I’ve tried a few Mexican restaurants recently (Lolita, Sol Azteca, Papagayo) but was told by a friend or two that La Verdad was the best in the city. Located on the famed Lansdowne Street outside Fenway, I can only imagine how busy this place must be in the summer. On a cool December evening however it wasn’t packed, but was busy as it could be for a Friday night at 6:30pm. I didn’t make my way into the dining room but the bar/front seating area was a little small with some high tops and 2-4 tops, and was decorated with white ‘Christmas’ lights.

Bread: The bread of course was chips & salsa which came with our order of seasonal guacamole. The chips were good – not to oily, lightly salted – and the salsa wasn’t bad but I like mine chunkier.

Menu: Starters, Soups & Salads, Tortas & Huaraches, Tacos & Burritos, Entrees, and Sides. There were enough options and a few things caught my eye that I had never heard of before, one being Huaraches which is Mexican-style Flatbread. I was struggling between a couple different entrees and eventually settled on something a bit different…

Food/Presentation:
Seasonal Guacamole – green apples, cheese, garlic, cumin
While it wasn’t made table side, I really appreciated the guacamole with a twist! It was different and the green apples were actually a great addition. The portion looked tiny set in the large pestle but it actually was enough for the 4 of us.

Duck Carnitas – confit duck, fig marmalade, orange goat cheese, and rajas salad
Three small soft tacos were topped with fig spread, pulled duck meat, red onion, cilantro, and goat cheese & mandarin oranges (rather than “orange goat cheese” as the description stated). The portion was perfect and I loved this option of the lighter, sweeter taco. It’s nice to see inventive menu items! If you’re a duck fan I suggest this dish.

Bathroom: Two large oval mirrors hang above 3 sinks, and to the right are 3 or 4 bar-typical stalls. What appeared to be some type of playing card bordered the walls in the stall ½ of the restroom.

Service: Our table was a bit small for 4 people but we made it work. Drinks were brought in a timely manner. Our entrees arrived before the guac and chip basket was cleared which I always frown upon. Our waitress was nice and able to answer our few questions.

Overall: The sangria tasted like mostly juice and was just ok, but the multiple Mojito options (classic, mango, raspberry, strawberry, limon, passion fruit – I had the latter) made up for it! The prices were less expensive than most Mexican Taquerias I’ve been to recently, with starters topping out at $12 and entrees reaching $19 (although Matt did mention that while his Enchilada was $13 it didn’t come with the expected sides of rice and beans). The food was great, atmosphere was decent, and the total bill wasn’t scary.

The Perfect Bite: Chip with a big scoop of seasonal guacamole!

www.laverdadtaqueria.com