Renowned for dishing up authentic tacos so good you have to book a table well in advance to dine on them, Hawthorne's Cartel Del Taco is kicking off 2025 with some massive news—they're opening a second location in just a few weeks. After three years of their regulars begging them to open on the other side of the river, owners Marco Ramirez And Erick Martinez are finally giving the people what they want, and are using it as an opportunity to level up their offering while they’re at it.
Landing on the corner of Brunswick Street and Methyr Road in New Farm, the new venue is still awaiting some finishing touches (including plates, tableware and clay pots all handmade by indigenous families back in Mexico that are currently making their way through customs), but there's no missing the massive Cartel Del Taco sign out front announcing their forthcoming arrival.
Inside, the vibrant space feels much like the OG venue, featuring bright red tiling and an unmissable sign proclaiming ‘tacqueria’ over the open kitchen. However as well as a few quirky details that set it apart from its sibling—like the custom designed artwork on the walls and a yellow-tiled ceiling—the New Farm venue will stand apart with some fresh offerings. A breakfast menu dishing up lighter versions of Mexican morning feeds will be introduced after the first week of opening (complemented by coffee from Canberra’s ONA), while the kitchen will be making use of a charcoal grill for meat and seafood dishes, and serving up freshly shucked oysters from an oyster bar.
“It's not just another location—there are definitely plenty of similarities, but we want to make it different, and take the venue that we created in Hawthorne but level it up, in a way,” says Ramirez. “Everyone loves our tacos, and they will be on the menu in New Farm, but we want to bring some more traditional Mexican dishes to the table, while still keeping things fresh and light for the Australian palate.”
Co-founder Martinez, who has designed the entire menu, has been cooking since he was eight years old, learning in the kitchen of his mother and grandmother and in the streets and plazas of Mexico City—and if you’ve been to the Hawthorne eatery, you’ll know that authenticity shines through every dish on the menu, a characteristic that you’ll find here as well.
“The real street food of Mexico, what you find in the markets, what you find on the coast, that’s what we’re doing here, just a little less heavy, less spicy, because we know what Australians like. But the menu will be something new, something different, and we’ll also be making sure that the bar connects to the kitchen, with drinks that match the smoky flavours coming from the kitchen as well as our traditional micheladas and margaritas.”
An official opening date is yet to come, but—depending on how long customs keeps a hold of their tableware—you should be able to book a table from mid-February. Stay tuned to find out when, and for a sneak peek of the menu when they open. Of course, in the meantime, you can sate your Mexican cravings with a visit to their Hawthorne venue—be sure to order the birria tacos.
Image credit: Ranyhyn Laine | Urban List