Inside Gringo's newest location in Vancouver's West End
A new spot for tacos, literal buckets of booze, and fun times has just opened up in the West End’s Davie Village neighbourhood.
Gringo – which has its first location in Gastown’s Blood Alley – is known as the vibrant back-alley taco shop that serves up really good eats and irreverent cocktails late into the night.
Its second location at 1074 Davie Street in the West End quietly opened on Friday, July 29 – just in time for Pride Weekend in Vancouver – and we finally got a chance to check out the new space.
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Daryn Wright/Daily Hive
Gringo’s rainbow decor – which extends from its bar seating to its wall colours to just about every other stitch of decor in the place – really sets the tone for its fun vibes and makes this place feel right at home in Davie Village.
Daryn Wright/Daily Hive
Anyone who’s been to the Gastown spot before knows that it’s a pretty small space, but this second location is much bigger, something that will allow it to serve as more of a test kitchen space, Dished is told.
Daryn Wright/Daily Hive
For now, the menu is the same as the OG location, where a lineup of tacos like the Wilbur (a Mazatlan-style slow-roasted pork butt and pickled onions), the Encino (roasted chicken with ranch, crispy onions, and salsa), and the aptly-named Toots (refried beans, slaw, pickled jalepenos, and onions) are on offer.
There’s also a special, rotating taco on the menu too, which right now is called the Double D: a gyro-inspired creation with beef, lamb jalepeno jus, lime slaw, tzatziki, radishes, and a sprinkling of crispy Fuego Takis on top.
Daryn Wright/Daily Hive
These fillings are all available as either tacos, burritos, bowls, or quesadilla renditions, depending on how hungry you are.
You can also grab a platter of nachos here (the best drunk food forever and ever) or tortilla chips with a side of guacamole, house-made salsa, or crave-worthy spicy queso.
Gringo is known as a taco spot, but this place is a bangin’ bar stop, too. With margaritas that use either “crap, ok, or better than ok” tequila and cocktails with names like Sex in the Alley, White Girl Wasted, and Son of a Beach, you know you’re getting more than just Mexican food here.
Daryn Wright/Daily Hive
We had to try out the Sex in the Alley cocktail – the current special – which is made with vodka, cherry Kool-Aid, Sunny D, lime juice, and garnished with Cherry Blaster candy. You can also grab this drink in a bucket size, which is served in an actual bucket – the kind that a little kid might use to build sandcastles.
Sex in the Alley | Daryn Wright/Daily Hive
Gringo tells Dished that it’s planning on rolling out a menu of churros soon, that it will also have its own street patio, and that some more decor touches are coming soon, too – including a giant pink flamingo wearing a tutu with a rainbow trailing behind it, in true Gringo fashion, of course.
The restaurant’s slogan #EatMyTaco will also be painted along the front of the building, a beckoning call to all those who are hungry and thirsty.
During its soft opening period, Gringo West End will be open from 11:30 to 12 every day of the week, but hours will later be extended until 1 am on weekdays and 2 am on weekends.
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Gringo – West End
Address: 1074 Davie Street, Vancouver
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