Taco Fest's Tasty Lineup, With a Shanghai Special Guest
Taco Fest is just over one week away, kicking off next weekend from May 3 to 4 at the National Tennis Center. We've already taken a look at all the entertainment in store and now it's time to turn our attention to our amazing line up of vendors. This year, we've got everything from authentic Mexican street food to daring fusion twists and a whole range of exclusive dishes you won’t find anywhere else, including a Shanghai taco vendor making their Beijing debut!
Now, gather your amigos and let's dig in!
La Coyota MexFood 辣口友大墨西哥菜
Joining us all the way from Shanghai is La Coyota, founded by Mexican Chef Gaby Fernández. They've been bringing authentic Mexican flavors to Shanghai since 2013. At the fest they'll be serving up some of their fan-favorite tacos, including: Taco al Pastor, pork is marinated in a rich blend of dried chilies and spices and grilled to perfection; Cochinita Pibil, pork is slow-cooked until tender in a traditional marinade of achiote paste and orange juice; and Carnitas, pork cooked low and slow for that perfect balance of crispiness and tenderness.
Then there will also be the Choripollo Chicken, which combines tender chicken with mild, savory Mexican-style chorizo. And for vegan guests, they'll have a tasty plant-based Chorizo & Mushrooms Taco, full of smoky, satisfying flavor with a hearty bite, and their vegan Mexican Chorizo will also be available to purchase separately and take home. All their tacos are served on warm tortillas and topped with fresh ingredients.
Exclusive item(s):
- As they're coming to Beijing from Shanghai for the fest, all their tacos are exclusive to the fest.
Las Musas Taqueria Las Musas 墨西哥餐吧
Authentic Mexican food purveyors Las Musas have created an exclusive taco for the fest called Yo Daddy’s 80's Taco, which is a throwback with a twist! It gives Slowboat's signature pilsner-infused Mexican chorizo the smash-burger treatment. Crisped up and loaded with gooey Monterey Jack cheese, then topped with fresh crispy lettuce, zesty pico de gallo, and cool homemade sour cream, it’s a Midwest-meets-Mexico mashup straight outta the '80s.
They'll also be serving a Carne Asado con Salsa Cacahuate Taco, which features tender, juicy premium charcoal-grilled beef, piled with white onions, cilantro, homemade cotija cheese and a drizzle of their Oaxacan-style salsa cacahuate. Lastly, they've got the vegan Taco de Jamaica, which takes marinated and seared pulled hibiscus flowers layered with white onion, cilantro, spicy radish, pico de gallo, and creamy vegan aioli.
Aside from tacos, they'll have some snacks like Tajin Mexican Fries and Loaded Mexican Fries as well as a range of drinks such as their Las Musas Classic Frozen Margarita and Las Musas Mango Mojito (non-alcoholic version also available).
Exclusive item(s):
- Yo Daddy’s 80's Taco
- Carne Asado con Salsa Cacahuate Taco
Q MEX Bar & Grill 库迈墨西哥餐吧
Mexican restaurant and Beijing stalwart Q MEX Bar & Grill will be bringing back their exclusive Carnitas Tacos to the fest. Featuring slow-simmered pork topped with tomatillo salsa, chopped onion, and cilantro served in a white corn flour tortilla, these tacos are normally only available at Mexican Embassy events. The other tacos they'll be serving are Crispy Battered Fried Fish Tacos – crispy battered fried fish on a bed of marinated red cabbage topped with Mexican tartar sauce and chopped cilantro. To wash down the tacos, they'll have Mexican Bulldogs, a classic frozen margarita with a bottoms-up beer or beverage of your choice.
Exclusive item(s):
- Carnitas Tacos
MORROW Cantina 墨佬墨西哥餐厅
MORROW Cantina will have a few different tacos up for grabs at the fest, including their signature Beef Birria Tacos. Beef rib is slow-cooked for over four hours and then nestled inside a soft flour corn tortilla with fresh chopped lettuce, tomatoes, onions, sour cream, Mexican cheese, Mexican chili sauce, a squeeze of lime juice and cilantro. For those with a sweet tooth or looking to cool off, they'll have MOVENPICK ice cream, the perfect after-taco treat.
MAMACOCO Bar & Restaurant MAMACOCO墨西哥餐吧
Mexican restaurant MAMACOCO will be showcasing two of their signature creations at the fest: the Pineapple Char Siu Pork Taco and Mexican Beef Chili Taco. The former is their star product, a fusion dish that combines marinated pork neck with a pineapple glaze, char siu sauce and Mexican pickled vegetables; the latter features rich beef chili simmered with a blend of aromatic spices. Along with their signature offerings, they've created the Rockin' Cheese Elote (Mexican Street Corn) just for the fest. It sees smoky grilled corn layered with crumbled cheese, zesty lime and jalapeño peppers for a spicy kick.
Exclusive item(s):
- Rockin' Cheese Elote
Casa Lola South American Restaurant Casa Lola 南美菜餐厅
Casa Lola is bringing an impressive five different types of tacos to the fest: Beef Stew Taco, Slow-Cooked Octopus Taco, Fried White Bait Fish Taco, Grilled Flounder Taco and Slow-Roasted Spicy Chicken Taco. Aside from tacos, they'll also have a range of snacks such as Chimichurri Shrimp, Peruvian Citrus Seafood Ceviche Cup, Okonomiyaki, Takoyaki and Fried Chicken.
Moji 墨纪墨西哥餐厅
Moji will be serving up a trio of tacos at the fest, the first is the Farmer's Taco, which features beef and pork trotters paired with handcrafted sauce, refreshing salsa and a squeeze of lemon in a corn tortilla. Next up is the Spicy Beef Wet Cheese Taco, which blends a rich beef bone broth with slow-cooked beef and melted cheese, then lastly is the Braised Beef Taco made with slow-braised beef drizzled with lemon juice and finished with homemade signature sauce and pickled vegetables. Along with tacos, they'll have Cornmeal Dough Balls with Vanilla Ice Cream, which is topped with a dusting of icing sugar and cinnamon powder.
Lucky Taco 幸运墨西哥塔可
Lucky Taco will be serving up two tacos at the fest: the True Chicken Tacos and Bullfighter Cheese Beef Tacos. Made with chicken breast and beef shank respectively, they come topped with homemade sauce, fresh vegetables and tomato salsa.
Famous Taco Kitchen 肥猫墨西哥音乐餐吧
Famous will have two tacos at the fest. The first is the Fillet Beef Taco, which they are bringing back just for the fest. The other is the Golden Sheep Brain Taco, a bold fusion where Mexican tacos meet Chinese spices and Western sauces, featuring crispy fried lamb brain, colorful toppings, and a zesty green sauce.
Exclusive item(s):
- Fillet Beef Taco
HFFOUSA TACO 弗萨塔可墨西哥餐厅
HFFOUSA TACO will have two tacos up for grabs at the fest, the first is the Cancun Chicken Taco that features high-quality chicken breast, and the other is the Roast Beef Taco, which uses Australian Wagyu beef. Both come paired with a variety of fresh salsas and guacamole.
Slider Nation 小堡邦
Usually known for their sliders, you might not know that Slider Nation also does some banging tacos. At the fest they'll have their super popular Viral Smashburger Taco, which takes their OG Slider and puts it in taco form – a homemade flour tortilla is smashed right on top of a 50g Wagyu beef ball, then flipped and topped with cheese, spicy sauce, shredded lettuce, pickled jalapeños and fresh cilantro. They'll also have a BBQ Pulled Pork Taco and Spicy Buffalo Chicken Taco, which were both recently added to the menu at their WAB location. Drinkswise, they'll be serving their signature Slider Nation Frozen Margaritas with a tajin spiced rim and, making a return to Taco Fest, their Chamoy Spiced Coronas.
Bollywood Tales By Dastaan 宝莱坞故事印度餐厅
Adding some Indian spice to the mix is Bollywood Tales with two exclusive fusion tacos. The first is the Bollywood Tandoori Chicken Taco, which combines Bollywood Tales' tandoori chicken tikka, spiced with 15 different spices, then pairs it with homemade mint chutney. The other is the Keema Kamina Taco, which sees juicy minced lamb spiced with homemade Indian masala and topped with fresh Brussels slaw and chutney.
They'll also have a few Indian street-style dishes available, including Butter Chicken With Cumin Rice, Rabiul's Signature Chicken Tikka, Samosas stuffed with spiced potato, peas, and nuts and Panipuri, filled with tangy mint water and masala potato. For drinks, they'll have the refreshing Corona Sunrise, a cocktail made right in the bottle with beer, tequila, orange juice, grenadine and lime juice.
Exclusive item(s):
- Bollywood Tandoori Chicken Taco
- Keema Kamina Taco
The T Restaurant 酷车潮玩美式餐厅
The T Restaurant will be bringing two different tacos to the fest. The first is the General Tso's Taco, which sees the legendary American-Chinese dish all sandwiched inside a tortilla for a fantastic fusion creation. The other is The T Restaurant Double Layered Taco, which stuffs Mexican chili inside a hard taco shell inside a soft taco shell – hence the name – for one carby combination.
Exclusive item(s):
- General Tso's Taco
SUSU 苏苏越南菜
Now, you wouldn’t normally think of tacos when you think of Vietnamese restaurants, but back in 2021, SUSU rolled out their "Viet Tacos" as part of a collaboration with their compadres Las Musas. At the festival, they’ll have their Shaking Beef Tacos and Caramelized Carnitas Tacos, which come rolled in corn or flour tortillas with homemade salsas and dips.
Goose Island Taproom 鹅岛精酿啤酒餐厅
Goose Island has created two exclusive tacos for the fest. The first is the Yunnan Black Three Dices Taco, which takes the classic Yunnan dish "Hei San Duo" made up of minced pork, stir-fried chilli, and pickled vegetables, then tops it with cheese and puts it in a soft-shell taco. The other is the Black Truffle Pine Leaf Crab Taco, which combines shredded crab with truffle, avocado, nori and lettuce. Along with tacos, they'll also have Chicken and Beef Kebabs, chips and a range of their signature brews to sip on.
Exclusive item(s):
- Yunnan Black Three Dices Taco
- Black Truffle Pine Leaf Crab Taco
Great Leap 大跃啤酒
Great Leap will be serving their GLB Beef Tacos and GLB Chicken Tacos at the festival; the former feature Australian Angus beef mixed with in-house Mexican chili sauce. Both come topped with cheddar cheese, onion, cilantro, salsa, lime and jalapeños nestled in a soft tortilla. They'll also have Beef Chili Nachos – tortilla chips loaded with house-made beef chili, sour cream, salsa, jalapeños and parsley – as well as plenty of their craft beers to wash it all down with.
Certified Angus Beef ® X SALATE美国认证安格斯牛肉协会X塞莱德
Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB) will be serving up a Beef Steak Taco, which sees char-grilled CAB beef flank steak paired with smoked beef chili sauce and American cheddar cheese. They'll also have a Smoke Roasted US Pulled Pork Quesadilla and Turkey Quesadilla.
Exclusive item(s):
- Beef Steak Taco
- US Pulled Pork Quesadilla
- Turkey Quesadilla
Nashville 乡谣餐吧
Country music restaurant Nashville will be offering a few different kinds of tacos at the fest, including the Cheese Beef Ball Tacos, which have been created exclusively for the fest. Embracing the tennis theme, these tacos feature homemade "tennis ball" beef parmesan meatballs drizzled with tangy tomato salsa – evoking red clay tennis courts – finished with a sprig of rosemary to represent a racket handle.
They'll also have their Signature Black Pepper Steak Tacos, which combine Angus fillet steak, guacamole, homemade sour cream, tomato salsa, and jalapeños smothered with black pepper sauce; Chicken Tacos; Shredded Beef Tacos; and Rosemary Lamb Kidney Tacos.
Exclusive item(s):
- Cheese Beef Ball Tacos
Hi-Town Bistro 海塘Bistro
Hi-Town Bistro will have two tacos at the fest: Sous Vide Beef Rib Taco and Double Pepper Beef Tripe Taco. The former sees slow-cooked Australian grain-fed beef ribs seared to form a caramelized crust then paired with Mexican smoked chili sauce, cured egg yolk sauce and French red wine reduction. The latter features slow-braised tripe with Sichuan chili layered with crunchy veggies and a cooling lime crema. They'll also have Margarita Smoothies and Lindemans Bulldogs to go along with the tacos.
Exclusive item(s):
- Sous Vide Beef Rib Taco
- Double Pepper Beef Tripe Taco
Latina Brazilian Steakhouse 拉蒂娜•巴西牛排馆
Latina will be bringing churrasco (Brazilian barbecue) favorite picanha to the fest. For those who don't know, picanha is a triangular cut of beef taken from the top of the rump with a layer of fat on the outside, which when barbecued, seeps into the rest of the meat, making it super juicy and tender. They’ll also be serving the Brazilian soft drink Guaraná as well as Caipirinhas, made from cachaça, a Brazilian spirit made from sugarcane juice.
National Tennis Center • Hoo Sports Life 国家网球中心•Hoo体能训练馆
Hoo will be serving up a stunning Tennis Mousse Cake at the fest, a refreshing mango mousse resting on a chiffon cake base. Not only is it delicious, it's also very Instagramable. If you're looking for a caffeine fix, they'll have Iced Americanos and other coffees available too.
YOMI Italian ARTISAN GELATO YOMI意大利手工冰淇淋
For those looking for a sweet treat to cool off, YOMI will have a range of their artisan gelatos available, in either cups or cones, crowned with hazelnut Pocky sticks for some added crunch. All of their gelato is made with authentic Italian ingredients using centuries-old recipes, creating a gelato that is not only velvety smooth but also low-fat and guilt-free!
CHEERS齐饮进口葡萄酒
CHEERS has really embraced the venue of Taco Fest, crafting three special tennis-themed cocktails just for the occasion. They've got the Match Point Martini, crystal-clear vodka and elderflower syrup blended with honeyed golden swirls in soda water; the Champion's Kiss, blush-pink strawberry liqueur and white wine with fresh strawberry slices and mint; and Golden Break Point, gin and dry white wine mixed with elderflower liqueur. Along with the tennis-themed cocktails, they'll have Tequila Sunrise plus a range of their excellent wines.
Exclusive item(s):
- Match Point Martini
- Champion's Kiss
- Golden Break Point
TUKTUK Thai Herbal Beverage TUKTUK泰煮
Specializing in lemongrass-based drinks, TUKTUK will have a range of refreshing Thai beverages that are ideal for cooling down. They'll have options like Sparkling Water With Lemon Grass and Lemon, Thai lced Lemon Tea With Basil, Fresh Boiled Lemon Grass Juice, Lemon Grass and Lemon Americano and Handmade Lemon Grass and Lemon. For their drinks, they use an innovative technique, utilizing Thai plants like lemongrass, pandan leaf, etc. to brew a soup-like base, which is then used in the drinks.
The Location
This year's festival will be taking place at the National Tennis Center West Square, which is located by the west side of the Olympic Forest Park. The venue is super easy to get to, situated right by Line 8's Lincuiqiao station's C2 south exit (林萃桥站 C2南), which is a mere 35 minutes by subway from Sanlitun.
The venue has ample open space to relax on, so why not bring chairs, picnic blankets, or perhaps even a tent so that you can make your own little base camp for the day? The location is pet-friendly, so feel free to bring your furry friends to join in the fun as well.
National Tennis Center 国家网球中心
2 Lincui Lu, Chaoyang District (near the west gate of Olympic Forest Park)
朝阳区林萃路2号(奥林匹克森林公园西门附近)
Taco Fest will be taking place at the National Tennis Center West Square on May 3-4 from 11am to 8pm. Early bird tickets are RMB 20, and tickets at the door are RMB 30. You can purchase tickets by scanning the QR code in the poster above.
If you'd like to stay up-to-date with everything taco-related in the capital, join one of our dedicated Taco Lovers group chats! Simply add TBJButler on WeChat by scanning the QR code below and request to become a member.
To take a look at all the fun from last year's fest, scan the QR code below!
A Word From Our Sponsors
National Tennis Center
National Tennis Center (NTC), operated by China Open Promotions Ltd., is committed to creating a comprehensive sports leisure hub that integrates a full range of tennis experiences including dining, retail and all kinds of cultural events. NTC continuously explores new models for sports and entertainment to better establish itself as a new cultural and tourism landmark of Beijing.
Shou Chuang Langyuan
Shou Chuang Langyuan(首创郎园), a subsidiary of Beijing’s state-owned Shou Chuang Group, is a key brand under the group’s cultural and creative industry division, specializing in urban renewal. Committed to becoming "a first-class integrated cultural development platform in China" and "the most people-oriented urban cultural operator," Langyuan began in Beijing in 2009 with a focus on warm and precise operations. It has developed a distinctive "1+3+N" business model that merges cultural industries, cultural consumption, and cultural content to foster an urban cultural ecosystem.
Currently, Shou Chuang Langyuan operates multiple projects including Langyuan Vintage, Langyuan Park, Langyuan Station, BOM Xifanli, Hangzhou·Baima Lake Anime Plaza, Shanghai Cangcheng·Langyuan Bridge, and Shenzhen Langyuan Garden, with services spanning Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and beyond.
In 2025, Shou Chuang Langyuan will continue to deepen its support for Beijing’s cultural center development while expanding nationally. It remains committed to urban renewal, driving culture-driven new consumption, enhancing cultural services for grassroots governance, and advancing tech-cultural integration. Through market-oriented operations, it will further strengthen its ecosystem by blending cultural industries with commercial and public cultural services.
READ: Live Music, Dancing, Games, Yoga & More Fun at Taco Fest
Images: courtesy of the vendors, the Beijingers
