Joliet's Best Tacos Are In Here: Ferak Food Column

JOLIET, IL - Several weeks ago, Danielle Blake at the Joliet Chamber of Commerce urged me to consider heading over to Nena's Cantina & Restaurant for one of my next food columns. I had to try their delicious tacos, she implored. Nena's? It's at 701 Garnsey Ave.

So finally, last Friday, I braved the cold and pulled into the parking lot next to the old two-story brick bar on the city's east side. Since I showed up right after it opened, I was the first customer of the morning. But it was short lived. Several people showed over the next half-hour.

One man in his late fifties got a cold beer at the bar and then took his order, a bag of full tacos, out the door.

Nena's does not have a bunch of menus floating around the place. Everyone who comes here basically knows this place for its tacos. I went with the crowd favorites, the original steak and potato taco and a pork and bean taco.

The salsa and the chips were complimentary and definitely quite good.

Those two tacos and a can of Coke cost me about $6, which is a pretty reasonable price considering that these tacos are something else. These are not your Taco Bell tacos, no way.

The tacos made at Nena's are why this off-the-beaten path neighborhood bar is worth checking out.

After I ate my two tacos, I complimented the bartender on how wonderful the tacos were. After I settled up with my bill, she offered me a free taco, the spicy pork taco. I ended up devouring that as well. Since the staff served up the spicy pork with a lime on the side, I made the best use of it and squeezed as much lime juice as I could on my spicy pork taco. I also asked for a glass of ice water.

If you asked me before I ate at Nena's how I would rank my preferred tacos on their menu, I would tell you:

1) Steak and Potato

2) Pork and Beans

3) Spicy Pork

But after eating here, my order of preference is different. My favorite taco is now the Pork and Beans. My second favorite: Spicy Pork, surprisingly. I usually stick with milder flavors, but in this case, the Spicy Pork flavor was dynamite and my mouth burned all afternoon.

Make no mistake, the Steak and Potato is truly outstanding, and I would eat it over and over, if given a chance. It's just that I fell in love with the other two tacos unexpectedly. Actually, Nena's does have an actual menu. There was a plastic piece of cardboard toward the back near the bathrooms.

For some people around Joliet, this column may be preaching to the choir. Like the Joliet Chamber's Danielle Blake, you already know the secret. You already know that Nena's Cantina & Restaurant, 701 Garnsey Ave., probably has the best tacos around Joliet. But for those of you who haven't been here before, this place hits the spot.

I will admit, finding Nena's might be hard if you aren't from the old neighborhood.

Probably the easiest way to get there is to take Collins Street and turn right on Jackson Street. Then turn left on Garnsey Avenue and go straight until you hit it. It's on the left hand side, 701 Garnsey Ave.

The tacos have been a hit at that location for several decades. Years ago, before the place was called Nena's, it was known as Leal's.

Anyway, you can't miss Nena's. It's the two-story brick bar with an adjacent large parking lot.

All images via John Ferak/Joliet Patch's Editor