacombi location opened in December 2021 in the Design District, with additional South Florida locations slated to open this year at 1688 Meridian Ave. in Miami Beach, 69 SW Seventh St. in Brickell, and NW 26th St. in Wynwood. A West Palm Beach location is planned for Rosemary Square in the spring of 2024.

Wolos has not responded to New Times' request for comment.
Drawing on the culinary traditions and recipes of Mexico, Tacombi's menu offers a variety of appetizer-style dishes, tacos, quesadillas, and burritas alongside beer, cocktails, and agua fresca juices. Popular items include corn esquites, Baja fried fish tacos, quesadillas prepared with al pastor roast pork, and the "Vegana" burrito.

The Design District location is bright and features an open kitchen where the al pastor pork rotates slowly on a trompo. On a Tuesday evening, the dining room was lively, but the chicken quesadilla ($8.95) was soggy and oily. Tacos fared better: The carne asada ($6,49) was flavorful, the seared fish ($7.49) tender. A to-go order of guacamole con totopos ($13.95), however, was packaged sans totopos (a valuable reminder to check the contents of the sealed bag before leaving the restaurant). 

With its growing South Florida footprint, Tacombi fans will also be able to find more of the brand's own line of products, Vista Hermosa. In 2015, without local sources who could meet the company's standards for freshness and flavor, Tacombi began crafting its own take on traditional tortillas and totopos — fried tortilla chips — to be used at each restaurant location.

Vista Hermosa's flour tortillas combine Sonora-milled white wheat flour, water, and organic avocado oil, creating the brand's soft and pliable tortillas. Tortilla chips are made using the brand's organic corn tortillas, cut and fried in sunflower oil and finished with a dusting of salt and chili powder.

The packaged products are also sold at more than 800 retail locations nationwide, including Whld Foods Market— but so far not in Miami-Dade County.

As Tacombi opens in new cities, each new taqueria is participating in growing the impact of the Tacombi Foundation, the company's nonprofit organization whose mission is to advance Mexican communities through education and food accessibility. Part of that mission includes the Tacombi Community Kitchen, which provides food for people in need by donating Mexican meals prepared in the kitchens of each Tacombi taqueria.

Tacombi. 3930 NE Second Ave., Miami; 786-558-5607; tacombi.com.