Taco Tuesdays: The Original Ninfa's on Navigation

I have a confession to make.

I was born and raised around these parts, and I've lived inside the loop for the past year, and my first visit to the Original Ninfa's on Navigation...was last Saturday.

*wince* I know! It's criminal!

But while we're on the subject of confessions, I have to confess that my latest addictions are kickboxing, Instagram (seriously, where had I been all this time?), photo editing apps, "House of Cards" (except after binge-watching it on Netflix, I finally got to the season 2 finale last night, and OH MY GOD, and what am I going to do with my life now??), these pancakes, and spending way too much time playing Candy Crush.

And if anyone can help me unlock the levels after 125, I'll be forever in your debt.

I am proud to say though, that I have now dined at the Original Ninfa's, and I absolutely loved it.

This past Saturday I went with a group of friends to this legendary Houston spot, and it was so beautiful out (Yeah, what must that be like, current 40 DEGREE HOUSTON WEATHER?) we opted to sit on their large patio. The wait time was 40 minutes, which was to be expected for a Saturday night. That was no problem, as we passed the time drinking margs and coronas at the El Tiempo next door.

Once we were seated we ordered the queso (duh) to start, which was hot and cheesy and goopy and pretty exceptional.

Side note: There are a couple of very daring/creepy/awesome cats lurking around your feet, so if you feel something furry brush up against your leg while you are indulging in aforementioned queso, don't think anything of it.

But back to the food.

I debated heavily on what to order for my main course. Do I go with my standard fajitas? That's always tricky since it would take a small act of God for anything to top my love of El Tiempo's Filet Fajitas. However, our bubbly server Gaby was telling me how wonderful the Ninfa's fajitas are.

Max's fajitas with diablo shrimp added

My new friend Max told me that he would put his life on recommending their Diablo Shrimp Soft Tacos though. The tacos are stuffed with a cabbage slaw and bacon-wrapped shrimp, with jack cheese in soft corn tortillas.

Um, yeah that'll do.

Y'all. These were amazing. AMAZING. The shrimp (shrimp? shrimps? platypusses?) were bursting with flavor, the bacon was, um, BACON (read: perfection), and the tangy slaw was delightful. These mighty little tacos were borderline delicate, due to the absolute precision that went into combining these harmonious flavors. Just fantastic.

My friend Megan and her boyfriend Jesse split a Crawfish Enchilada special that they were oohing and ahhing over. I gave them some of my tacos, and after tasting, they dubbed my plate the winner. Their enchiladas set the bar incredibly high, but they claim my tacos were in a class all of their own.

I can see now why the Original Ninfa's is such an institution. The enthusiastic staff, the lively atmosphere, and the exceptional food make it a really special place.

Oh, and I have another confession to make: I'm going to Dallas next weekend.

*wince* I know! It's traitorous! But I'm visiting my sister!

And you can bet I'll be instagramming the pants off of that trip.

2 comments dinner, east downtown, food, houston, mexican, restaurants, taco tuesdays

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