Tallulah's Taqueria

Room for More in Providence’s Valley Neighborhood

In the short time since the early April soft opening of the newest location for Tallulah’s Taqueria in the Farm Fresh RI food hub on Sims Avenue in Providence, the community vibe is already palpable. Tallulah’s joins other food, beverage and farm entrepreneurs including New Harvest Coffee, Rhed’s Hot Sauce, Robin Hollow Farm, Anchor Toffee and more that have taken up residence in the sustainably designed campus, which opened in 2020.

The campus is host to a lively farmers market run by Farm Fresh each Saturday and there are other nearby neighbors such as Garden of Eve Caribbean restaurant, Industrious Spirit Company (and bar), Lost Valley Pizza, Revival Brewing and the Steel Yard. Tallulah’s founders Jake Rojas and Kelly Ann Rojas are excited to be a part of the Valley neighborhood’s urban reimagining.

“We see this as a community-based location where we can welcome eaters from the Valley neighborhood, plus Olneyville, Smith Hill, Mount Pleasant, Federal Hill and the West End,” says Jake. “Farm Fresh worked really hard to create a welcoming environment that fosters community—and what’s a main driver in building community? Food. So, we feel we’ve come to just the right place.”

It began at the farmers market with a single food cart and has become a well-established taqueria now with the three locations (Sims Avenue and Ives Street in Providence and Narragansett Avenue in Jamestown), all celebrating the food of Jake’s childhood on the Texas-Mexico border.

Jake’s practice of whole animal butchery, which he employed at their eponymous former fine-dining restaurant in Newport, was done with a goal of more mindful consumption— using every part of the animal, nose to tail. “I started braising and grilling the cuts we wouldn’t normally use for the restaurant, and it brought back those childhood food memories—putting the meat on a tortilla with fresh salsa and veggies,” he says.

Soon he was contacting family, replicating flavors and getting help with recipes from his mother. Over time he built the taqueria menu that reflects the Chicano street food of the northern Mexico and southwestern U.S. border region, including its tacos and burritos. “I grew up eating burritos—such great grab-and-go food—so I began by focusing on those,” says Jake.

Beyond the burritos on Tallulah’s menu, there are tacos, tortas, quesadillas, burrito bowls and more, all offered with choices of sustainably raised meats and poultry, plus fresh seafood (grilled or fried), local veggies and tasty fresh salsas. With a master plan set in motion in the new space, eventually these regional favorites will be served on house-made tortillas made in the auxiliary kitchen designed specifically for tortilla production. Down the road the goal is to produce Tallulah’s fresh-made salsas and tortillas for sale at a mini market within each store.

Like all restaurateurs who navigated the pandemic, Jake and Kelly Ann are still steering through supply chain and staffing issues in addition to the rising cost of food and packaging. “There’s a common perception that so-called ‘ethnic’ food should be cheap,” says Jake. “We’ve made a commitment to support our staff with medical, dental and 401(k)s and to maintain our standards of serving regionally sourced food that’s made by hand. It’s not to say we’re jacking up the prices but people [in general] need to know what’s behind the food they eat.”

They’ve also added an option so customers can give to local charities through the online ordering system.

Tallulah’s on Sims is starting out simply, with window service only and plenty of outdoor seating. (And like the two other locations, diners can sip on house margaritas, beer, wine and aguas frescas.) Jake and Kelly-Ann rolled out window service well before the pandemic made it an indispensable part of their business. It’s a model they learned from the early farmers markets days.

“We’re working towards opening for inside dining once we get the final details completed and staff in place,” says Kelly Ann. “The space has a dynamic design to accommodate not only quick-service dining but also private events and chef dinners like the Mesa Ocho dinners [eight to a table, eight courses, served at 8 pm] Jake prepared in the pre-pandemic days.”

She adds, “We’re grateful to be in this new space—we’ve finally got the room we’ve needed since we started out with the taco cart. Only now you can shop the farmers market and then come sit down, relax and enjoy a taco—with a margarita. What a great combo!”

For more information and online ordering visit, TallulahsTaqueria.com.

10 Sims Ave., Providence • 401.252.8226

146 Ives St., Providence • 401.272.8226

35 Narragansett Ave., Jamestown • 401.236.1600