Taco Tuesday at El Padrino
NOSA: El Padrino has a cute little setup in Workbox, a co-working space in VI. We probably wouldn’t have found this place via our regular traipsing of Lagos so shouts to @mobolaji_o for flagging El Padrino on instagram.
FOLLY: What's your definition of cute because it's a kiosk in an alley way in the compound....
NOSA: Cute because it's small 🙃
There isn’t a lot of seating available at El Padrino so your best move is to get your tacos to go.
FOLLY: There is one table and a couple of chairs.
NOSA: Speaking of space, why do all the co-working spaces in Lagos have such terrible parking? The intersection of people who can afford to subscribe to a co-working space and own a car has to be large. Not just co-working spaces actually. Almost every establishment in Lagos has this parking issue, but we’ll discuss that in detail another time.
FOLLY: Oh my the security man at Workbox is mental. He showed me where to park and because the space is so tiny, I decided it was best that I back into the space to make it easier for me when I was leaving. I then proceeded to do that and he just came banging on my windows that I was parking in the wrong place. I explained that I was reversing but he just kept repeating that I was parking in the wrong place like a mad person.
FOLLY: I had the goat and the fish tacos. I found the fish to be bland but the goat was actually really nice. I also like the heat that the red chili sauce added.
NOSA: The tacos could be a bit more adventurous. The chicken and pork are near indistinguishable. They’re basically straight up slow cooker recipes.
NOSA: It would be nice if she played around with textures and flavours a bit. Some pork belly here and maybe some carnitas there. This is exactly why the goat taco was my favorite of the lot.
FOLLY: I also like some shredded cheese in my tacos and that was missing here.
NOSA: That said, this is probably naira-for-naira the best taco in Lagos. Over Toasties and the fancier places, if you ask me.
FOLLY: Ehh I disagree. You're probably just getting excited cause the tacos are N800 but they are quite miniature which explains the price.
NOSA: The quesadilla let me down a bit because of the processed cheese. I understand that you get what you pay for and cheese in Lagos is expensive as heck, but that plasticky taste of melted processed cheese is so overpowering.
FOLLY: The quesadilla let me down plenty because of the processed cheese. The owner should get better cheese and slightly increase the prices - we won't die. You can't taste anything over the processed cheese it was like the security man who couldn't hear anything over his ridiculous shouting.
NOSA: The real star at El Padrino, however, are the tortillas. You can literally taste the love they were made with. According to the El Padrino instagram, they have corn tortillas available also. Don’t think I’ve found corn tortillas in my Lagos adventures.
POSTCRIPT
NOSA: I really liked El Padrino. Despite my minor complaints, I'll definitely revisit. I just need to mentally get over that terrible Ojora Close road. Thankfully, they start their deliveries soon.
Praise Jesus.
FOLLY: I didn't like it as much as Nosa did.
If they post a picture with better cheese on their Instagram I'll revisit. For someone who is lactose intolerant, I really like cheese and I refuse to give it up.
VERDICT
DAMAGE
Fish Taco - N1000
Quesadilla - N2000
All other tacos - N800
PARKING
Limited and tight.