The corner of Hwy 22 and Hwy 21 is a very busy intersection in Madisonville, made so because the town is not so sleepy anymore. There is a little strip mall that has been there forever. It used to have great shakes offered by a drive-in. One day I passed there and noticed a big change. EmpaTaco had arrived. Besides having a peculiar name, it had a peculiar menu and a peculiar sort of hip environment to it.
I expected it to be gone in no time, but it wasn’t. A few years later my curiosity drove me to go stand in line and see how they had managed to prevail in a tough business.
Maybe their weird name, menu, and place had worked to their advantage. But there had to be more to it. What I discovered was that they had a very steady stream of regular customers who had favorite menu items. They came because they loved the place.
I was pleasantly surprised by this scene, the food, and the chutzpah of this bunch, so I left rooting for them, though they didn’t need me. When I saw a sign go up with the name EmpaTaco on a much more visible space on Hwy 190, I was excited for them. It was too close to the other to be a second location. Were they moving out of Madisonville where they had so much success? What would their loyal customer base do?
There was not much time to ponder these questions, because it wasn’t long before the sign came down. Uh oh.
Did their ambition kill the original place?
Hardly. What I didn’t know was that they had set their sights elsewhere. In downtown Covington, an infamous house that had been another revolving door of restaurants was getting a major redo. This little cottage that had once briefly housed Lee Harvey Oswald had fallen into disrepair.
It took a long time for the metamorphosis into a rustic but glamorous place you might find in the Spanish Valencia, the restaurant’s namesake. This place has the same elements of modern Latin cool as little EmpaTaco, with much-elevated food.
In defiance of Tom’s oft-repeated warning not to go to a restaurant until it has been open six months. We dragged him to Valencia in its first week of business. The weather was much cooler, so we sat outside on its now-spacious porch out front. A musician sat in a corner of the deck, keeping a low profile, which I always appreciate.
In a place called Valencia, we had to get the famous dish of Valencia, paella. The price for this rice dish full of seafood surprised me, though it shouldn’t have. After all, it is a dish full of seafood. Ordered by the portion, or person, it was $30. But first, we got pork belly, because I was surprised to see it on the menu and curious about its preparation.
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The pork belly was definitely not cooked enough. Pork belly is a nearly ubiquitous thing on menus, which has annoyed Tom from Day One. I am a definite proponent of animal fats, so I am always willing to add this to my order. The one thing that is essential, to me anyway, is that pork belly be so tender as to almost fall apart. This was a big disappointment here. I chalked it up to Tom’s rule of new restaurants.
The pork belly is smoked first then glazed and finished in the oven. It had definitely not smoked long enough. A waste of beautiful pork belly. The sort of fruity flavor was fine, but it was tough.
All was forgiven when Paella Valenciana arrived. I love this dish, and this was as good as any I have had, including at the restaurants on the beach in the real Valencia.
It was full of the fruits of the sea, with a delectable flavor. The rice was cooked perfectly, with the desirable soccarat bottom. There is a trick to getting the ideal soccarat, with the exact amount of fat from the proteins needed to coat the bottom of the pan and to soak the flavor into the rice.
They nailed it. As the pictures suggest, they were very generous with the proteins in the dish. This was one of the most enjoyable dishes I have had before or since.
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We returned not long after dinner at Valencia for lunch. It was entirely unremarkable. I saw a burger on the menu on our first visit, which I wanted to try. There is also a Cuban sandwich, which gets Tom every time.
Neither of these was anything I needed to get again. We also got Potatas Bravas, which were a fine rendition of the Latin French fries. While we were there the owner came over to say hello. He brought out the chef, who I was surprised to learn had been at the old Friends on The Tchefuncte (hardly a resume enhancement.) I was expecting someone in the family or at least in their circle. How else could they have produced such a convincing Paella Valenicana?
The chef explained that they had worked on the pork belly since we talked on the radio about it. He was still not feeling it was what he wanted, but it was moving in the right direction. He brought out the day’s version of it. I agreed that it was definitely a step in the right direction, but also definitely still not where it should be.
Despite what seems like a negative review of this adorable newcomer, I am delighted to have them close by. We have not returned for the personal reasons that have been so public on the Food Show. Tom’s hospitalization has slowed us down from our previous dining-out program, which was already a mere shadow of its former self. And Valencia is not a place I would rush to when I get out.
But, I still think it is a charmer. It’s a beautiful renovation of a decrepit building. The menu is interesting and we have hardly tapped into it. And most important, any craving for real Spanish Paella Valenciana can be wholly satisfied without going to Valencia. The one in Spain, I mean.
