Nine years later and BC Tacos is STILL cooking it up! You can try out their tacos, which are delicious, either at their food truck or their brick and mortar in Davie. But don't get it twisted, these aren't just your regular tacos. Even during quarantine and a worldwide pandemic, nothing is stopping them from thriving.
I virtually got the chance to chat with owner and founder, Brett Chiavari, about how they're still AMAZING, even nine years later.
In your own words, what is BC Tacos?
BC Tacos is here to change people's views of tacos by offering a unique, modern American twist on the taco. We believe in the idea that tacos don’t have to be associated with Tex-Mex cuisine, and can be made with the same care and quality ingredients as a fine dining restaurant. We maintain exceptional service standards and measure our success by our satisfied and loyal customers.
What sets you apart from other taco spots?
There are very few places that are doing the kind of tacos we are doing. We definitely take an upscale, modern-American approach. Sometimes it works to our advantage and sometimes it doesn't.
We don't fit in a "traditional" taco category. We aren't authentic Mexican, we aren't Tex Mex, we aren't doing Baja or Ensenada style. We are American, and sometimes that gets us associate with a certain fast-food chain, which we absolutely hate that comparison because that is so far from what we are.
We offer high-quality ingredients, almost everything made from scratch, with a level of service and care, that most trucks or restaurants don't have.
How has your business been during COVID-19?
Thankfully, we've been doing well and staying busy. We adjusted and adapted pretty quickly. Once we had an idea of what was going to happen with restaurants, we immediately thought of the Taco Quarantine Kit. We did a family meal package that was designed to give, whoever was ordering, multiple meals, an influx on some much-needed protein, and the ability to stay at home just a little longer.
We had people make salads, pasta dishes, rice dishes, and more with their leftovers. It started with the taco kit and it has evolved to 16 different menus that are available all the time for purchase, from a make your own pancake kit to brunch to ramen noodles, mac and cheese, bbq and special edition holiday kits (like Easter and Passover).
What does the food truck offer but the store doesn’t? Which one is your personal favorite?
The store actually carries everything that the truck has, except one taco...The Caveman Taco. It's a 2-ounce burger patty topped with our custom short rib blend ground beef and braised beef short ribs. That meat sits on a hard shell, wrapped in a soft shell with lettuce, cheese, and tomato. It's definitely a two-hander taco.
It really depends on my mood and the day for sure. Sometimes I absolutely love working on the truck or driving the truck, other days I much prefer to be in the restaurant in the AC. But they both definitely have their pros and cons.
How does it feel to have your brick and mortar open for 7 years?
It feels great. Making it one year is obviously a huge accomplishment in itself, but the fact that we have been doing this for seven is still surreal at times. Very proud of how far we've come and how we've evolved, and the team that I have to go into battle with!
What is your most popular dish?
Tacos will always be our most popular. A couple of my favorites we do are the Steakhouse Taco: it's grilled filet, creamed spinach, fried onions, and a bearnaise aioli. We do a Shrimp & Girts with fried cheese grits, bacon, and an old bay aioli. We have some awesome vegetarian tacos with fried avocado, charred sweet potato. We also have The Shelbey, named after my wife, with fried curried tofu, lettuce, red peppers, fried onions, and cilantro. It's amazing!
You can also never go wrong with our Chicken & Waffle Sliders. A waffle gets quartered and used as buns, then our buttermilk marinated chicken gets tossed in our special blend flour mixture and fried. It's then topped with shredded cheddar and cayenne maple syrup.
Is there a dish that surprised you that was popular by demand?
Definitely the Chicken & Waffles. It was a staple on our brunch menu since our very first brunch. Then, it got to the point where people were coming in all days of the week asking for it, so for almost two years it has been a staple on our regular menu!
What is a great memory you have with BC Tacos?
It's truly hard to narrow it down to one. A business/personal one is I met my wife through my food truck. She was actually a customer of mine and at the time was starting her own dessert truck, and we got to talking. I was helping her, and as they say, the rest is history.
When I first started on the truck I had this lunch spot on Cypress Creek and Powerline in Ft. Lauderdale. I literally just pulled up and we built the spot up via social media, started a weekly food truck event there, and everything. We threw a big one-year anniversary party with 8-10 trucks and the place got absolutely packed. Hundreds and hundreds of people showed up. It was just amazing how it started as nothing and then it turned into that. I was blown away.
Another great memory is when we were one of the original companies to get invited to the Taco event at SOBEWFF. That first year was amazing. We met so many people like Jose Andres, Guy Fieri, Marcus Samuelson, Aaron Sanchez, everyone got our Shrimp and Grits Tacos and absolutely loved them. It was amazing!
What is the strangest taco you’ve created? (i.e. s’mores tacos)
Another one which is a hard one to answer: You name it, we have tried it. We've made plantain taco shells with ropa vieja, we've done sushi tacos, cheesecake tacos, apple pie tacos, we did a lasagna taco, Oysters Rockefeller taco...we have done it all and we've managed to make them all pretty tasty too!
For Cinco de Mayo, BC Tacos offered a whole kit to celebrate at home. How did that go?
It seemed like only the right thing, almost our duty, to do haha. We've been waiting for this day for seven years... and we are quarantined. That doesn't mean we shouldn't be celebrating. So we put the kit together and that turned out to be our most popular kit so far.
We are going to keep it available all the time but rename it the Fiesta Kit. From when we launched it to the day of Cinco, we sold over 60 kits!
What does the future have in store for BC Tacos?
To be honest, I'm not really sure. I've always had a pretty clear vision of what I wanted to do and how I wanted to expand, but the last year has given me a lot to think about. So right now, we are focusing on the day-to-day and get through this pandemic. We look forward to the days where we can get back out hustling on our food truck and get people back into our dining room at the cafe!
Is there a misconception about the taco industry or the food truck industry that you’d like to clear up?
I think the misconception that we've always battled with, and why we made it a part of our mission, is what gets classified as a taco. As we said, we are out to prove that tacos don't have to be Tex Mex or traditional Mexican or traditional Baja style, to be a "real" taco. I say we embrace what's inside the tortilla, and as long as it's cooked well and delicious, why not enjoy it and stop trying to classify it.
BC Cafe, 4801 S. University Drive, Suite 123, Davie, FL 33328
(954) 801-4123
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