New York City: Salvation Taco (April 2014)

My spouse and I dined at Salvation Taco for brunch on a Saturday afternoon in mid-April 2014. This restaurant does not accept reservations. Salvation Taco is open for lunch on weekdays, brunch on weekends, and dinner daily. The restaurant also offers food “to go” for lunch and dinner.

Salvation Taco is located in the Pod 39 Hotel on East 39th Street in the Midtown East / Tudor City / Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan. (Another Pod hotel is located on East 51st Street.) The restaurant is named Salvation because it occupies the space formerly inhabited by the Salvation Army. This tacqueria and cantina restaurant has a young hip vibe.

The restaurant is located on the street level of the building adjacent to the hotel lobby. The primary / front restaurant space contains tables near the front windows, terracotta floors, brick walls, a long bar, and high-top tile tables that share a common cushioned banquette. Toward the rear of the restaurant is a lounge area that contains low chairs and tiny tables and two Ping-Pong tables. The lighting in the restaurant space is dim and dark. The quirky decor showcases walls lined with little cubbyholes that hold an interesting collection of memorabilia from every possible religion. The hotel and restaurant offer outdoor rooftop space, where Salvation Taco provides the drinks and snacks. The restaurant shares bathrooms with the hotel. Restrooms are located on the lower / basement level; however, both stair and elevator access are available.

April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman own Salvation Taco. British Chef Bloomfield owns several other restaurants in Manhattan. Her first restaurant, The Spotted Pig, is a British gastropub that features nose-to-tail eating. The Spotted Pig opened in 2008, and it has held a Michelin star for many years. Another Bloomfield restaurant, The Breslin (located at the Ace Hotel), opened in 2010. The Breslin has held a Michelin star for several years. Chef Bloomfield’s most recent NYC venture is the Joh Dory Oyster Bar (also in the Ace Hotel). She also owns a restaurant in San Francisco. “Food and Wine” magazine once named April Bloomfield as Best New Chef.

Our server was knowledgeable and offered her preferences and suggestions. As a shared appetizer, we ordered the pork belly and kimchi pozole, followed by two delicious entrees: Moroccan lamb roti and carne asada tacos. For dessert, we shared the tres-leches cake. Our food was tasty! Although we dined for lunch, the dinner menu is more interesting, offering items such as empanadas, pig’s head tostadas, pork shank, spicy meatballs, and hand pies.

We enjoyed our lunch at Salvation Taco, and we would return sometime to try the dinner menu, or to have some drinks and snacks on the rooftop terrace.