Supermercado Joliet's Taco Stand Is A Hit: Ferak Column

JOLIET, IL — Fall is officially here, and there aren't too many weeks of gorgeous weather left in 2020 for Will County. But, if you're in the mood to eat your lunch outside, you should consider a visit to Supermercado Joliet.

A lot of people in Joliet already know this, but Supermercado has an outstanding taco stand in the back of its grocery store at the busy intersection of Cass and Collins Streets.

On Tuesday, I visited Supermercado and ordered their taco dinner. For exactly $8, you get three fresh tacos, rice and beans, plus a can of pop. And the sales tax is also figured into the pricing, so when Supermercado proclaims that the meal is $8, it's $8, not a penny more.

This was my first time trying out the taco stand. I was amazed at how fast my taco dinner was ready. It kind of reminded me of Joe's Hot Dogs on Plainfield Road as far as the efficiency. For instance, you don't see customers standing around the lobby of Joe's Hot Dogs for 10 or 15 minutes waiting for their food order. Joe's is fast when it comes to serving up hot dogs, fries and onion rings, and so is Supermercado Joliet when it comes to their tacos.

At Supermercado, my meal came out of the pick up window about 90 seconds after I paid for it.

Supermercado has several metal chairs and tables overlooking Collins Street, and that's where I enjoyed my food.

One thing I'll say about the beans. They're a little on the spicy side. They have a little kick to them, and I enjoyed that. For my three taco choices, I went with Asada, Pollo and Al pastor. Supermercado also has Chorizo, Cabeza, Barbacoa, Chicharron, a veggie taco, Shrimp, Tripa and Cecina.

If you aren't in the mood for an entire taco dinner, Supermercado offers several tacos for $2. For many years, Supermercado was famous for their $1 taco, but since the new coronavirus impacted the worldwide economy, Supermercado said it's not feasible to sell the $1 tacos for the time being.

One of the only things on the menu that isn't a taco are the Elotes. For $2, you can get the corn on a stick, or for $3 you can get the corn in a cup.

Supermercado's Taco Stand draws a pretty good crowd when the weather's terrific like it has been of late. Supermercado's other claim to fame is painted in front of the taco stand. "The Original Taco Truck."

At the moment, the family owners of Supermercado Joliet have their food truck parked along Plainfield Road near Caton Farm Road in an unincorporated part of Crest Hill.

A sign on the brick wall at Supermercado Joliet says, "Our story began with a family butchers from Jalisco, Mexico, and their journey to Joliet, Illinois. In 1996, after noticing a growing need for the foods they missed so dearly, they decided to do what they knew best and opened a small grocery store making Hispanic products easily available."

On Tuesday afternoon, Supermercado owner Lucia Kulbartz told me that she is proud of the diversity at the taco stand. Tuesday's lunch-hour crowd included several people who are Hispanic, as well as a number of people who are white and Black.

The Joliet business owner said the location of Supermercado Joliet continues to work well for her family. She's just a couple blocks away from the Joliet Central High School campus.

"The location we have is the perfect spot," she said. "Cass Street is Route 30 and Collins Street is Route 171."

The taco stand is also a hit for people outside Joliet, the owner told me.

Since the pandemic, Supermercado regularly gets customers who drive in from Morris and Romeoville. There is one man from Wisconsin who rides a motorcycle, and every summer he makes it a priority to visit Supermercado's taco stand.

"Every summer he comes looking for a place to eat," Kulbartz told me proudly.

Supermercado Joliet has lots of information about its foods on its website, which is rich with the grocery store's Joliet history. To learn more, visit the website here.