31-31 Thomson Avenue (file photo)
Feb. 23, 2017 By Hannah Wulkan
A new taco joint opened up in Long Island City earlier this week, offering tacos with fillings from around the world created by a Michelin-starred chef.
The fast-casual taco shop Unico, located at 31-31 Thomson Avenue, opened on Monday, offering globally inspired tacos at low prices.
Michelin-starred chef Suvir Saran and entrepreneur Roni Mazumdar named the restaurant Unico, which means one-of-a-kind in Spanish, and based the concept on the idea that a taco is highly adaptable to hold international cuisine.
The restaurant offers a DIY-style experience with counter service, where customers can choose tacos, enchiladas, burritos or bowls, but has certain specialties such as the “Lima,” featuring shrimp marinated in citrus with jicama-mango-cabbage slaw and chile oil; the “Inchon,” which uses Korean flavors with marinated beef, spicy kimchi, and gochuchang salsa; and the “Shimla,” which draws inspiration from India combining roasted potatoes & bell peppers, kachumbar, and raita.
It also has a specialty Rabbit Mole Taco with pepper chutney, salsa verde, cacao, yuzu-cilantro-yogurt crema, and mizuna.
One of the goals of the restaurant was to deliver high quality food at affordable prices, with tacos costing $3 each, enchiladas costing $3.50, and wraps and bowls costing $8 each.
Mazumdar also owns Tapestry in Greenwich Village, which will be offering similar tacos for $7 each at the bar to celebrate Unico’s opening.
