Tacos Valentina

Tacos Valentina is an acclaimed, independently owned “molino y taquería” in Kansas City’s Crossroads Arts District, built on a heirloom-corn masa program — stone-milling imported Mexican native corn in-house — and a mission of championing regional Mexican cuisine and cultural identity. It grew from a 2021 pop-up/ghost-kitchen concept into a permanent kitchen-residency inside Torn Label Brewing Co. at 1708 Campbell St.

Description

Tacos Valentina is an independent Mexican taquería in the East Crossroads of Kansas City, Missouri, operating as a “molino y taquería” — a concept centered on milling its own masa in-house from imported Mexican heirloom corn.¹² The masa is small-batch stone-milled and tortillas are hand-pressed daily; the kitchen sources non-GMO heirloom corn varietals (reported at roughly 200 pounds per month) from Mexican farms in states such as Oaxaca and Estado de México, working with import partners to access regional varieties.²³⁴

The menu emphasizes authentic, scratch-made regional Mexican fare: street tacos, hand-pressed quesadillas, burritos, tetelas, botanas, and desserts, with barbacoa a signature (co-owner Roger Avila has noted that few KC operators were doing barbacoa) and a Mexico City–style Salsa Chilango among house preparations.⁵⁴ Vegan and vegetarian options are part of the offering, reflecting the concept’s ghost-kitchen origins.⁵⁴ The restaurant operates inside Torn Label Brewing Co. at 1708 Campbell St., where beer is brewed on-site; the two have collaborated on a Mexican lager (“Oro Especial”).⁵

Ownership and history

Tacos Valentina is independently and locally owned by three co-owners: Roger Avila, Kendra Valentine-Avila, and Pablo Muñoz.⁴ Avila is originally from San Antonio, Texas; his partners brought fine-dining experience from Dallas restaurants.⁴ The concept began around 2021 as a pop-up and vegan-leaning ghost kitchen — Avila has said it grew from a desire for the kind of late-night tacos he knew from Dallas — with an early pop-up stop at Big Mood Natural Wine in the Crossroads.²⁴ Valentine-Avila’s baking background led the team toward the heirloom-tortilla/masa program that became the operation’s defining feature.⁴

After roughly two years operating as a pop-up and building a “cult following,” Tacos Valentina took over the kitchen at Torn Label Brewing Co. at 1708 Campbell St., opening its permanent location on August 29, 2023.¹⁵ The business is non-chain with no corporate parent.

Links

• Website: https://www.tacosvalentina.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tacosvalentina/
• Phone: (816) 656-9459

See also

• crossroads-arts-district
• Registry

Menu

Last verified: 2026-06-21 · Source: Tacos Valentina official site, Toast online ordering, Uber Eats, DoorDash, Yelp, Wanderlog · URL(s): https://www.tacosvalentina.com/menu · https://order.toasttab.com/online/tacosvalentina · https://www.ubereats.com/store/tacos-valentina-at-torn-label/7eYH5AObRg63ro9BpuK1mQ · https://www.yelp.com/biz/tacos-valentina-kansas-city · Confidence: Medium-High (item names, taco lineup, and the molino/heirloom-masa framing are High and cross-confirmed across official + ordering + aggregator sources; individual prices are Medium — sourced from ordering platforms and review snippets, which lag in-store changes, so prices are marked where reliable and flagged otherwise).

Tacos Valentina is a scratch-made “molino y taquería” whose menu is built on hand-pressed tortillas from in-house stone-milled heirloom Mexican corn — street tacos, hand-pressed botanas, and burritos served alongside Torn Label’s in-house beer.⁶⁷

Signature dishes (taquería — fit the concept)

• Barbacoa taco — slow-braised Barham Family Farm beef cheek, cilantro, onion; a house signature (co-owner has noted few KC operators were doing barbacoa).⁶⁷
• Suadero taco — confit & seared brisket and chuck, cilantro, onion, salsa verde cremosa.⁷
• Pollo Adobado taco — grilled marinated chicken (al pastor style), cilantro, pickled pineapple, onion.⁶⁷
• Mole Vegano taco — vegan mole preparation; reflects the concept’s ghost-kitchen/vegan-leaning origins.⁷
• Pescado en Ceniza taco — smoked mahi mahi, ash-tamarind glaze, poblano, cabbage, carrot, onion, tomatillo crème fraîche.⁶

Tacos

• Carne Asada — grilled steak (Barham Family Farm beef).⁶⁷
• “Kansas City” taco — house KC-themed taco.⁷
• Single tacos sold à la carte; a 3-taco plate is listed around $15.75 and a 2-(small)-taco order around $11.⁶

Botanas (appetizers / sides)

• Asada Fries — carne asada, chihuahua & quesillo, queso fresco, guacamole, salsa verde, poblano. ($14)⁸
• Totopos & Dip — heirloom totopos, guacamole with charred tomatoes & red onion, honey-morita salsa. ($10)⁸
• Elotes — sweet corn, lime-mayo, cotija, queso fresco, crushed Takis. ($7)⁸
• Chips & guacamole, salsas, pickled onions.⁷

Burritos & wraps

• Burritos — available at lunch and dinner; meat or vegetarian fillings in a Caramelo flour tortilla.⁶⁷
• Chori-Crunch Wrap — pork chorizo, beans, cheese, lettuce, chipotle mayo, Caramelo tostada, wrapped in a 12” Caramelo flour tortilla. ($11) Vegetarian version with plant-based chorizo also $11.⁹

Drinks (with Torn Label Brewing)

• Torn Label Oro Especial — Mexican-style lager brewed on-site in collaboration with Tacos Valentina; plus other Torn Label and GRRRL beers on tap.⁵⁷
• Cocktails including margarita pitchers and a frozen carajillo.⁷

Sources

• Status verified active 2026-06-23 via Yelp — Tacos Valentina (Updated June 2026, 38 reviews) (accessed 2026-06-23). Operating from the Torn Label Brewing kitchen at 1708 Campbell St, KCMO 64108; current Wed–Sat hours; no closure signal; recent reviews through June 2026.

Footnotes

1. Tacos Valentina — official website (address, phone, Instagram handle, molino/heirloom-corn concept, hours) — https://www.tacosvalentina.com/ — accessed 2026-05-31. ↩ ↩²

2. Crossroads Arts District — “Tacos Valentina” listing (address, neighborhood, molino concept, heirloom Mexican corn, sourcing) — https://kccrossroads.org/explore-the-crossroads/tacos-valentina/ — accessed 2026-05-31. ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. Yelp — Tacos Valentina, 1708 Campbell St, Kansas City, MO (address confirmation, active operation) — https://www.yelp.com/biz/tacos-valentina-kansas-city — accessed 2026-05-31. ↩

4. The Pitch KC — “Mise en Place: Tacos Valentina’s Roger Avila on espíritu colaborativo” (three co-owners and backgrounds, ghost-kitchen/vegan origin, heirloom-corn sourcing and mission, barbacoa, Salsa Chilango) — https://www.thepitchkc.com/mise-en-place-tacos-valentinas-roger-avila-on-espiritu-colaborativo/ — accessed 2026-05-31. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

5. Kansas City Magazine — “Tacos Valentina: A KC Taco Pop-Up shop has found a permanent home behind a bar” (pop-up timeline, August 29, 2023 permanent opening, Torn Label kitchen, Avila quote, menu, Oro Especial lager) — https://kansascitymag.com/tacos-valentinas-a-kc-taco-pop-up-shop-has-found-a-permanent-home-behind-a-bar/ — accessed 2026-05-31. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

6. Tacos Valentina — official website / menu page (menu sections: Botanas, Tacos, Burritos; barbacoa, Pollo Adobado, Pescado en Ceniza, Carne Asada; Barham Family Farm beef; sample plate pricing) — https://www.tacosvalentina.com/menu — accessed 2026-06-21 (menu items confirmed via search-result snapshot; live page renders via JavaScript). ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

7. Wanderlog / Yelp — Tacos Valentina, 1708 Campbell St (taco lineup incl. Suadero, Barbacoa, Carne Asada, Mole Vegano, “Kansas City” taco; Suadero/Pollo Adobado descriptions; chips/guacamole, salsas, pickled onions; Torn Label Oro Especial, GRRRL beers, margarita pitcher, frozen carajillo) — https://wanderlog.com/place/details/9604666/tacos-valentina · https://www.yelp.com/biz/tacos-valentina-kansas-city — accessed 2026-06-21. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹

8. Tacos Valentina — Toast / Uber Eats online-ordering menu snapshot (Botanas: Asada Fries $14, Totopos & Dip $10, Elotes $7) — https://order.toasttab.com/online/tacosvalentina · https://www.ubereats.com/store/tacos-valentina-at-torn-label/7eYH5AObRg63ro9BpuK1mQ — accessed 2026-06-21 (prices from ordering platform; may lag in-store). ↩ ↩² ↩³

9. Tacos Valentina — addmi online-ordering listing (Chori-Crunch Wrap and vegetarian version, $11 each, full description) — https://addmi.com/b/tacos-valentina.-N1y_Ezfc1nm_smJvoE3/store — accessed 2026-06-21. ↩