Taco Bamba coming to Lincolnia

Food photos are from the Taco Bamba website.

A small storefront in Lincolnia is going from innovative high-end imperial Chinese fare to innovative Latin American street food.

Taco Bamba, a small regional chain, is opening this fall at 6259 Little River Turnpike. That space was formerly occupied by Chef Guo, which offered exquisitely designed, prix fixe multi-course banquet-style dinners.

Taco Bamba will have an indoor/outdoor bar and a seasonal patio area, reports a press release from owner/chef Victor Albisu.

Taco Bamba features tacos, tortas, and entrees with traditional and nontraditional ingredients and reflects Albisu’s Cuban and Peruvian roots, as well as his take on Mexican fare. There will be a bar with a focus on agave drinks.

The menu at the Landmark location will also have items that reflect the community, including a special empanada and dishes that honor other local restaurants.

“I haven’t been this excited about opening a Taco Bamba since we debuted our first location eight years ago this month,” Albisu said. “I worked at my mother’s Latin market in Landmark while growing up in nearby Annandale, where I graduated from high school.”

“I got an early education in global cuisine between my mom’s store and the area’s delicious Italian, West African, Korean, and Middle Eastern restaurants,” he says, and also has fond memories of places that have long since closed, such as Generous George’s, Starvin Marvin, and H I Ribsters.

In 2015, Albisu was named Chef of the Year by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington (RAMW). In 2016, he was selected as a semifinalist for the James Beard Foundation’s Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic award. And in 2019, he was nominated Restaurateur of the Year by RAMW.

The Landmark restaurant will be the seventh location of Taco Bamba; the others are in Ballston, Fairfax, Falls Church, Springfield, Vienna, and Rockville, Md. Each one has a unique menu.