A New Wave of Taco Restaurants Puts the Classic Mexican Dish on the Frontline of the Smoky Mountain Culinary Scene
For decades, the Smoky Mountain dining scene has been dominated by the ubiquitous pancake house, all following a similar mode. Open for breakfast and lunch with menus featuring familiar breakfast favorites and a handful of sandwiches and burgers. The model has been massively successful and if there’s one thing, we do well in the Smokies, it’s building on success.
The goal, after all, is to make money. We leave the wheel reinventing it to someone else. You can certainly track the trends through the years, from pancake places to go-kart tracks to mountain coasters and beyond. If someone finds a successful formula in the mountains, someone else is likely gonna try and mimic it. Sometimes we can recognize the trends as they’re beginning and sometimes, we are surrounded by them before we can recognize what’s happening.
So, what’s the newest trend in the mountains? Tacos.
Mexican food in the Smokies
For years, it’s been hard to find good food from other cultures in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. It seems restaurateurs figured people who visit the mountains wanted a certain kind of “authentic” Southern or mountain cuisine. So much so, they’d make up grandmothers or mommas on which they could base their franchise or their menu.
For instance, you couldn’t just serve meatloaf. It had to be the recipe grandma used to feed the farmhands who’d built up a powerful thirst from working the land. And so, while you could always find good Italian, good Mexican and good Asian food in other East Tennessee communities, the Smokies always lacked a little in what we’d call variety.
And even when someone would try to make a go of it, you’d get what I’ll call the Applebee’s version of it. Applebee’s does food inspired by world cultures, but it does them safely, so they can appeal to the widest possible selection of palates. There’s nothing wrong with it. I appreciate a good Applebee’s lunch once in a while, but it’s not where I go when I’m in the mood for fajitas, you know?
The Contenders
With the opening of three (relatively) new taco spots in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, plus several Taco Trucks, we’ve gone from a relative dearth of taco options to a plethora of choices. Suddenly, the competition is thick, and the contenders are trying to make their name in the market anyway they can. Certainly, they are trying to do that with their menu, on the quality of their tacos. But they are also trying to make their mark with marketing. That’s why we have at least two taco places with animal mascots dressed as luchadores – or Mexican wrestlers. But today, we’re not here to judge on the merits of mascots. We will judge by the quality of the taco alone.
And we have many contenders. They are:
1. Gorilla Taco
Gorilla Taco opened in Pigeon Forge in February with an aggressively worded marketing campaign – they “flavor slam” traditional Mexican cuisine – to wildly varying opinions.
We were hanging out with friends at the park, and the topic of Gorilla Taco came up. The Mom loved it. My youngest daughter loved it. The oldest daughter didn’t like it at all. I think that’s about right for a place that asks its guests to “think Mexican wrestlers, gorilla-sized margarita towers and menu packed with bold tacos, burritos, enchiladas and much more. I’m not the only one who’s torn. Yelp! gives it a 3.8 out of 5, while Google has it at a 4.7 out of 5. On the Gullion meter? We’ll give it a 4.3 and keep an open mind either way.
2. Taco Trail Taqueria & Bar
Another brand-new taco joint, the Taco Trail, opened in Gatlinburg in late March. It’s part of the Collier Restaurant Group, which holds varied offerings from three separate pancake houses to a Golden Corral and the Gatlinburg Melting Pot. I don’t know that Mexican is at the top of what I want from the managers of Quaker Steak & Lube. However, I realize that’s a little snooty, and we should judge each place on the merits of its tacos. Therefore, I think Taco Trail surely acquits itself well, especially in the breakfast taco realm. Chorizo, Potato, Egg and Cheese? Stop twisting my arm.
The lunch and dinner menu seems to be trying hard to exist outside the traditional taco realm. There’s a Smashburger taco, a Korean Steak BBQ taco, and a Flamin’ Cheeto taco that may be an affront to God. Overall? I think it’s a perfectly acceptable – if not wholly authentic taco situation. The current Google rating is 4.9 out of 5, and I don’t see a Yelp! listing yet. I’ll give it another 4.3, I think it’s very much in the same neighborhood as Gorilla Taco.
3. Taco Ranch
Compared to the first two on our list, Taco Ranch is an old head on the block. It opened in October of 2024 and is another in the entry of elaborate back-story theming and the promise of bold flavors. And it’s not that they don’t deliver on that promise, it’s just that I don’t need a kicked-up PB&J Bacon Burger taco to exist in the world. I’m going with another 4.3 here. Perfectly good food. My family would be happy with a night out here. But I find these first three Taco places almost entirely indistinguishable from one and another. It’s good. It’s all good. But it’s also a little too much try-hard. The Ranch gets a 4.8 out of 5 on Google and a 4.7 on Yelp!
4. Azul Cantina
Finally, a very different vibe and one that treats Tex-Mex cuisine with a little respect. Azul – with its rooftop dining and expertly crafted cocktails – is a much more adult dining experience. It’s not that the other places don’t have drinks – Taco Trail promises a $6 marguerita – it’s that Azul is designed for a significantly different dining experience. It’s 3.7 out of 5 on Yelp! and 4.6 out of 5 on Google. It’s a 4.7 out of 5 for me, making it the highest on the list so far.
5. Paloma Scratch Kitchen
Located in the Wayback Hotel off the Parkway in Pigeon Forge, the Paloma Scratch Kitchen is many things. It offers a seasonally rotating menu of Latin flavors. It is home to the Swim Club – a pool party event planned for later this year – and the Vintage Airstream Bar. The aim is for the Wayback, Paloma and Vintage Bar to be a whole scene for young and happening folks in the Mountains. It’s 4.5 on Google, a 4.1 on Yelp! and a 4.1 for me as I am neither young nor hip nor happening.
6. Taqueria La Gasolinera
Located in part of a Shell Gas Station, this place specializes in street tacos and strong margaritas. In my experience, gas station dining either goes really good or very badly. I like that they leaned into the experience with the name. No thrills. No frills. Just standing on business. Remember when Bill Clinton ran for President and had the sign to remind himself, “it’s the economy, stupid.” Well, here it’s the same kind of deal, but instead of the economy, it’s the tacos. It’s a 4.5 on Yelp!, a 4.5 on Google and a 4.5 for me.
7. Cielito Lindo
The kind of non-descript Mexican place you can find in small towns all over East Tennessee. A menu built in the grand traditions of Tex-Mex. It’s perfectly fine. 4.2 on Google, 3.7 on YELP! and 3.9 for me.
8. Wacky Tacky Tacos
A mobile food truck that is frequently (maybe always? I’m not sure if they move it for special events) found on Birds Creek Road in Sevierville. Wacky Tacky Taco’s serves great tacos, end of story. Rich flavors that I wouldn’t call bold or game changing, but rather how they are supposed to be. At Wacky Tacky Tacos, they’re not reinventing the game, they’re just playing it well. It’s a 4.8 on Yelp!, a 4.9 on Google and a 4.9 from me.
9. El Sonador
Another dining experience that takes its Mexican Cuisine seriously without the need for a lot of fanfare. Located in the round building that used to be an art gallery on the parkway in Gatlinburg, El Sonador offers all the classics you’d expect at a Mexican restaurant, along with some real surprises, including a grilled octopus with chimichurri and garlic butter. The authentic selection of tacos includes everything from al pastor to de lengua. It’s also the classic example of why you can’t go by online reviews alone. It’s a 4.1 on Yelp! and a 4.4 on Google. On the Gullion index? It’s a solid 4.8.
10. No Way Jose’s
I have long been a voice shouting into the void about No Way Jose’s, an East Tennessee chain of “Mexican” restaurants. It’s part of the KBS Restaurant family, which runs some of my favorite restaurants in the Smokies. But No Way Jose’s has never quite been up to snuff for me. Fairly bland. Fairly pedestrian, it feels like Mexican restaurant cosplay. Nothing’s bad. It’s just not overly good. It is exceptionally average. It’s a 4.1 on Google, a 3.2 on YELP! and a 3.5 for me.
11. Estrella Hondumex
You want to know how unreliable the internet restaurant rankings can be? Estrella Hondumex, a wonderful little Mexican-Honduran hole in the wall in the back of a Hispanic grocery just up the parkway at the exit of Roaring Fork Road, rates a 3.9 on Google. That’s below No way Jose’s and way below all the shiny, flashy newly opened taco joints in the mountains. What are they rating? The food? Can’t be. The atmosphere? Only if you are put off by holes in the wall. Anyway, this is one of my favorite spots in the Smokies, though it caters more to the locals than the tourists. I like the Honduran options, which I hadn’t had a lot of exposure to before trying them here. The Yelp! reviewers are a little better with a 4.1 rating, but for me? It’s a solid 4.7.
12. Loco Burro Fresh Mex Cantina
Another example of a local restaurant group dipping its toes in Mexican cuisine. For me, Loco Burro is more about the experience. It’s kind of a party atmosphere – especially at the rooftop bar. The food is fine to good. I like their version of Mexican street corn. The tacos are good, nothing too offensive. If you want to focus a little bit more on having a fun experience, this might be the Mexican place for you. It’s a 4.2 on Google and a brutal 3.3 on YELP!. It’s probably a 3.9 for me.
Who do you think serves up the best tacos in the Smokies? Let us know in the comments! Are you planning a trip to the Smoky Mountains soon? Make sure to check out our coupons page before your trip!