Taco Battle On U.S. 1: Get In The Line Of Fire And Pick Your Favorite Between R&R And El Papi

El Papi's taco special -- four tacos, a pair or each

There is a taco battle under way on U.S. 1, and this is one of the rare times that you should get right in a line of fire.

R&R Taqueria has been a HowChow landmark since 2009 when Alberto Flores first turned me onto excellent Mexican tacos in the Shell station at U.S. 1 and Rte 175.  By 2011, R&R was a darling of the local food writers -- and then ended up on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives.

Then R&R ended up across the parking lot.  The owner Rod Albarran-Torres moved out of the Shell station and into a restaurant space in the next shopping center.  A bigger menu with tacos, tortas, burritos, and even a dedicated burger menu that they call Chef Rod's Outrageous Burgers.  Chef Rod made a YouTube video about the move.

R&R tacos with the star, carnitas

That seems to be when R&R's former chef opened his own taqueria in the original space.  That's Jose Flores who started with his own taco offerings and whose El Papi Taqueira got raves from Tim Carmen in the Washington Post last month.

What we have here is a true taco battle.  Flores hung enormous signs that tout "Authentic Mexican Street Tacos" at the gas station and a photo of him with Guy Fieri.  He also did post a little El Papi sign that might let people know that this isn't the taqueria in the gas station that you had heard about when it was R&R.