posted Feb 14, 2012 in Etiquette & Manners / Dining / by Terry Pithers / 5 comments

Tacos for a Business Lunch?

Tips on when and how to smoothly eat a taco

I love tacos, but I would never order them at a first-time lunch with a business client. Why? Because they are too darn messy to eat. In my dining etiquette presentations my advice is for people to choose foods that are easy to eat with a knife and fork. That way you can look polished and professional while eating.

Unfortunately tacos do not fall into this category. (Next time you're eating a taco look at yourself in the mirror. Maybe you better not, you might spoil your appetite and spill something.) How to eat a taco smoothly? You can't.

Newsflash - Terry and Joanne love tacos

But I love tacos anyway (and so does Joanne, don't tell her I told you so). So we eat tacos quite often, especially when we’re dining casually. They are one of our favorite comfort foods. Friday nights in Canada, if we're not on the road presenting, we have a stay-at-home date movie night - Netflix and homemade tacos on our TV trays. (OMG! Yes, the dining etiquette and table manners experts have TV trays. But they are very classy TV trays.)

Favorite taco restaurant tips

This winter when we were in Phoenix, we found plenty of Mexican restaurants to get our taco fixes. We want to share a few restaurant chains that we really enjoyed.

Rubio's famous fish tacos

If you've never had a fish taco, you don't know what you're missing. Rubio's also does shrimp and langostino tacos (a crayfish- like squat lobster- amazing what you can learn here). On Tuesdays they have $1.50 fish taco night. (After a feast of fish tacos I would take Joanne to the nearby Pollack Tempe Cinemas for their $2 movie night. – Joanne is a cheap date.)  Rubio's kids’ meal bags are a hoot - featuring cartoons with ‘fish talk-os’. (Joanne says -Terry had me order him a kid’s meal, he says just so he could read the bag.) 

Baja Fresh Mexican Grill

We discovered this restaurant just before we left Phoenix. Baja Fresh might be our new favorite for fish tacos, partly because it has a healthier alternative that tastes great. You have the option to have your fish fire-grilled instead of deep fried in batter. Healthy eating never tasted so good.

Chipotle Mexican grill

They don't do fish tacos, but they do pretty mean burritos. “Food with Integrity” - organic or sustainably raised food choices. Our Chipotle favorites are their burrito bowls (and you can use utensils to eat them smoothly). Consistently great and you walk away feeling good about your food choices. Chipotle - click here to see the fascinating videos about their concept and founder Steve Ells

Franchise opportunities - pretty please

I don't think these chains are in Canada yet so there might be some opportunities for entrepreneurs to open Canadian restaurants (we will be loyal customers). In the meantime, Joanne and I are looking for online recipes to duplicate these experiences at home. If you find any, let us know.

Your casual dining tips?

Any other Mexican food advice or casual dining secrets that you want to share? We are all ears and drooling mouths. When it comes to dressing, networking and dining, we believe in being savvy not stuffy but with good table manners. If you've attended one of our etiquette training seminars, you know what we mean. Buen apetito!

PS - Looking for some easy to swallow Professional Development - try Terry's Shine When You Dine Training

BTW - for Valentines day, Joanne won't let me take her out to a taco place. I guess she's not such a cheap date after all.

Posted by Terry Pthers - the Dining Etiquette Expert and closet taco eater