New Restaurant: Los Compadres

Food trucks have been a big trend lately, but, given Calgary’s winters, many of the trucks are parked for months. So what do food-truckers do when the snow flies? The folks behind Los Compadres, a popular Mexican food truck, decided to open a full-service caf, taking their tacos and tortas…

Food trucks have been a big trend lately, but, given Calgary’s winters, many of the trucks are parked for months. So what do food-truckers do when the snow flies? The folks behind Los Compadres, a popular Mexican food truck, decided to open a full-service caf, taking their tacos and tortas and totopos indoors.

Los Compadres is a brightly painted (pink, orange, green, yellow) space seating a few dozen in simple surroundings. The plates are plastic, the prices reasonable – most dishes are $12 to $14 – and the salsa packs a punch. Four kinds of salsa are available; the chipotle carries a smoky heat, while the guac verde adds a subtle creaminess to the chips.

Tacos are big and bountiful at Los Compadres, the corn tortillas overflowing with roasted pork (carnitas) or chicken (pollo con mole) or marinated pork with pineapple (al pastor). There are also breakfasts (desayuno) of scrambled eggs with bacon and green salsa (El Campesino) and taco chips with chicken, sour cream, queso fresco and salsa (El Guapo).

The flavours are rich and robust, the setting – including the obligatory mariachi music – is charming and you can sit at a table to enjoy your meal. It may lack the fresh-air atmosphere of a food truck, but it beats standing outside in the snow with a taco.

(1439 17 Ave. S.W., 403-460-2770)

Get a weekly serving of suggestions for how to experience Calgary's restaurants, bars and markets by signing up for Avenue’s Food & Drink Newsletter.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Privacy Policy

Privacy & Cookies Policy
Avenue Calgary