Stephen Montoya
Salsa Limón cofounders brother-sister duo Milo and Rosalia Ramirez.
When the brother and sister team of Milo and Rosalia Ramirez originally had the idea to create and open the very first Salsa Limón restaurant, it was supposed to make its culinary debut in a food court located in a mall.
Now, 17 years later, that original idea has come to fruition.
“Actually, the first Salsa Limón was supposed to look just like this,” Milo says during the grand opening of the seventh Salsa Limón, located inside of the food court in the Parks Mall.
“When we started in La Gran Plaza, this is what we envisioned,” he says. “But the mall loved our idea and gave me a bigger footprint by putting me in front of the movie theater instead.”
Since its inception, Salsa Limón has become a culinary favorite and go-to spot for anyone who loves authentic Oaxacan, Mexican-style street food - more specifically street tacos. So far, this duo of Ramirez siblings have overseen the opening of seven Salsa Limón locales that include four in Fort Worth, one in Dallas, a spot in Austin, and now the food court in the Parks Mall in Arlington.
The menu at this new spot has many of the staple items foodies are familiar with at the other Salsa Limón spots. The only difference here is the speed with which each item will be made.
“We've kept the menu items we feel are the most practical for this format; for a mall format, which is going to be very quick,” Milo verified.
Stephen Montoya
Although many of the same menu items found at Salsa Limón’s brick-and-mortar spots are available at this food court locale, Salsa Limón has added a new offering in the form of a chicken and rice cup, which is only available at this location.
“It’s a handheld meal for very little money, and it’s our best deal on the menu,” he says.
If you really want to get down to the nitty gritty, the idea of Salsa Limón really started when both Milo and his sister Rosalia were kids. Milo says he and his sister would always be rewarded by their mother after karate class with some tacos from what he described as “the most delicious street taco stand” in his neighborhood.
The stand he was referring to was run by people who hailed from Mexico City, whose focus was on braised and roasted beef head tacos made from ingredients like eyeballs, brains, tongue, cheek, and sizzling tripita (all street taco classics).
“[These tacos] were such phenomenal treats; they kept us practicing martial arts for many years! When we moved to the U.S., we lost access to those tacos,” Milo wrote on the Salsa Limón website.
This is where the spark for Salsa Limón started.
Stephen Montoya
“We're Oaxacan. We come from the southern part of Mexico where our food knowledge is like being from Naples and making pizza,” Milo says. “We incorporate our heritage, that detail, the high standards of quality in our food.”
When asked what Salsa Limón menu item he would recommend to a first timer, Milo says he’s a sucker for the El Capitán, a buttery toasted flour tortilla, served with melted Oaxaca-Jack cheese, pickled cabbage, onion, and cilantro. The El Capitán also comes with your choice of filling, which Milo says tastes best with the steak.
“I like to put an egg in it, and it's just like as soon as you start eating it, you don't want the experience to end and then it ends and then you have to go get yourself another one,” he says. “That’s exactly what we set out to create, was that experience.”
