Where to Find Birria Tacos in Cincinnati

By CityBeat Staff on Thu, Oct 21, 2021 at 3:52 pm

Birria tacos are hot right now — and not just because they’re literally smothered in savory meat juice.

The Mexican-based dish has been popping up on menus across the Greater Cincinnati area (and nation) over the few years and has been gaining traction recently.

If you’re not familiar, birria is a meat-based dish traditionally made with goat, but can also be made with beef, pork or lamb. It's typically used in an herby, spiced stew or stuffed inside tortillas. Birria also is sometimes served smothered in melty cheese — also known as a quesabirria — and is typically served with a consommé to dip in.

If you’d like to sink your teeth into this tasty trend, here’s a few local spots where you can find it:

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Agave & Rye

Multiple locations including 3825 Edwards Road, Norwood; 635 Madison Ave., Covington; 7125 Fountain View Drive, Liberty Township
This Covington-based taco chain is known for its “epic” tacos and decor. At Agave & Rye you can find a large selection of over-the-top tacos, chips and dips and over 90 varieties of tequila. If kangaroo tacos or french fry-stuffed tacos don’t tickle your fancy, try the lauded birria taco. This street taco is stuffed with braised beef, oaxaca cheese, cilantro, guajillo chilies and onion, and served with a side of consommé dipping sauce.
Photo: Facebook.com/AgaveandRye

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Mazunte Centro

611 Main St., Downtown
Voted No. 1 best place for tacos in CityBeat’s 2020 and 2021 Best of Cincinnati issues, this Mexican eatery has two locations throughout the Queen City. Their menu boasts tacos along with all their other Mexican favorites like tostadas, tamales and enchiladas as well as margaritas. At their Centro location, they recently brought back their seasonal birria tacos, made with shredded beef and queso Oaxaca and topped with avocado salsa, salsa amarilla, onions and cilantro.
Photo: Facebook.com/MazunteCentro

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Taqueria 251

4110 Hamilton Ave., Northside
Situated in the Gantry Apartments building in the heart of Northside, Taqueria 251 is designed as an homage to “famous Mexican individuals that have shaped Mexico throughout time,” says owner Emilio Santos Sada. The menu offers authentic Mexican fare and street food, including birria tacos, alongside cocktails and traditional drinks with an avant-garde twist.
Photo: Facebook.com/Taqueria251

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Pata Roja Taqueria

302 E. 12th St., Pendleton
Sharing Mexican culture with the Cincinnati community has been Pata Roja Taqueria’s mission since the beginning. With their recent moving to their permanent home behind Bar Saeso, this Mexican restaurant has been bringing flavors from Mexico City to the streets of Cincinnati with their birria tacos.
Photo: Facebook.com/PataRojaTacos

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Taqueria El Monarca

11449 Princeton Pike, Springdale
Found in Springdale, Taqueria El Monarca is your neighborhood taco shop located on the outskirts of the Tri-County Mall. The eatery is housed in a former Chipotle, but after taking a look at the menu you can be assured this is a fine step up from the build-your-own Mexican-inspired chain. There’s plenty of unique options to choose from at Taqueria El Monarca, like Mexican sausage nachos or the multi meat-stuffed Estilo Monarca-Style Quesadilla, but if birria is calling your name, the eatery has several options on its secret menu, like birria tacos, ramen, fries and quesadilla. Owner Jonathan Madrigal says they’ve been serving the dish since they opened in 2018. Birria is only available Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
Photo: Facebook.com/TaqueriaElMonarca

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OLLA Taqueria Gutierrez

302 W. MLK Jr. Blvd, Covington
The folks behind Covington’s Gutierrez Deli recently opened OLLA Taqueria Gutierrez on West 12th Street in Covington. The eatery serves up Mexican-style street food. The menu is stacked with tacos, burritos, nachos and “Guti fries,” with 9 different meat/veggie options (including birria) to choose from, plus a couple of entrees, sides and drinks.
Photo: Facebook.com/OllaCov

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Gutierrez Deli

1131 Lee St., Covington
Located in Covington, Gutierrez Deli is a small, family-owned business that sells Hispanic goods from Central America and Mexico. But they aren’t just a deli, but they also sell fresh tacos, burritos, and quesadillas, and on Tuesdays they serve up birria tacos.
Photo: Facebook.com/GutierrezDeli

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Amigos Bar & Patio

950 Pavilion St., Mt. Adams
Occasionally, you will be able to find the popular birria tacos on the menu at Amigos Bar & Patio. And when you can’t, you can still enjoy the warm summer weather on their back modern-looking patio with one of their spicy margaritas and a few pollo tacos.
Photo: Facebook.com/AmigosBarAndPatio

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Mi Taco Loco

610 Northland Blvd., Forest Park
Mi Taco Loco is a self-described authentic Mexican eatery located in the Forest Park neighborhood. The restaurant boasts a wide-ranging menu of Mexican and Guatemalan dishes ranging from a simple chicken quesadilla to their golden brown birria tacos served with pico and sour cream.
Photo: Mi Taco Loco’s Facebook

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Papi Jocho’s Street Dogs & Cantina

633 Madison Ave., Covington
From the team behind Agave & Rye, Papi Jocho’s is known for their creative Mexican street dogs and tacos. If you want to sink your teeth into a birria triple whammy, order some birria tacos, birria street dog and a birria sopa.
Photo: Facebook.com/PapiJochosStreetDogsandCantina

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Taqueria Nogal Domingo

526 6th Ave., Dayton, Kentucky
This former food truck recently opened its first brick-and-mortar in Dayton, Kentucky. With a brand new kitchen, the Mexican-style eatery has added its beloved special of birria tacos to its everyday menu. The tacos are made with braised beef, melted cheese, onions, cilantro and consomme.
Photo: Facebook.com/Taquieria.Nogal.7

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La Mexicana Restaurant

642 Monmouth St., Newport
This Newport-based eatery lands itself on CityBeat’s Best of Cincinnati top 10 list year after years for their mouthwatering tacos. Their menu ranges from Mexican-style entrees like pollo con mole or flag enchiladas to a la carte choices like tacos, burritos and tortas with your choice of meat. Enjoy a birria topped sopa or stuffed quesadilla.
Photo: Hailey Bollinger

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Tortilleria Garcia

5917 Hamilton Ave., College Hill
If you find yourself hungry for birria on the weekend, head to Tortilleria Garcia’s College Hill location. Served only on Saturday’s, these birria tacos are a special treat. The eatery makes their tortillas from scratch, the way they should be. If you’re looking for a taco deal during the week, visit Tortilleria Garcia for Taco Tuesday and enjoy $1 tacos.
Photo: Facebook.com/TortilleriaGarcia

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Borrachos Tacos

This new Cincinnati-based food truck is bringing a selection of flavor-packed tacos to the streets of the Queen City. While their menu is subject to change, their birria tacos are marinated to perfection with pulled beef and melted cheese inside a tortilla shell, and topped off with onion, cilantro, and red cabbage and served with a side of consomme for dipping. They also offer chicken tinga tacos, chorizo tacos and a steak-stuffed taco called Cali Dream. Visit their Facebook page to find where they’ll be parked next.
Photo: Facebook.com/BorrachosTacos

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Amigos Mexican Restaurant

599 Donaldson Hwy, Erlanger
This Northern Kentucky-based eatery has all the traditional dishes you’d expect at your neighborhood Mexican restaurant, including burritos, fajitas, tamales and creamy cheese dip, as well as the cult-fave birria tacos. Wash it down with a frosty frozen margarita.
Photo: Facebook.com/AmigosMexicanRestaurant

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Tamales Hamilton

Situated on the west side of Hamilton, this tamale-centric hub offers carry-out only eats that folks rave over. While their main focus is Friday tamales, they do occasionally offer crispy-cheesy birria tacos.
Photo: Tamales Hamilton’s Facebook

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La Torta Loca

7101 Dixie Highway, Florence
La Torta Loca is a charming little Mexican eatery tucked in a Florence strip mall that packs in as much flavor as it does passion for its craft. If you want to expand your palate beyond birria tacos, try the "quesa birria" quesadilla.
Photo: Facebook.com/LatortalocaKY

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Jorge's Taco Food Truck

3980 Erie Ave., Madisonville
This taco truck, parked in the Shell gas station between Madisonville and Fairfax, offers "the real deal" in terms of Mexican eats, according to the logo. The menu features burritos, gorditas, tacos and quesadillas with fillings including chorizo, adobo pork and asada. The birria combo comes with three tacos and consomé i for $10.
Photo: nstagram.com/jorgestacofoodtruck

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