Editor’s note: The Bickering Twins is an Ithaca Voice Dining Partner. However, this post is not an advertisement created by the featured restaurant.
ITHACA, NY — The Bickering Twins will host their grand opening, Tuesday May 1.
They will be open for lunch, with a la carte tacos from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with their full dinner menu available from 5 to 10 p.m.
We got a small taste of what was to come at the restaurant’s soft opening this past weekend.
The Twins brightened up Bandwagon’s former space at 114 N. Cayuga St. with extra lighting, a fresh paint job and tile-inspired tables.
Anyone who has attended one of the Bickering Twins’ pop-ups will be familiar with several of the taco varieties like the chicken tinga, lamb barbacoa and al pastor, which have made the transition to their brick-and-mortar restaurant.
The brothers are also digging deeper into street cuisine with the likes of cabeza and lengua tacos, sopes and posole, and churros for dessert.
Here’s a photo preview of what we tried:
All photos by Jennifer Wholey.
The chips and guacamole were a solid choice as a starter.
The jicama salad was a welcome respite from all the meat that was to come.
Three kinds of beef tacos with corn tortillas, from right to left: cabeza, lengua, and shaved beef. The cabeza was reminiscent of smoky brisket, the lengua more akin to pulled beef, and the finely spiced shaved beef reminded us of shawarma.
Our personal favorites were the sopes, fried masa tartlets topped with black beans.
For dessert, we tried the flourless Mexican chocolate cake infused with cinnamon, made by Leslie Muhlhahn from Just Desserts. (Not pictured because we were incredibly stuffed and decided to take it to go.)
The restaurant will soon have a full bar with local and Mexican beers, and cocktail classics like palomas, margaritas and several varieties of mules and bloody marys, as well as exciting options like mezcal old fashioneds.
Non-alcoholic options include tamarind, hibiscus and horchata agua frescas, as well as sugar-sweetened Mexican Coke.
The restaurant will be open 11 a.m.- 10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday and Sunday, and will be open 11 a.m.- 1 a.m. Friday and Saturdays.