Editor’s note: We’re profiling some of Boulder’s best homegrown taquerias in this summer taco series. Check out our stories on Tierra y Fuego and McDevitt Taco Supply, and enjoy the Mojo Taqueria mezcal-braised story below.
A recent evening at new North Boulder taco joint Mojo Taqueria lives on as a mix of margarita, good guacamole, tacos + family. If that had been a mezcarita, I would have tasted Mojo owners Ty Hammes and Erika Anderson’s full vision for their restaurant.
Ty and Erika, who are married, opened Mojo’s flagship spot in Lyons in 2016. Their Boulder outpost, in the shopping center on the northwest corner of Iris Ave. and 28th Ave. (2785 Iris Ave.), opened its doors on June 21 — to capture some solstice mojo no doubt.
Ty used to live in North Boulder and realized the opportunity the relatively underserved, but upcoming, area provides. He and Erika live in Lyons, but, as I’m beginning to learn as a new North Boulder resident — Lyons is closer than south Boulder.
“A neighborhood post good for families and for a good cocktail” — that’s how Ty describes the vision. Family-friendly restaurants with good food and good bar service at fair prices are worth their weight in gold. That’s the recipe Ty and Erika are cooking from.
Its bar service features mezcals, one of the taqueria’s specialties.
The tacos
Ty’s passion for building sauces and salsas kicked off the Mojo journey. Before opening in Lyons three years ago, the couple, who met at Centro Mexican Kitchen where Erika worked and Ty’s Brazilian band played, spent a year developing their recipes while remodeling the spot.
“Every day starts with toasting chiles and roasting vegetables for the salsas, sauces and braising liquids,” Ty says. The salsa and sauce side of things add depth to taste, which is what Mojo’s after in its tacos.
Mojo best-sellers include:
- Braised short rib
- Baja fish
- Carnitas
- Chicken enchiladas
Mojo has live music every Sunday from 3 to 5 p.m. and kids eat free on Tuesday — one free kids meal per adult meal.
Mezcal has a special place in Mojo’s heart so the first Thursday of every month it cracks a new bottle of quality drink and does $5 pours.
Maybe see you there.
Editor’s note: story has been updated to correct who developed Mojo’s sauces and menu. It has been mainly Ty and not his wife Erika as a previous iteration of this story stated.
