Frisco | June 2022

DINING FEATURE

BY KAREN CHANEY

THREE DISHES TO TRY Chicken tinga tostadas ($12) are served with lettuce, tomato, ranch crema and cotija cheese. 1 “IT GIVES ME THE WARM FUZZIES TO HEAR PEOPLE TALK ABOUT HOW MUCH THEY LOVE SOMETHING I CREATED.” BLAINE MCGOWAN, CHÍDO TACO LOUNGE OWNER

Quesabirria tacos ($15) include birria beef, cheese, cilantro, onions, corn tortillas and dipping consume.

Chído Taco Lounge specializes in craft tacos and cocktails. (Photos by Karen Chaney/Community Impact Newspaper)

The Grilled Caesar ($9) has charred romaine, corn, fried avocado, cotija, lime vinaigrette and Caesar dressing.

Chído Taco Lounge First-time restaurateur brings people together over tacos A lthough he had zero restaurant experience, Frisco resident Blaine McGowan opened Chído Taco Lounge in The Shops at Star-

The main reason I decided to do tacos is you can put anything in a tortilla and call it a taco.” McGowan said approximately 80% of his restau- rant’s customers are repeat diners, including a group who come in every Wednesday night. “We have a secret menu, and there are currently three items on the menu that were created by guys in that group who asked me to do something dierent,” he said. With a year of restaurant ownership behind him, he said he severely underrated how hard owning a taco eatery would be. “Last week, I was a dishwasher, server, line cook, bartender and manager,” he said. “It’s hard to nd sta, and it’s important for me to not stress my sta.” McGowan said his favorite thing about owning this business is visiting with customers. “It gives me the warm fuzzies to hear people talk about how much they love something I created,” he said. “It’s the ultimate sense of satisfaction.”

wood on March 12, 2021. “I wanted to get into the restaurant biz because I love food and people,” McGowan said. “I’ve always been the guy who goes into restaurants and questions why they don’t do things a certain way and how things can be better.” He said he soon realized why restaurants do things a certain way and why they are not perfect. “It doesn’t mean that I couldn’t try to be better, and I think in a lot of areas we are,” he said. Prior to opening the eatery, McGowan was in sales, and he also ran a supper club. He said most of his culi- nary experience is through trial and error, research, and “having fun.” “Cooking is about learning avors,” he said. “Once you learn how they come together [and] what goes with what, from there the possibilities are endless.

Blaine McGowan is the owner of Chído Taco Lounge.

Chído Taco Lounge 6959 Lebanon Road, Ste. 123, Frisco 469-200-5715 | www.chidodfw.com Hours: Tue.-Thu. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 11 a.m.-midnight, Sun. 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Mon. closed

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FRISCO EDITION • JUNE 2022