Tacos DF - Oxnard

Tacos DF was finally open today! I can’t believe it.

Honestly though, what are Tacos DF official business hours? I truly think that they open whenever the hell they feel like it. And it’s not just them; there are about 2 to 3 other places that were not open at noon (around C Street) either. If anyone knows the deal with that please let me know.

In any case, Tacos DF in Oxnard, that’s where I am today. The “DF” in the name stands for Distrito Federal in spanish which loosely translates to Federal District in english. Well, that’s actually the direct translation. El Distrito Federal covers all of Mexico City, and is the capital of the 31 states of Mexico, as the capital for the United States is Washington DC for our 50 states. But I digress…..

The last time I was I was in Mexico City was when I was 2 years old. You know what I remember most from that trip? Absolutely nothing.

The interior of Tacos DF was quite impressive in its collection of Mexican themed knick-knacks. Pics of local boxers and famous Mexican ones, many flags adorned the red painted walls and with several black and white photos of famous Mexican celebrities too. But most importantly, a huge set of steer horns mounted on the wall by the menu. You won’t get this place confused with the insides of a Baja Fresh.

Okay, besides my usual 3 (asada, carnitas, pastor) I saw that they had birria (spicy goat meat stew) today so of course, I ordered a birria taco as well. All the tacos came topped with cilantro, onions and salsa roja.

The carne asada fell quiet short; it was cut into very fine pieces almost resembling ground beef and very mushy in texture. I know that they scooped it out of a heating bin and did not "re-heat" it on the plancha but this was not going to do. I could taste some asada flavor and hints of seasoning but it was not very good overall. The salsa was good though and definitely helped it from being a total disaster.

Carnitas was also similar in its presentation. Shredded and moist to a fault; again, mushy and close to flavorless but the salsa was so tasty that it made it a decent taco.

Al pastor was..........interesting? It had some notes of a pineapple flavor (or, some pineapple juice was poured over it whilst cooking) but okay all in all. Again, more of an adobado style like all the other Al Pastor tacos I've been eating lately in Ventura Co.

The birria was very delicious. Shredded and moist with distinct flavors of birria (slow cooked in dry chilies).......it blew me away. Very good execution but not a normal menu item here.

Well, other than the amazing decor of Tacos DF and a birria that's very tasty, there's not much else going on here which is to bad. The dude behind the counter was super nice too.  2/5 stars

Tacos DF
636 South C Street
Oxnard, Ca 93030