Where were you when you first heard of the pizza taco?
Word of this magical pizza/taco hybrid spread like wildfire on my social media in a matter of days after Mercy’s Pizza Taco opened at the end of October. It almost seemed too good to be true. Not only does this masterful creation exist, you can find it in downtown Pasco in the old Pik-A-Pop #9 building. I had heard rumors of an Italian restaurant gracing the foodie scene in that area, but like many others, I would have never guessed it would come in this unique fusion form.
I wonder how many people these past few days I had promised to eat my first pizza taco with. Five? Ten? Everyone wanted to be part of the experience because pizzas (and tacos) are communal dining opportunities. What fun is it to eat eight tacos alone when you could eat them with your bestie?
So here I was, leaving a ribbon cutting with my co-worker when hunger struck. Where to eat? The pizza taco entered my mind. It was time.
The building had been repainted on the outside. You could see through the windows that the restaurant was busy, a good sign in my book. We walked in and a guy behind the kitchen counter greeted us, asking what we were looking to order.
“Can I get the pizza that I have seen all over my social media?”
I don’t know if that one liner would have worked everywhere, but he knew. It was the pizza taco.
With the order placed, we sat down at only one of the two tables that were left. The customer base was mixed, which to me is a good sign that this place has something for everyone. The tables had the best offering of condiments: two types of salsa, Tapatio, ketchup, and parmesan cheese. It reminded me of a weird diner. You weren’t really sure what to expect, but it felt like my table at home: a hodge-podge of toppings because every meal requires an element you can squeeze (or shake!) from a bottle. A telenovela played in the corner against the orange and red wall. It had all the feels of a great Mexican restaurant and was cozy. You felt like you had been there before. The old mini mart drink fridge windows were mostly covered in window vinyls displaying the diverse menu. It was like a cultural food gradient. It started out with visuals and pricing for tacos, tortas, burritos, and sopes. Then, slowly the menu turned Italian: pizza, Stromboli, spaghetti.
The friends I knew who had tasted this unique pizza had said it reminded them of a quesadilla. Others claimed that if you liked pizza and tacos, it was a tasty creation they would eat again. I had a lot of questions for this pizza and only I could answer them on first bite.
The pizza was paraded out in a to-go box. I liked that. It implied I was here for a good time, but also wanted to take that good time home with me. Or maybe they forgot I said I was eating it in the restaurant. Whatever. I like my explanation better.
It is quite a sight to see asada and frijoles kissing the edges of puffy pizza crust. Cilantro and onions decorated the pizza, like ornaments on a Christmas tree. The presentation overall was similar to that of ripping off the foil on tacos para llevar. It is that level of excitement and then some. After taking the initial photos (because I HAD to Instagram it just like everyone else to be part of the narrative), I picked up my first slice and laced it with salsa verde.
It was the strangest taco bliss. It was a taco and a pizza, but even something more special. What was most notable about this mythical beast is actually the crust. Sure, it looked like regular pizza crust but I SWEAR the crust tastes like a bolillo. It was crusty and had that same softness on the inside. I actually ate all my crust (even when I told myself I wouldn’t). I mean, I normally do since I am a crust-lover, but I am willing to bet that even non-crust lovers would be into it. If you like bread, then this crust is for you! The pizza taco triggered memories of late nights at taco trucks and childhood memories of pizza parties. It was familiar, yet new. It was not a mind-blowing pizza taste wise, but what made it special was the experience in the restaurant and the cultures colliding. It was the details. It was the transcendence of food to experience.
And I was not alone in this feeling. Gurinder Singh (@thekungfupandaa on Instagram) saw my proud pizza taco post and made a similar connection, replying to my image: “It made us [me and my brother] think of parallels of how we would go to a place in India… we call it dhabba… It’s like a side stand restaurant combined… so not ratchet but not classy at all but has culture and usually has the best food.”
When food can transcend its physical being into memories and significant life moments, I think that is how you know it is more than this neat thing you see on the Internet. Maybe that is not what you were expecting in my first food review about a weird experimental pizza, but here we are.
Here is to many pizza tacos in my future. And I hope in yours, too.
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Mercy’s Pizza Taco is located at 524 N 3rd Ave., Pasco, WA.
adventures of yesterday 