The news hit me like a stack of stale corn tortillas — Baltimore ranks in the bottom 10 for taco cities in America. To be exact, it’s the 6th worst, according to an analysis by Sam Huisache, a data writer for the real estate data company Clever.

Once the immediate shock subsided, I decided that one analysis didn’t warrant the need to alert my local councilperson or my fellow taco connoisseurs. But for a Baltimore native who navigates the taco scene often, the conclusion didn’t sit right with me. It’s counter to my mission of collecting and sharing Baltimore taco places — and the city has pretty good ones, I might add.

Tacos have been my love language since before I knew how to write, “I love tacos.” They bring people together, come in all varieties, and they’re so darn good. Not to mention the versatility of a taco, which one can eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner or even a midnight snack.

That’s why my radar went up when I read about Huisache’s taco analysis. Here are few figures that stood out to me:

• Baltimore has just 0.7 taco restaurants per 100,000 residents compared to Austin, ranked the No. 1 taco city, which has the most taco places at 7.1 per 100,000 residents.
• Taco restaurants in Baltimore have an average Yelp rating of 3.79 compared to San Antonio, the city with the highest average Yelp score, 4.35.
• Baltimore has a “taco interest” score of just 51.3 out of 100, according to Google Trends data for search terms such as “tacos,” “tacos near me,” and “taco recipes.”
• In Baltimore, taco supplies for 3-4 people cost approximately $17.28, compared to Virginia Beach, which has the lowest average cost, at $11.19.

At face value this may be all factually true. But does that make Baltimore a taco desert?

Let’s look at the categories that affected Baltimore’s ranking the most: restaurants per capita, the Yelp rating average and Google interest, according to the company that compiled the data. There’s no quick fix to addressing the per capita situation, but there are plenty of tacos to go around in Baltimore as long as people are committed to finding them. Like my mom always told me as a kid, “Look beyond your nose.”

And how about quality over quantity?

And who says Yelp is the ultimate determiner of a good taco spot? I am guilty of sifting through Yelp reviews to get a sense of a new place, but I’m not always the best at leaving reviews of my own. I’m sure many others would much rather eat tacos than comment about them. Let’s do better together.

As far as Google searches, I’ve discovered that Baltimore’s best kept secrets don’t easily present themselves in an online hunt. Word-of-mouth is a much better predictor. People have to tell you about them, or, in the age of glorified social media, a reel or photo sends your belly to the right place.

My co-worker recently took me to Cinco de Mayo Dos in Little Italy, which could easily be mistaken as just a grocery store, when there’s a quaint restaurant in the back. I drove by this place often and never knew there were undiscovered tacos inside. Kudos to the power of word-of-mouth.

The cost of tacos in Baltimore is an entirely different Ted Talk. I’m still recovering from how much a single avocado can run you at the grocery store. Luckily, coupons and Taco Tuesday restaurant specials can help out. Or one can start a taco fund like I did. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

The other flaw with this survey is it doesn’t take into account user experience. Throwing a bunch of numbers into a spread sheet is one thing. But how do people feel about their taco experience, beyond a Yelp rating, in Baltimore? That’s the true test.

I’m not going to let one little survey ruin my taco experience. Baltimore’s taco scene is far better than I ever expected. Sure, it’s not riddled with taco trucks and restaurants at every nook and cranny like Austin or Los Angeles, but it gets an A for effort, and I don’t know if I could have said that five or ten years ago.

I’ve been to a few taco cities on Clever’s best list: Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, San Jose, Las Vegas, and Riverside. And I’m always open to exploring more. What I like about Baltimore’s taco scene is it may not be the most extensive, but I think that somehow drives certain restaurants or taco trucks to be more intentional about their offerings. It’s also cool to see the gradual (you can’t rush greatness) growth of taco options in Baltimore.

While I appreciate the effort to apply the endless wonders of data to a niche food obsession, I don’t think it captures Baltimore’s full taco journey. It’s certainly not going to keep a true connoisseur like me away from tacos.

They always find a way to meet you where you are.

jasmine.vaughn@thebaltimorebanner.com

Read more:

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