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Gastro Obscura

Toloache

Discover the taste of mold.

New York, New York

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About

Every day, probably even every minute, some food item with mold is thrown out.

Just how much kitchen clean-up is necessary is a question Toloache has begun to ask. This Mexican restaurant serves up a delicacy punctuated with a growth most people are not accustomed. The corn-mold tacos, called huitlacoche, have become a crowd favorite, but has long been appreciated by the Mexican people.

Huitlacoche is technically a corn infected by a pathogenic fungus and where you'd think farmers would lament there crops being covered in black spores they actually rejoice and can then charge a lot more for their product. The taste is corn like with a much more earthy quality like a mushroom.

Toloache also servers another rare to find in the U.S. treat, chapulines tacos, a taco filled with Oaxacan style dried grasshoppers. Whether you're feeling in the mood for moldy corn, seasoned grasshoppers or some of the other creative menu items, Toloache is a great place to explore another side of Mexican cuisine.

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Published

February 21, 2012

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Toloache
251 W 50th St
New York, New York, 10038
United States
40.762309, -73.985574
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