Just over a month ago was the first time visitors to Empower Field may have noticed a couple of dudes selling burritos out of the top of a 1971 Volkswagen Bay Window. A strange sight indeed at a Morgan Wallen show. But the growing line to get tacos and loaded nachos suggested that the Carrera brothers fit right in.
At the end of June, they were back on the fifth floor again. This time, Usher fans were buying up burritos as, if not more, ravenously than the cowboy hat crowd. The spectacle of a candy-painted hippy van and the grandeur of a residency at the Broncos Stadium might not seem like it, but Josh and Ryan Carrera are getting back to their roots.
Carrera’s Tacos started as a food trailer in 2019. But the story doesn’t start there. It starts in San Diego. Josh and Ryan grew up there, enjoying the endless options, where any given strip-mall joint might be the hidden home of the Holy Grail of Baja-style fish tacos. The brothers moved to Denver in 2017, bringing with them a desire to make food that not only stood out in Colorado but could compete with anyone from here to Tijuana.
Their new concept, tentatively named Rēsu, traces their roots back even further. It’s an exploration of heritage and a representation of the brothers’ Japanese and Mexican lineage. Set to launch next month in a series of pop-ups, Rēsu will serve mariscos from a second Volkswagen in a growing three-van fleet. Baja rolls, rotating ceviches and aguachiles, surf and turf fries and binchotan skewers will all reflect the pair’s background in fine dining. Both cut their teeth at San Diego’s acclaimed Trust Restaurant, and Josh went on to hone his craft at Sushi Den. “We want to do something a little more exact,” said Josh. “You’re coming here to get something you can’t get anywhere else.” The duo have already been running menu items by Kumoya’s own Corey Baker, and they say that a collaborative pop-up is probable.
The brothers are currently in the process of wrapping their third van in Broncos iconography. They say that by the time the preseason kicks off, the tricked-out camper will arrive at its semi-permanent location on Empower’s 200 level. “We just want people to see us everywhere,” said Josh. Both vans will serve an abbreviated menu that focuses on classic Cali burritos, tacos and nachos, as well as rotating dishes like pozole and birria once the weather cools down.
A lot of people have gotten hooked on Carrera’s Tacos at its brick-and-mortar location in Greenwood Village. The dachshund-sized breakfast burritos, Vampiro tacos with shells made entirely from cheese and smothered taquitos that stay crispy even after being drenched in consomé have amassed a following that finds its members scratching at the door ahead of the restaurant’s daily opening at 7 a.m.
The food at Carrera’s is worth the drive, but Josh and Ryan say they’re excited to trade in some of their managerial tasks for preparing plates that go straight into the hands of their customers. “Being out in the streets is more gratifying, more rewarding,” said Ryan. “We want to get back to the intimacy of being on the truck,” added Josh. But even with the expansion, the restaurant is still a solid anchor for other operations. Chef Fabian Lopez, who has been running the kitchen for the last two and a half years, will remain churning out some hard-to-find items, like the chilaquiles burrito and the cajetado, a caramel paleta drowned in espresso. “He’s the reason we’re able to do so much outside of the restaurant,” said Ryan.
The carefully-calculated growth doesn’t stop there. Josh and Ryan recently signed a lease on a ghost kitchen five minutes from Empower. They’re planning on using the space to introduce a concept that’s linked straught to delivery services. “In a month, we’ll have something going on,” grinned Ryan.
Carrera’s Tacos is located at 7939 East Arapahoe Road, Greenwood Village. It is open every day for breakfast and lunch from 7 a.m. – 2 p.m., then again for dinner from 4 – 9 p.m.
Photos courtesy of Carrera’s Tacos.
