Crafted The Art of the Taco- Winston Salem, NC


Box Truck Mac n Cheese Taco: 10/10 | Original Mac n Cheese side: 9/10

Crafted is a lively, modern taco restaurant. As you enter, you are welcomed with a modern, wood-and-steel look and a kind waiter/waitress. Crafted has a full bar complete with any drink of your choice. At the center of the restaurant, there is a large communal table and all around this table are other individual tables. Crafted is a taco place that makes all sorts of interesting combinations in a hard or soft taco shell. The service is quick at Crafted, you will get your food in no time. I went on a pretty quiet day so I am not sure what the service is like when it is busy.

When ordering, you have to choose two tacos and one side. Immediately, I ordered the Big truck mac n cheese taco which is pulled pork, tobacco onions, scallions, bacon BBQ sauce, and mac n cheese stuffed inside two tacos. For my side, I chose their original mac n cheese to try it in plain form. It was a bit expensive for the serving size, but it was still a pretty good sized portion. Not too long after I ordered, my food came out served on a large plate. As soon as I could, I dug in.


The Box Truck

The Box Truck taco was very good. The mac n cheese part was elbow macaroni with a Pimento, Vermont cheddar cheese. The pimento cheese added a bit of a queso flavor to the taco. The cheese was a bit soupy and thin much to my disappointment, but still very rich in flavor and sufficiently creamy. I wish it was thicker. It tasted very good when it was combined with the other toppings, but on its own, it was kind of average due to its consistency. As I took a bite, the cheese oozed out the bottom of the taco. The combination of the mac n cheese with the pulled pork, onions, bacon BBQ sauce, and scallions was delicious! The onions added a crispy crunch, and the pork and BBQ sauce added a delicious smokey, barbeque flavor. The best part was that all the flavors from onions, sauce, and pork did not overpower the taste of the mac n cheese AT ALL. Nicely balanced flavors which is generally the problem with mac n cheese varietals that incorporate too many ingredients.
The Original Mac n Cheese
The original mac n cheese was the same as the mac n cheese in the taco minus the toppings and tortilla, obviously. The pimento cheese was thick, creamy, and gooey with a small kick from the pepper and the noodles were soft. It was a very well-made mac n cheese. However, I thought that the portion was very small even for a side dish. Maybe they expected the tacos to be more filling, but it certainly wasn’t enough side for me or for a $9.95 meal.

Overall, I thought both the Box Truck Mac n Cheese taco and the original mac n cheese was very good. I would like to thank the person who came up with the combination for the Box Truck taco because I thought that was extremely good and very creative. I would definitely go back, but only on occasion because Crafted is a bit on the pricey side of restaurants. The lively atmosphere of Crafted really brightened my day and I look forward to visiting again.
