There’s a new Mexican restaurant, Chilangos Tacos, headed for Grand Bazaar Shops, flea market of The Strip.
We were marginally excited about the prospect of a new Mexican offering at Horseshoe (as first shared by the “Five Hundy By Midnight” podcast), formerly Bally’s, but it’s harder to muster enthusiasm for a concept one must endure Grand Bazaar Shops to patronize.
Still, new is new, so here we are.
Horseshoe proper has been bereft of tacos since Tequila Taqueria and its neighbors, Buca di Beppo and Nobu, closed at then-Bally’s in 2021. BLT Steak closed at Bally’s around the same time. It’s now Jack Binion’s Steak.
Bally’s became Horsehoe in Dec. 2022.
That Bally’s has nothing to do with the Bally’s Corp. that operated the recently-imploded Tropicana. Plans for the Tropicana site include it being a parking lot for the foreseeable future as Bally’s Corp.’s bank account is emptier than a stripper’s promise there is definitely sex in the Champagne Room.
Chilangos Tacos has five locations in Texas and Tennessee. Las Vegas is listed as the sixth outpost, “coming early 2025.”
The chain is known for al pastor tacos, birria tacos and carne asada quesadillas, but they had us at churros.
According to our extensive study of foreign languages (asking ChatGPT), the term “Chilangos” is a colloquial Spanish word used in Mexico to refer to people from Mexico City. It carries a mix of connotations, ranging from neutral to playful or even slightly pejorative, depending on the context and who is using it.
Which is a huge coincidence because, well, nevermind.
While there are challenges to operating in the Grand Bazaar Shops (Bourbon Parade closed after a month), Mexican food and drunk tourists are a perfect match. Señor Frog’s being the exception, of course.
Judging from the menus at its existing locations, Chilangos Tacos will soon bring accessible Mexican fare to Grand Bazaar Shops, the mall designed to look like a Pantone Color Guide thrown into an industrial-grade hay chopper.
