First Look: Taco José Brings Banging Mexican Food and Mezcal Slushies to a Century-Old Church

Timmy Forster, the chef and co-owner of McLaren Vale’s Italian joint Joe’s at Sabella, loves Mexican food – but “not the burritos with sour cream kind,” he says. After living in Los Mochis, Mexico, for a year, and being part of various Mexican culinary projects in Australia, he’s finally realised his dream of opening his own “proper Mexican food spot”.

In the courtyard of Joe’s at Sabella, which he owns alongside his partner Lilli Willoughby, you’ll find Taco José, a taqueria with a “limited but banging menu” (less than 10 items), cocktails made with tequila and mezcal – including a strawberry and blood orange slushie you definitely shouldn't look past (“that slushie machine is a little too close to the kitchen for my liking,” says Forster) – and all the chilli toppings you could imagine.

The menu includes three types of tacos, including a stunning chicken number that involves one whole week of marination, a rice-and-bean dish and street chips. All the meats are woodfired for big, bold, smoky flavours.

If Forster was going to Taco José as a patron, he’d spend a few hours making his way through “quite a few drinks and a few rounds of each taco,” he says. “Then I’d finish with a rice and bean to make sure that my mezcal didn’t get the better of me in the morning.”

As they do in Mexico, condiments play a big role. “I couldn’t trust our lovely customers not to put $50 worth of avocado on their tacos if it was sitting there as a free offering, but we’ve got like a shrine to chilli condiments and, honestly, if people put $50 worth of chilli on their tacos then I’m literally proud of them,” he says.

As for drinks, you’ll find agua de Jamaica, a hibiscus iced tea that’s considered “a hangover cure in Mexico,” says Forster. “Especially if you put tequila in it.” Forster and Willoughby have gone for quality over quantity with a tight list of cocktails including a classic Margarita and a Mezcal Espresso Martini, plus wines (this is a McLaren Vale restaurant, after all) and beers.

The fit-out is surprisingly lo-fi. There are tables hand-painted with “funky little pastoral Mexican themes and colours” by an artistically gifted staff member; a spray-painted sign that Forster made himself; tiki torches (“I want it to feel like you’re at a really fun Survivor elimination event,” he says); and hot pink lighting – a look he achieved by climbing a ladder at 1am (“after a bottle of wine”) and painting the globes of the floodlights on the side of the church.

“We might not be all things to all men, but what we do have is bang on,” says Forster. “If it’s an epic taco and a nice little hit of tequila you’re looking for, we’ll probably be your favourite. It’s a cracking venue for summer: Margaritas, tacos, sunshine, good vibes, all that sort of jazz.”

Taco José

133 Main Road, McLaren Vale

0492 216 615

Hours:

Fri 4pm–10.30pm

Sat midday–10.30pm

Sun midday–6pm

@taco.jose.taco