"I am very grateful to Miami and the community for accepting us; it's a blessing!" says Peña.
From a young age, Peña was curious about food and all the different ways it could be cooked. He told New Times that when his mother cooked for him he would immediately go to the kitchen and try to make a variation of the same dish. He turned his passion and curiosity into his career and perfected his skills over the years.
Growing up, Hernandez spent his after-school time in his family's restaurant in Venezuela. His mother died when he was 11 and by the age of 14, he was responsible for the restaurant. He continued his journey in culinary school and gained experience in Spain and Latin America.
The cofounders became friends when Peña followed Hernandez on Instagram and both found a common interest in culinary styles. In 2018 they finally met in person. During the pandemic, they made a weekly date to cook together. Shortly after, the chefs, along with another partner, started a food truck business.
"We started with two tables and the three of us worked together," says Hernandez. "It was hard and tiring because we would open the food truck at night after we all finished our day jobs."
Recently, Hernandez and Peña parted ways with the food truck to start Bandidos Taqueria. The chefs explain how different it is to run a restaurant and how it gives them the freedom to explore and develop new dishes while keeping the legacy they built along the way.
"Like the food truck, the opportunity fell from the sky," says Hernandez. "In some ways, a lot has changed but the concept is not completely different. The seven original tacos are still staples on the menu but now we can do more. The dishes are more elaborate and the presentation is better, we can include more dishes, and desserts, and the tacos are bigger now instead of the smaller street size."
The original and most wanted Bandidos tacos include the al pastor, pork carnitas, pork belly, carne asada, pollo asado, camarón, fish taco, and veggie.
Photo courtesy of Bandidos Taqueria
"If it's up to me I'll offer the whole restaurant," jokes Peña when asked what dishes guests can't miss when visiting the restaurant. "But I do 100 percent recommend the veggie, fish, and pork belly tacos; also fish aguachile, shrimp coctelito, and, on the sweet note, the flan with palomitas."
Right now, all of their focus is on this one location, which has only been open since March 2022. But they confess to the dream of having a bunch of window spots spread around Miami, each of them selling only one type of taco.
"If you want to eat the fish taco, you go to the beach. For Calle Ocho, it would be pork and Brickell is for sure the veggie one," says Hernandez. "It would also be a way to honor the food truck. Where we came from to what we have today."
Bandidos Taqueria. 7800 NW 25th St. #15, Doral; 305-530-8899; bandidostaqueria.com. Sunday through Thursday 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
