Andrew Fields on Rockaway Taco:
"A taco is a Mexican staple: a warm corn tortilla stuffed with meat, topped with cilantro, raw vegetables and assorted hot sauces.
I’m a native New Yorker, and, after spending four and a half years owning and operating a restaurant on the west coast of México, I returned and settled down in Rockaway, a beautiful place just a fifty-minute train ride from the city. We wanted to make great food by the ocean, and this seemed just right. At the time, there was a lack of fresh food.
Tacos in New York are an interesting thing. Most of the Mexican places try and change the flavor to fit the American palette, and something ends up getting lost in translation. (There is a place in Sunset Park, El Tenampa, that makes really amazing authentic food.) We have avoided changing anything at all costs. The only thing we do that I would love to avoid is “take out.” The lifespan of a fish taco is four minutes, and two of them can be consumed in eight bites. The idea is that the whole experience is fast, fluid, satisfying, meant to be enjoyed on the spot."
"In Mexico, you don’t really ask, “What do you want to eat tonight?” It’s more like: “Let’s go eat tacos, okay?” It’s such a quick and easy meal, with no super-production attached to it. You can be in and out with a full stomach in ten minutes, so you can enjoy the rest of your day on the beach.
The most intriguing thing about street food to me is the experience and atmosphere, where and how it takes place. As a customer, I love being put in touch with how the food is made. That’s the feeling I get when I eat on the street."
Rockaway Taco
95-19 Rockaway Beach Boulevard
Rockaway Beach, NY 11693
Photos by Andrzej Bialuski