Chef Anthony Sanders says that Taco Liquisimo, the taco stand he's just opened at the Oceanside Farmer's Market in Lake Worth, gives him the creativity and an outlet to be as outrageous as he wants on the weekends.
"I love it. I can express myself. I just grab ingredients and come up with something - I like cooking that way," he said.
For a chocolate theme at the market, he made mussels with a chocolate-beer nage. "The people loved it," he said - and it fit with the unexpected dishes he devises.
It's a far cry from his other gig as chef/consultant at Cafe Cellini in
Palm Beach's President Condominium. Diners there aren't the taco-stand
kind of crowd. "But I can do pretty much anything I want there, too. If a
guest requests something, I'll make it. Anything -- I love to cook for
people who appreciate it."
His background includes a stint as sous chef at 32 East in Delray Beach.
"We cooked with whatever was fresh in the market," he said. The menu
changed daily - which kept him interested, he said and always
challenged.
He's from Appalachicola but graduated from Florida Culinary Institute in
West Palm Beach. He worked with Buckhead Life, a huge restaurant group
in Atlanta, and opened a new-Southern restaurant featuring soul
food-style small plates, Rare Soul Food Tapas. It's his dream to open
one like it elsewhere.
"It's my mission to educate people about soul food. They have a bad
impression of it as all fats, fried and sugary foods. My grandmother
cooked fresh vegetables every day and it wasn't all fatty but it was
totally flavorful," he said.
Meanwhile, it's Taco Loquisimo every Saturday with new recipes each
week. "It means craziest - but good crazy," Sanders said of the name.
"That's me."
Want one? Get there early - they sell out at a mere $3 each.
Taco Loquisimo
At the Oceanside Farmer's Market, Lake Worth
Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
(Northeast foot of the Lake Worth bridge on the Intracoastal)
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