El Tiempo Market
5526 Washington
5 out of 5 faces
Walking in to the El Tiempo Market at 5526 Washington Ave. (next to and VERY different than El Tiempo) is an immediate attack on all five of your senses. First of all the smell is over powering. The luscious scent of roasting and stewing meats combined with the signature Mexican spices is the first thing that you will notice. It is exactly what I remember the small taco shacks in Mexico smelling like and I was at once won over.
Upon finally getting my bearings I realized that this is not like any restaurant that I have ever eaten. Luckily I was accompanied by a team of scientist (our Fearless Editor, the Minister of Science, and the Head Spirit Horse trainer) who all immediately took up posts in line. Be prepared to stand in line. There is always a line. That is how you know it is good.
This was our first venture into the world of Mexican Grocery store slash restaurant and at first it was a little intimidating as we were the only people in line that were not completely comfortable ordering our meal in Spanish. But when it became our turn to order we all confidently stepped to the front and pointed and grunted at what we wanted until we walked away with what we had come for, kind of.
We each ended up with a few Carnitas tacos, which was part of what we had come for but by 12:30 they were already out of the Barbacoa. This is a word of warning. If you want Barbacoa you need to get there early and trust me you want Barbacoa. We retreated to a small seating area with only a few tables and chairs and proceeded to eat our tacos like we had not seen food in three weeks. They were rich and delicious and the green and red sauces offered the perfect amount of spice.
I will give the El Tiempo market 5 faces for sure. Don’t be intimidated by this Houston gem when you walk in and have no idea what to order or even what you are ordering. Just follow the regulars and you will be fine. The next visit for me is going to require that I actually get up at a decent hour on the Saturday or Sunday and get in there for some breakfast tacos. If the lunch taco was any indication these breakfast tacos may be so good that I will never again be able to eat a breakfast taquito from Whataburger without a look of disgust on my face.
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