The Salty Owl teams up with the Lions Club every Tuesday serving up homemade tacos

South Thomaston pop-up taqueria draws crowds three times what was expected

Mon, 07/30/2018 - 11:00am

    SOUTH THOMASTON— A little more than a year ago, Erin and Casey Dominguez launched their new restaurant, The Salty Owl at the Knox County Regional Airport. This summer, in addition to their successful business, they decided to try something new.

    In partnership with the The South Thomaston/Rockland Lions Club, they have turned the old Lions lobster shack at the South Thomaston boat landing into a pop-up taco stand called Tacos León every Tuesday from 4 to 8 p.m.

    “We’ve had a lot of requests in the restaurant to make tacos and it’s our favorite cuisine to make,” said Erin. “The Lions Club has been a big part of The Salty Owl since we opened; they were our first contact when we moved here. Given the great support they’ve given us over the last year, we decided to do something that benefited the community and raise some funds and awareness for the Lions, to boot.”

    They were not prepared for how popular this idea would be.

    “The first day we opened, we were totally taken back by the response to it,” said Erin.

    The Salty Owl is only open for breakfast and lunch and closes at 3 p.m. The couple scrambled to get ready and set up at the lobster shack before crowds arrived, 15 minutes before opening.

    “On our opening night, we tried to estimate what we’d need and figured maybe 50 people might show up,” she said. “By the end of the night, we’d run out of everything and once we went through all of our tickets, it was probably closer to 100-120 people who showed up.”

    By the second week, they were more prepared but the lines were never ending.

    “We sold out 15 minutes before closing, but nobody went home hungry,” she said.

    This past week they served approximately 150 people.

    “I’m kind of nervous that you’re doing this article,” she joked.

    The Tacos León concept is simple. They offer four types of tacos in flour and corn tortillas with a variety of marinades and toppings: Carnitas, Duck, Chicken and Vegetable. The sides include beans, chips and salsa and the most popular item on their menu, the Elote, which is traditional Mexican street corn grilled in the husk, then shaved off and served with mayonnaise, butter, cotija cheese.  Everything is reasonably priced under $4.

    Tacos León will operate every Tuesday rain or shine. Note: they will be closed August 7 to attend a Lion’s Club meeting in order to discuss the local impact of the venture.

    FMI: https://www.saltyowlcafe.com/

    Related story: The Salty Owl launches at Knox County Regional Airport


    Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com