How Monterrey’s trompo tacos found home, identity in North Texas

An authentic Mexican food dish that continues to rise in popularity in North Texas wasn’t always so simple to find.

The demand from natives of Mexico’s Monterrey region now in Dallas-Fort Worth can be credited with giving trompo tacos, a classic pork preparation from Monterrey recognizable as it spins and spins on a spit, more prominence.

“Fifteen years ago you couldn’t find a taqueria that had the trompo tacos,” said José “Joe” Reyna, owner of El Reyno Elotes y Taqueria, a popular taco spot in Hurst.

You previously might have been able to find a psuedo-trompo taco with the seasoning and flavors you might expect in Dallas Fort Worth, according to Reyna. However, it was not in the distinctive trompo shape the dish is known for. Trompo is named for a Mexican children’s toy that is similar to a spinning top, but shaped like an upside-down raindrop.

“Before, whoever sold this taco was in a garage or outside a paint or a mechanic’s shop. It wasn’t very easy to find them,” said Reyna of the dish with its distinctive red color.

Trompo emerged in Dallas as a novelty sold behind the homes of Monterrey natives, called “Regios,” which comes from the word “royal” due to the large city’s role as a bustling commerce hub.

“Later, because of the demand for them, people started to sell them in the taquerias,” explained Reyna.

Reyna was born in Monterrey, Mexico’s second-largest city, and at 17, he immigrated to Dallas. He remembers he and his father missed the flavors of their hometown food so much they began eating trompo tacos in those makeshift taquerias behind people’s homes.

Eventually, Reyna later found his own calling to cook food from his homeland in Dallas.

“Since I can remember, I liked cooking. My parents have always been merchants: they had a food business and a grocery store. My grandfather had a store. My aunts have always sold food. I learned from all of them and this — where I liked to be the most — making the trompos,” said Reyna.

In Monterrey, trompo tacos are sold on almost every street corner, whether at a stand or in a restaurant. An order of five tacos could cost up to $100 Mexican pesos, around $6, whereas that same order in Dallas would cost about $15.

People eat them any day of the week in Monterrey. It’s also a dish common for after a party or a soccer game for the city’s two professional teams, the Tigres and Rayados.

D-FW Sabores: Monterrey’s trompo tacos find home, identity in North Texas

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North Texans are now familiar with trompo turning in restaurants, a visual delight from another country. But for Mexico, the origin of the meat-cooking process came from halfway around the world.

The dish arrived in the 1920s with a wave of immigrants from Lebanon and Turkey, who introduced shawarma to Monterrey and other areas. Mexicans took to the rotating spit, baptized later as “trompo,” as a vehicle to create some of their most beloved dishes, which vary regionally.

In Puebla, a trompo is used to make so-called “tacos árabes,” a name that honors its origin. In Mexico City, tacos al pastor are also cooked trompo-style, with the meat oftentimes marinated in orange juice and tacos served with onions, cilantro and pineapple. In Monterrey, tacos de trompo are more heavily seasoned than the Mexico City take — and they hold the pineapple when the tacos are assembled. A careful balances of chiles and garlic create the signature bright red hue.

Nowadays, trompo is among D-FW’s most sought-after tacos.

“People look for this taco a lot. Mexicans don’t only take two; they order five or six taquitos,” Reyna said, noting that hasn’t really changed despite inflation’s impact on rising costs. “People from all over crave these tacos. People come here from Pakistan, India, or California. They come looking for the taco because they like the style.”

Reyna spent several years running Taco Rey (Polkmart), a popular taco shop inside a gas station at Interstate 20 and Polk Street. In August, he opened his own establishment in Hurst.

Reyna’s trompo is a secret mix of 12 different chiles and seasonings, with the pork smothered in the mix. A single trompo has 120 pounds of meat, and up to 1,200 tacos come out of it. In a good week, Reyna sells up to two trompos. At his former workplace, the gas station spot could sell up to five trompos in a week.

The art of the trompo is tricky due to its sheer size.

“There’s a science to it because you have to keep it from going one way or the other, and you have to take advantage of all the little pieces, so nothing goes to waste,” Reyna said.

Along with trompo tacos, Reyna prepares another type of taco from Monterrey, with beef and an ultra-spicy sauce that is also attracting the tastes of American diners.

“Here we have the Tlaquepaque tacos and some American customers ask for them dipped in the salsa or ask for it on the side, and that’s how they eat them, with their salsita,” said Reyna of the tacos, which are so spicy and devilish they taste like fire.

Where to find trompo tacos in D-FW

• El Reyno, Elotes y Taqueria, 705 Melbourne Rd, Hurst. tiktok.com/@eloteselreyno.
• Taco Rey (Polkmart), several locations in Dallas, Grand Prairie, Arlington and Irving. Taco Rey (Polkmart).
• Taqueria Taxco, several locations in D-FW. ttaxco.com.
• Bachman Tacos and Grill, 3311 W Northwest Hwy, Dallas. bachmantacosandgrill.com.
• Taqueria La Cotorra, 3031 S First St, Garland. facebook.com/carnitaslacotorra.taqueria.

Editor’s note: The video that accompanies this story was recorded in February 2024, when Reyna was still manager of Taco Rey (Polkmart). He has since opened his own shop, El Reyno, Elotes y Taqueria.

This story is part of D-FW Sabores, a series dedicated to finding authentic Mexican cuisine across North Texas, dish by dish, region by region.