Behind the Scenes at Dos Gordos Tacos & Tequila with Chefs CJ Callahan and Alex Ahl

BY JEFF FIJOLEK

Grant Barnes and Neal Hennessey, the founders and owners of One Tree Hard Cider and their downtown tap house are bringing a new restaurant to the Wandermere area of North Spokane this spring.

Located in the site of a former taco franchise, Dos Gordos Tacos & Tequila is replacing the drive-thru with a full-service bar, aiming to be a place where neighborhood families can come and enjoy a casual meal while also serving as a destination for adventurous eaters seeking a unique approach to Latin fare.

We sat down with Executive Chef CJ Callahan and Food & Beverage Manager Alex Ahl to discuss Dos Gordos, their shared experiences working at Hogwash and Inland Pacific Kitchen in Downtown Spokane and what they look forward to sharing this season and beyond.

“Dos Gordos is a restaurant concept that I don’t think necessarily exists in Spokane. We’re having to toe the line between fast casual tacos and burritos, but we want to have a separate side that is more chef-driven, quote-unquote. I’m not working on the streets of Mexico which are the best tacos I’ve ever had. I can’t compete with that and I don’t want to. So we’re going to do our interpretation of tacos. There’s a lot of ways we can approach the food, combining different styles. I’m not going to call it fusion, but we want to exercise our brains so we are going to have some higher-end food where Latin flavors meet French technique. We’ll do a braised lamb shank and serve that on a pile of fries with consomme, tortillas and salsas. It’s a little like steak frites and a little like birria. ”

— CJ

“There are a lot of people up here who don’t always want to drive downtown for something special. We want to give the downtown crowd a reason to drive their ass up here. And it’s not that far!”

— Alex

“What is going to separate us is that everyone is welcome there. A family can come in for their five-year-old to have tacos and fries or you can come and experience an elevated six-course dinner. And the margaritas will be good either way.”

— CJ

“By the second month, we’re going to introduce our Sunday brunch program—it’s going to be an event every week.”

— Alex

“What is going to separate us is that everyone is welcome there. A family can come in for their five-year-old to have tacos and fries or you can come and experience an elevated six-course dinner. And the margaritas will be good either way.”

— CJ