Comelones Tacos will be adding full-plate meals to its menu in the near future, along with beer and wine (and a minor remodel), but the Jaliscan staples that have made it so popular aren’t going anywhere.
If you know, you know.
Tucked away in back of the Orinda Theatre, Comelones Tacos has built up a word-of-mouth reputation since 2022 that keeps locals coming back for birria, burritos, tacos and smashburgers.
Wait, what?
Yes, one of Comelones Tacos’ most popular dishes is a smashburger.
“People really like them,” said owner Eric Galindo, which is why they’re on a menu otherwise filled with classic Mexican dishes.
Galindo first tasted a smashburger while on vacation in Brazil, and was so impressed he decided to add it to the Comelones’ menu – with a twist.
“We use a jalapeno sauce,” he said, though was quick to add, “It’s not a spicy sauce. We put the sauce on the patty before we flip it, so the patty cooks in it.”
The smashburger took some time to find its audience, but now people seek it out, in part thanks to some help from their next door neighbor.
“Most people find out about it from the Fourth Bore,” said Galindo. “The bartenders tell them to try it.”
Of course most people go to a taco place for tacos, and Comelones doesn’t disappoint in that regard. Galindo adds butter to the typical pineapple sauce on al pastor to give it a deeper flavor, and the birria is prepared in a pressure cooker to make it more tender.
Galindo also makes his birria with Angus upper choice beef. “We want to have higher quality asada,” he said, and of course the better the beef, the better the asada.
And those who are looking for more spice can get their habanero-mango sauce.
Galindo’s feel for cooking comes from a family background that traces back to Jalisco, and the flavors from that region infuse their recipes. “My family has been in the restaurant business for 50 years,” he said, and those who have driven down the San Pablo Dam Road may have stopped by El Trompudo, his parents’ restaurant in El Sobrante.
Up to this point, Comelones Tacos has been focused on executing a small menu as well as possible, but Galindo’s mother Maria has recently become part of the business.
Maria will expand the menu to include full plate dinners – for example, salmon and rice.
Along with the slight shift in the menu, look for a new look at Comelones in the coming months.
“We’re going to reformat the space,” said Galindo, “so we can get more people inside.”
And there are plans to get a beer and wine license as well, so by summer, Comelones Tacos might have a brand new feel.
But don’t worry – smashburgers will still be on the menu.
