Bacalar (Taqueria Bacalar)

The Coba Taqueria team's other project, and Amsterdam Noord's tightest taco kitchen since 2019.

Bacalar sits behind an unmarked garage door on the Chrysantenstraat, sandwiched between car repair shops, which is exactly the kind of location that makes the first bite land harder. Chef Joachim de Buck runs the kitchen here the same way he runs Coba Taqueria across town: 100% organic corn tortillas pressed in house, salsas made fresh every service, and a menu that rewrites itself weekly depending on what the small producers he buys from actually have. The octopus taco is the one people cross town for, char on the edges and soft in the middle, but the tuna tostada and the rotating mole specials hold their own. The mezcal, sotol and raicilla list goes deep for a room this size, and natural wine drinkers are looked after too. Reviewers have called it the best tacos in the city since 2021 and the opinion has not moved much since. It is not cheap for a taqueria, tacos run toward nine euros each, but the sourcing shows in every plate. Open Thursday to Sunday only, so plan around it.

Open Thursday through Sunday only (Thu 17:30-22:00, Fri 18:00-22:00, Sat-Sun 12:00-22:00); weekend lunch from noon is the quieter way in.

Photo: Bacalar, via Your Little Black Book