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Recycling seems to be Maria's trade, as like the Merced location, the Atwater location of Maria's Taco Shop is located in a 1970's-era, mission-style building, that once housed a restaurant, that served tacos, under the bell.

Photo:  Like all of the Maria's Taco Shops I've had the opportunity to visit, the Atwater location is housed in a 1970's-era, ex-Taco Bell building.  Maria's offers indoor and outdoor dining, and plenty of easy parking.  That's my green, 1996 Toyota Camry, parked in front of the restaurant.

Photo:  Like most taquerias, you check out the menu, posted above the counter, make your selection, pay for your order, and wait for your order to be called.  In my case, they called my order as "Menudo!"  Yeah!!!

Photo:  My order was called, and is sitting on the counter, ready for me to pick it up, as the counter gal rings up another customer.  There appeared to be two staff members on this early Sunday afternoon, May 26, 2013, the counter gal, and a cook.

Photo:  My order of menudo arrived with a stack of corn tortillas, rolled in butcher paper, and a small box containing cilantro, and dried peppers that were too hot for me to even consider.  The salsa bar, located on the counter, contains condiments, such as several varieties of fresh salsa, diced white onions, and diced cilantro.  I grabbed a couple of little containers, and loaded onion and cilantro into them, as pictured in the photos.  Maria's Taco Shop is pretty basic, but their menudo is as good as it gets, as its flavorful, and it is loaded with tripe and hominy.  At $5.00 a bowl, it's the best menudo deal in the area.  

Maria's Taco Shop has several locations around the central San Joaquin Valley, and every one of them that I've visited is located in an ex-Taco Bell location.  The food is very mainstream, basic, northern Mexican cuisine, with menudo and pozole served on weekends, and the food is good, and it represents a good "bang" for the buck. Although Maria's isn't anything special, it's good, basic, and it's the kind of place that you'll return to again, and again.

Maria's Taco Shop
360 Bellevue Rd.
Atwater, CA 95301
209 358-2654


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