Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Kiko's Place

Acknowledgements are due to deniseathome for leaving a comment about Kiko's Place at the bottom of my bit on Los Panchos. Neither of us could think of the truck's name, and I didn't get a chance to verify if anybody had already mentioned it on Feast! I would have wagered that Ed Bedford might have been to the truck at some point since he's the street food maven around here, and he has in fact done so, albeit briefly.

Here's a more thorough treatment.

Kiko's has a little slice of the liquor store parking lot at the corner of Texas and Meade in Normal Heights (4404 Texas Street, to be precise). It's a good spot as the package store has plenty of parking so there's not likely to be any conflict in stopping at the little truck for some Baja-style street food.

Upping the ante on other noteworthy taco spots, Kiko's Place offers raw clams and oysters for $1.25 as appetizers. Raw shellfish out of a truck? Ok. Not at all spooky. But the truck's staff mentioned selling out of oysters and clams every day, so things must be fresh enough for safety. It turns out that the black clams are wonderful. They're briny, icy fresh, and served with lime and Mexican Saltine crackers. Do not pass them up. They were the delight of the day, only partly because they were so unexpected.

The taco's are hardly anything to sneeze at, either. The biggest problem was that they were too hot to eat immediately and that ordering a spicy octopus taco ($2.75) slowed the order way down and watching everyone else receive their food became tortuous.

A bit on the oily side, the octopus taco was rich and spicy rather than just a one-note hot dish. Garlic fish ($1.25) carried a very satisfying kick of fresh garlic and a heavy dose of crema and cabbage, although the fish was a little soft and crumbly. One taco gobernador is probably enough food for anyone with a "normal" appetite. The shrimps, cheese, grilled peppers and onions in the gobernador had a bit of extra oil left over from the plancha, much like the octopus, but it's not exactly the most sensitive dish to begin with so a little greasy, cheesy messiness is expected.

As deniseathome mentioned, Kiko's has an arrangement with the liquor store that prevents them from selling anything to drink. Water, in the store, can be had for a preposterously low 45 cents per bottle, so all is forgiven.

One other, entirely unexpected bonus: Kiko's Place takes credit cards! There's a half-dollar surcharge for the convenience, but since three tacos, two raw clams, and some complimentary soup only runs up a total bill of $12, fifty cents is acceptable if it means being able to order mariscos to your heart's content. They also have a "coctel de Viagra" on the menu--go order one if you're curious.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

SDSU pres gets highest pay raise in state over last 15 years

Union-Tribune still stiffing downtown San Diego landlord?

Acknowledgements are due to deniseathome for leaving a comment about Kiko's Place at the bottom of my bit on Los Panchos. Neither of us could think of the truck's name, and I didn't get a chance to verify if anybody had already mentioned it on Feast! I would have wagered that Ed Bedford might have been to the truck at some point since he's the street food maven around here, and he has in fact done so, albeit briefly.

Here's a more thorough treatment.

Kiko's has a little slice of the liquor store parking lot at the corner of Texas and Meade in Normal Heights (4404 Texas Street, to be precise). It's a good spot as the package store has plenty of parking so there's not likely to be any conflict in stopping at the little truck for some Baja-style street food.

Upping the ante on other noteworthy taco spots, Kiko's Place offers raw clams and oysters for $1.25 as appetizers. Raw shellfish out of a truck? Ok. Not at all spooky. But the truck's staff mentioned selling out of oysters and clams every day, so things must be fresh enough for safety. It turns out that the black clams are wonderful. They're briny, icy fresh, and served with lime and Mexican Saltine crackers. Do not pass them up. They were the delight of the day, only partly because they were so unexpected.

The taco's are hardly anything to sneeze at, either. The biggest problem was that they were too hot to eat immediately and that ordering a spicy octopus taco ($2.75) slowed the order way down and watching everyone else receive their food became tortuous.

A bit on the oily side, the octopus taco was rich and spicy rather than just a one-note hot dish. Garlic fish ($1.25) carried a very satisfying kick of fresh garlic and a heavy dose of crema and cabbage, although the fish was a little soft and crumbly. One taco gobernador is probably enough food for anyone with a "normal" appetite. The shrimps, cheese, grilled peppers and onions in the gobernador had a bit of extra oil left over from the plancha, much like the octopus, but it's not exactly the most sensitive dish to begin with so a little greasy, cheesy messiness is expected.

As deniseathome mentioned, Kiko's has an arrangement with the liquor store that prevents them from selling anything to drink. Water, in the store, can be had for a preposterously low 45 cents per bottle, so all is forgiven.

One other, entirely unexpected bonus: Kiko's Place takes credit cards! There's a half-dollar surcharge for the convenience, but since three tacos, two raw clams, and some complimentary soup only runs up a total bill of $12, fifty cents is acceptable if it means being able to order mariscos to your heart's content. They also have a "coctel de Viagra" on the menu--go order one if you're curious.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Kiko’s Place food truck: Lunch in the rushes

A food truck cafe society set up between a road and a river
Next Article

At the house of frog tacos

This food truck delivers top food and bottom prices
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.