Business & Tech

Villa Pancho Mexican Restaurant Opens on Bedford Avenue

Tongue tacos, anyone?

Francisco Villa better known as Pancho Villa was one of the most prominent generals of the Mexican Revolution of 1910.

A nod to this celebrated general’s bravery now comes in the form of a new restaurant, Villa Pancho Taqueria, which opened last Friday at 1047 Bedford Avenue (corner of Greene Avenue).

If you love Mexican cuisine, this restaurant has all the usual trappings for between $3 - $12: tacos, quesadillas, burritos, chimichangas, fajitas, pollo asado, even veggie versions of all the same with a variety of salads and low-fat yogurts.

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Villa Pancho’s co-owner and restaurateur Ahmad Samhan partnered with longtime chef Miguel Calderon to bring the idea of a Mexican eatery to fruition, along with a third partner, Carlos Zambrano.

“Miguel has worked as a chef all around Brooklyn for over 20 years,” said Samhan, a Brooklyn native. “He’s also a neighbor of mine. He came up with a wonderful idea for a Mexican restaurant in Bed-Stuy. And since I know how to put a restaurant together, we combined my know-how and his know-how, and opened a taqueria (taco restaurant).”

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Aside from what you would hope and expect from a taqueria, Villa Pancho also offers a few specialty items, such as fresh roasted corn with ancho chile and light cream sauce, spinach sautéed with hominy corn and garlic, spicy fish tacos, ($3.50); Conpuesta Salad made of your choice of meat and salad in a crispy tortilla bowl, ($8); and tongue tacos – yes, that’s tacos filled with the meat of beef tongue – ($3).

Samhan says he’s a huge fan of Mexican food, because it’s serious comfort food: “Our seafood tacos are really good. But my favorite is the tongue taco. I love tongue, and it’s been one of our best-sellers. It’s delicious.

“There’s no pretention here to be the best. It’s just very good food.”


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