Texas Monthly taco editor José Ralat has released his list of The 25 Best New(ish) Texas Taquerias in 2026. Published Monday, May 18, the list serves as a mid-cycle update to the James Beard Award-winning writer’s 2024 list of the 50 Best Tacos in Texas, which is published every four years.

San Antonio and Houston take the lead with four spots on the list. The Alamo City’s representatives are:

• Aguazul, a seafood restaurant from chef Enrique Lozano
• Anacacho Coffee & Cantina, a casual restaurant from chef Leo Davila
• Tacos on the Street, the first U.S. location of the Puerto Vallarta-based chain
• Waca, a food trailer known for its carne asada

At Aguazul, Ralat praises Lozano’s 16-page “New Tejano” menu featuring mariscos like an “especially striking” shrimp aguachile. At Anacacho, he celebrates the return of the Big Red and barbacoa tacos that already won Davila a top 50 berth at the now-shuttered Stix and Stone.

The “impossibly moist” chicken tacos are a must-order at Tacos on the Street, while Waca — adjacent to West Side watering hole Chiflada’s — earns points both for its carne asada tacos and its Wacabolas fritters, which Ralat calls “San Antonio-style hushpuppies.”

Cow Taco, a food truck at Medical Center known for perfecting tacos al vapor, earns an honorable mention.

Elsewhere in Texas, the Dallas area, including suburbs such as Arlington and Plano, has four representatives on the list. Austin restaurants take two spots, and Fort Worth gets one.

Austin and San Antonio received one honorable mention each. Dallas and its Farmers Branch suburb are also recognized with honorable mentions.

Ralat writes that he visited almost 200 taquerias to assemble the list, which is made up of restaurants that “opened, reopened, or expanded their menus between August 2024 and this past March.”

While Ralat finds that restaurateurs have faced challenges that include rising prices and aggressive immigration enforcement efforts, the overall state of tacos in Texas is strong.

“But nothing gets in the way of ganas — guts, desire, determination, and hard work. The 25 best new taquerias — revealed in alphabetical order by location (alongside ten honorable mentions) — all have that quality,” he writes.

The new(ish) can’t miss taco joints in Texas’ major metros include:

Austin

• Comadre Panadería, a bakery in East Austin that recently added breakfast tacos
• Paprika ATX, a food truck-turned-restaurant that’s known for its Saturday-only trompo tacos

• Aquí Se Come, a restaurant in Arlington that’s located in a Kwik Food Store
• Dragon Casa, a restaurant in North Dallas that blends Chinese and Mexican influences
• Tacos Juancho, an Oak Lawn-area restaurant with a “superior” ribeye taco
• Taco King, a restaurant in Plano that serves halal tacos with Mexican and Levantine influences

Fort Worth:

• Taqueria La Revolución, a restaurant that excels at seafood tacos

Houston:

• Alturas Mexican Cafe, a family-owned restaurant near the Heights
• Bar Xolo, a Mexico City-inspired dining bar in Montrose
• Huncho’s Tacos, a halal taqueria in Southwest Houston
• Maximo, an upscale Mexican restaurant in West University Place