A shopping mall is not the first place we would normally associate with an engaging dining experience, but the newly opened Paco’s Tacos in Eastland Shopping Centre may well be the much-needed exception to the rule.
Designed in 1967 by Tomkins, Shaw and Evans in Melbourne’s outer eastern suburbs, the sprawling complex has, in recent years, been spruced up at a cost of several hundred million dollars and includes an al fresco town square development modelled after an European piazza.
A perfect setting, in other words, for the MoVida group’s second outpost of its CBD taqueria. Melbourne-based Techne Architecture and Interior Design have avoided expected tropes in favour of touches of Luis Barragán. Blocks of bold yellows and egg-shell blues outline stylized timber and reo mesh arches that evoke the facades of Spanish-Mexican architecture, while landscape architects Ayus Botanical drip greenery from wall nooks and planters.
The cheerful vibe is kicked up a notch with chef Frank Camorra’s muscular menu based on Mexican street food including sweet corn and pickled jalapeño croquettes. Corn tortillas are baked fresh, the perfect base for 14-hour slow cooked pork shoulders piled with kohlrabi, peanut mole and pineapple, all washed down with a tipsy pick of craft beers, virgin margarita and tamarind jarrito.
INFORMATION
Website
ADDRESS
175 Maroondah Highway
Ringwood
Victoria
-
Five influential women hoteliers reflect on the changing face of hospitalityAs women continue to gain ground in the hotel sector, despite still being underrepresented in senior positions, five female moguls share their experiences of the past and projections for the future
-
Wallpaper* checks in at Melbourne Place: ‘an alchemy of colour, texture and personality’Designed by Kennedy Nolan, Melbourne Place is the Australian city’s newest independent hotel, oozing creativity and urban energy
-
All aboard the world’s most luxurious train journeysStay on track with our pick of the most luxurious train journeys around the world, whether in 1920s-style opulence or contemporary chic
-
Six hotels where you’ll find the winter sun this FebruaryFrom intimate seaside inns to lush tropical resorts, here are six Wallpaper*-approved winter sun escapes
-
2025 getaways: where Wallpaper* editors will be travelling to this yearFrom the Japanese art islands of Naoshima and Teshima to the Malaysian tropical paradise of Langkawi, here’s where Wallpaper* editors plan to travel to in 2025
-
The world’s most enticing new hotel openingsExplore the best new hotels in the world, from the revival of a grande dame in Madrid to the restoration of a gothic beauty in Prague
-
Australian surf culture merges with the charm of the Mediterranean at Il DelfinoIl Delfino, designed by Sheree Commerford, is a restored 1940s seaside inn nestled on the Yamba coastline in Australia
-
Layover in style at Melbourne Airport’s new hotelIbis Styles Melbourne Airport hotel by FK brings together elegant rooms, co-working lounges and leisure facilities in a striking aircraft wing-inspired design
