Izzoz Tacos Go the Distance

If this tour were a contest for the longest trailer in Austin, we’d have our winner. Standing at one end of the Izzoz (pronounced “Ee-zoes”) Tacos Trailer, you’d have to call out to a friend standing at the other end in order to be heard. I’d estimate its full length at 30 feet or so – no exaggeration.

Thankfully, the flavor of Izzoz’ tacos can stand up to the size of the trailer. The Old School Crispy taco, a ground beef taco with lettuce, tomato and cheese, is everything you’d want from a crunchy beef taco; meat that’s salty but not too salty and greasy but not too greasy; a generous amount of fresh toppings, and a crispy shell that adds just the right amount of crunch. Sides of salsa offer plenty of heat. The meat could have been just a smidge more flavorful, but that’s my only critique. Even though it’s only been a few days, I find myself craving another one of these. There’s just something about seasoned meat inside a fried shell that makes the mouth water.

Along with the Old School Crispy taco, I also ordered the Fried Avacado taco, which had a great combination of flavors, including a great-tasting breading. The consistency of this one left something to be desired, though. Soft avocado in soft breading was topped with soft toppings inside a soft flour shell. Don’t get me wrong, I’m as big a softie as anyone, but I also like a little crunch to make things interesting!

Izzoz also serves up tortas – Mexican sandwiches – which got good reviews from other members of the expert panel. These came with some of the most delicious garlic fries I’ve had in recent memory. Izzoz Tacos measured up to its own impressive size, putting this trailer in the number two spot just behind Flip Happy Crepes.

Flipping for Flip Happy Crepes

Austin is full of contradictions. Take a short walk from the regal Capitol building over to Sixth Street and you’ll find yourself surrounded by live music and other festivities. A drive from one end of town to the other will take you from the hill country to a busy downtown skyline back out to prairie country. Cowboys, hippies, football fans and politicians all somehow reside together in this crazy town. With so much juxtaposition, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that there’s a shiny trailer just south of the river that serves crepes – light, feathery pastries typically associated with desserts – filled with savory ingredients like chicken, pesto, mushrooms and cheese.

The expert panel visited Flip Happy Crepes for the third stop on the Trailer Tour. I tried the chicken basil pesto crepe, which was absolutely delicious. Melted white cheddar cheese surrounded soft pieces of chicken, with just the right amount of pesto, spinach leaves, and tomato, all enfolded by a warm crepe. The cheese and pesto had a wonderful richness to them, while the veggies added a freshness and lightness to the dish. And the crepe. Oooooh the crepe. It was perfect. At once soft and crispy, with a good flavor of its own. Even though the pesto was the most flavorful thing about the dish, the crepe stole the show.

Flip Happy also serves sweet crepes with tantalizing ingredients like fresh strawberries and bananas, dark chocolate sauce, vanilla pastry crème and Nutella. The expert panel members sampled the cinnamon sugar crepe with toasted coconut and cream cheese frosting, which was deemed amazing by all. If this weren’t enough, the ambiance at Flip Happy Crepes compliments the food beautifully. Picnic tables shaded by tall pecans make for the perfect spot to sit and enjoy a crepe or two.

The expert panel, deeply impressed by the overall scrumptiousness of Flippy Happy Crepes, gave this eatery a score of 46 out of 50 – the highest score yet. All panel members were in agreement about the quality, with a variation of only 6 percent between the highest and lowest individual scores.

Next time you’re in the mood for something a little different, stop by this little trailer whose crepes defy the expected.