The North Tucson location of Tacos Apson
AS I ARRIVE at the 12th Avenue location of Tacos Apson in South Tucson, Arizona, I’m immediately hit with the aromas of charred beef and mesquite smoke hanging thick in the air.
After placing my order at the small takeout window, I do my best to peer through the glass wall of the kitchen, fogged over with smoke and soot from the grill directly behind it. On that grill sit thin sheets of carne asada and burly slabs of beef ribs being salted and flipped, salted and flipped.
After I grab my order of carne asada, rasurado, and tripa tacos, I make my way to the salsa bar, taking in its assortment of red and green salsas, aguamole (a puree of avocados, lime juice, and water), chopped cabbage, wedged baby limes, and a mix of diced onions and cilantro. Sitting at one of the picnic tables in the shade of the corrugated tin roof, I eat while taking in the view of Sentinel Peak against the cornflower-blue sky.
Owners Yazmin Aldecoa-Durazo and Francisco Javier Durazo opened Tacos Apson in April 2001, less than aown boss, and opening a taco shop was a dream the couple shared. They envisioned a “home-style” taco shop with dishes based on family recipes, with a few innovations of their own.
