Coastal Taco Offers Quick And Tasty Eats With A Beachside Vibe

Tacos taste better when life is easy and breezy. In May, Coastal Taco landed on the East Bank of the Flats with an inside-outside bar and a Tiki torch-lit terrace overlooking the Cuyahoga River for a laid-back seaside shack atmosphere. Those lounge-worthy beach vibes carry over into a family-style dining approach with two-bite tacos served en masse on party platters. With an impressive selection ranging from house-spiced mahi mahi ($3) to the crisp citrus-marinated swordfish ($3), you’ll want to get your feet wet with the fried oyster taco ($3), where three flash-fried oysters nesting on a bed of white rice and jalapeno slaw are topped with a tangy guajillo chili pepper sauce that gives your taste buds a powerful kick. The chicken tamale ($5) and chargrilled street corn ($4), swimming in ancho butter, lime aioli and cotija cheese, are large enough to split. But the pint-sized serving of goat cheese and roasted poblano pepper guacamole ($6) left us wanting more. Still, the party favor-sized dishes bring a kind of carefree nature that’s perfect for relaxing on a dock, drinks in hand.