Concord Taco Trail delivers meals of gratitude to nonprofits

DINING SCENE

The eggy creations at Mad Yolks, newly opened in San Jose, include the Classic, with soft scrambled egg, extra-sharp cheddar, caramelized onions; the Mad Chick;, the Spam and Egg sandwich; and Dirty Tots, topped with Japanese curry and a sunny-side-up egg. courtesy of Mad Yolks

Image

By Linda Zavoral

lzavoral@bayareanewsgroup.com

Visit Concord, the city’s tourism bureau, has teamed up with the restaurants on the Concord Taco Trail to deliver tortilla-wrapped thanks to nonprofit staffs and volunteers.

“These organizations care for our community year-round, and this is our way of caring for them,” said Beth Javens, executive director of Visit Concord, after the Thanksgiving-week program wrapped up. “It’s a small gesture that reminds them they’re valued.”

Mercado del Sol, located at 1450 Monument Blvd., brought meals to the White Pony Express, a food recovery program whose volunteers deliver surplus, high-quality food to organizations that serve people in need.

Tortilleria El Molino, at 1500 Monument Blvd., supplied a taco meal break for the emergency room nurses at John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek.

Los Montanas Supermarket brought a meal of thanks to the Monument Crisis Center. The market has two stores in Concord (1725 Willow Pass Road, 2691 Monument Blvd.), one in Hayward (20800 Mission Blvd.) and one in San Pablo (13901 San Pablo Ave.).

And Puesto restaurant, located in The Veranda, delivered its tacos to the employees and volunteers at the Contra Costa Humane Society.

Each year, the 40 restaurants on the Concord Taco Trail mark Hispanic Heritage Month with customer challenges and special menus.

Details: visitconcordca.com/eat-drink/taco-trail/

Mad Yolks in Willow Glen gets cracking

Fans of the Mad Yolks sandwiches in Santa Cruz have been imploring the restaurant owners to open a location on this side of the hill.

A month ago, the egg lovers’ wish was granted. Owners Peter and Henry Wong have expanded to San Jose with a Willow Glen location.

The twin brothers launched the eatery on the coast in 2022. “We saw an opportunity for a fast-casual breakfast concept that still focused on quality with fresh brioche, real ingredients and sandwiches made to order,” Peter said. “We wanted something fun, modern and comforting, but with a chef-driven edge.”

The bestsellers are the B.A.E., with bacon, avocado, egg and cheddar on brioche; the Mad Chick, fried chicken with egg, arugula, garlic aioli; and the vegetarian favorite, the Shrooms, with sauteed mushrooms, soft scrambled egg and fontina.

What’s the secret to the piping hot, crunchy Mad Chick? “A 48-hour marinade, a double dredge and small-batch frying,” Peter said.

Rounding out the menu are a Breakfast Burger; Spam and Egg Sandwich, Curry Moco; a three-cheese, no-egg Brioche Melt; and salads topped with lightly marinated, soft-boiled egg and roasted tomatoes.

The soft, slightly sweet buns come from the ovens at Mad Yolks’ central bakery, Peter said.

Beverage menu highlights include strawberry, mango, honey and orange juice matcha, iced jasmine teas and hot oolong drinks. Leading the coffee lineup is Alex’s Iced Cafe, a dark roasted chicory blend with condensed milk.

Details: Serves daily from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, until 3 p.m. Sundays-Thursdays, 1087 Meridian Ave., San Jose. The Santa Cruz eateries are located at 1411 Pacific Ave. and 830 41st Ave.; both are open daily. madyolks.com

Send restaurant news tips to Linda Zavoral at lzavoral@bayareanewsgroup.com, Kate Bradshaw at kbradshaw@bayareanewsgroup.com, John Metcalfe at jmetcalfe@bayareanewsgroup.com or Jason Mastrodonato at jmastrodonato@bayareanewsgroup.com.