Chapter 16 – Oh! The Tortilla!

Carnitas Don Lucho – 565 W Lincoln Ave., Milwaukee

I went by here for years without going in, it's on this busy corner of Lincoln and Chase, near the Basilica—I guess I wondered about it for awhile—it seemed like a place that was always there, but often not open. It's got the weirdest hours—as far as I can tell, only open on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday—at 4 or 5 AM! Their specialty is carnitas, naturally— and I'm guessing they make a fixed amount each weekend—slow cooked pork—and serve it until it runs out. I think there might be more takeout business than anything. But it's a nice room, a really comfortable, warm dining area with long tables and booths. Even though they're open early, it's not really a breakfast place, unless you eat tacos for breakfast—which I do, at home and out, several times a week. I first visited here maybe a couple of years ago, when I was first looking for an angle to write about tacos and/or Mexican food, and I had an odd experience, in that, while my tacos were delicious, the corn tortillas really seemed more like flour tortillas, and since I am gluten intolerant, I worried the rest of the day I would be sick. I wasn't, but I felt really frustrated in that I wasn't able to speak Spanish and communicate better, and just the frustration with my health and diet made me re-think the whole writing about food thing. So... major crisis! But I knew I'd have to return someday and investigate, and when I woke from ridiculous, absurd nightmares on this Sunday morning, with the wind chill below zero, I thought, this would be a good morning to check out Don Lucho again! I got there early enough before it was too crowded and immediately asked the waitress about the tortillas. She told me they were corn, but they used a little flour in them, but it was gluten-free flour. So that explains their smooth texture and elasticity. I had a carnitas taco and a barbacoa lamb taco, both with onions and cilantro. These are big tacos! You might only want one. There were chips on the table, and pickled jalapenos, and a red and a green salsa that were complex and really good. I also got horchata that was really flavorful—a little sweet, of course, but the flavor! So I just ended up feeling really happy, and kind of vindicated—even though no one did anything wrong, last time, except maybe me not communicating more. One thing I have to say is, I'm not crazy about the tortilla that mimics a flour tortilla—it's just a mental thing—like why I'm sure some vegans are grossed out by fake meat. It kind of freaks me out. Nothing against the tortilla—in fact I think everyone I know would love these tortillas. But do other people include flour in their corn tortillas? Oh, the tortilla! Such a simple thing, and yet so complex—I don't think one can make an objective assessment, tortilla-wise—I think it's a personal thing. Simple food, yes, but anything but simple. But finally, for me, it's always going to be, first, about the feeling of a place, the uniqueness of a place, even before the first bite—that's my approach—and this Carnitas Don Lucho is right up there with places that make Milwaukee Milwaukee.