Taco Maker

Other than point guard Carlos Arroyo, Puerto Rico and Utah don't have a lot in common. Well, there is the Taco Maker. Based (for now) in Utah and with 110 locations throughout P.R., the Taco Maker has built a burrito bridge between the Great Salt Lake and El Yunque.

Like Arroyo, the Taco Maker is now making a move to Central Florida. The company headquarters will be moving here and Taco Maker locations have already opened in Kissimmee and Orlando. Near Tampa, the Taco Maker even opened inside a Wal-Mart.

You order at the counter and grab a seat until your number is called. One wall has giant photos of menu items including a taco big enough to nap in. Tacos, burritos, nachos and the like are made with your choice of beans, chicken or “meat.” (That's what the menu calls it, folks. Tastes like beef to me.) The Taco Maker fries its own tortilla chips daily and make some of it own sauces, but the kitchen also a bank of microwave ovens in constant use.

The two taco combo meal ($4.49) comes with a 22-ounce soda and your choice of fries or chips and salsa. I ordered the beef/”meat” which turns out to be a tad sweeter and less soupy than what you get from Taco Bell. The tomato and lettuce are fresh and I see both white and yellow cheeses. Fries are the battered kind. They're OK, but to me, fries and tacos go together like pizza and potato salad. Next time, I'll get the chips.

The bean burrito ($1.29) is more spiced (though not “spicier”) than many fast food versions I've had. The smooth bean filling is brown, not gray, and more like what would come from a home kitchen. The chicken burrito ($1.99) is filled with shreds of meat and a little diced onion in criollo seasoning, the Taco Maker's take on a garlicky mojo sauce. More Cuban or Puerto Rican than true Mexican, the chicken will earn a return visit.

Then there's the crunchy chicken burrito ($3.99), filled with strips cut from breaded chicken fingers, crushed tortilla chips, lettuce, tomato, yellow cheese and sour cream. I'm happy to see that the Taco Maker isn't one of those places that put rice in burritos, but considering the size, I'd like it better at $3 than $4.

The Taco Maker shies away from fake cheese sauce. The nachos deluxe ($4.99) are made with real shredded cheese, chips, beans, choice of meat, tomatoes, olives and sour cream. The hot, the cold and the crispy ingredients all stayed that way. My only gripe is that the cheese had either fallen between the chips before melting or slid off after, pooling at the bottom of the paper tray.

A little $1.99 flan had true vanilla and caramel flavor, and maybe just a little almond. Bonus – the label indicates it was baked right here in Kissimmee. Crustos (99 cents) are light and sweet; fried flour tortilla strips dusted with cinnamon sugar.

Dish: At some point, turkey will most likely be an option at the Taco Maker. It's on the menu board, but an employee told me the Taco Maker hadn't yet found a satisfactory supplier here in Orlando.

Damage: Plenty of ways to feed yourself for fewer than five bucks, though most of the combo meals are up in the $6-7 range.

Decision: The Taco Maker falls somewhere between the fast food gut grind of Taco Bell and fancy fresh Chipotle. That's a thin slice of the market, but I've already got three chains and four local places I'll go for a quick burger. Guess I'll add Taco Maker to the other two nationals and two locals to my Mex fix list.

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