Velvet Taco — Fort Worth’s Beloved Globe-Trotting Fast-Casual Taco Temple, Where Over 20 Scratch-Made Internationally Inspired Tacos, Late-Night Hours, and the Weekly Taco Feature Keep West 7th Street Buzzing Around the Clock
Since the day it opened on West 7th Street and immediately drew lines out the door, Velvet Taco at 2700 W. 7th St. has been one of the most consistently packed restaurants in Fort Worth — and for good reason. Born in Houston in 2011 with a mission to liberate the taco from its traditional constraints, Velvet Taco treats the tortilla as a canvas for globe-trotting flavor combinations drawn from more than 34 culinary cultures spanning five continents, all executed with scratch-made ingredients and a fast-casual format that delivers restaurant-quality food without the restaurant-scale wait. Fort Worth Weekly called it sumptuous upon opening and declared it lived up to its considerable hype; with a 96% recommendation rate across more than 3,600 Facebook reviews and a fiercely devoted West 7th following nearly a decade later, that verdict has never wavered. The warm, cozy, eclectic interior with communal wooden tables, a vibrant chalkboard menu wall, a craft beer selection leaning heavily local, and a people-watching patio make it one of the most effortlessly fun dining rooms on the entire corridor.
The menu is an endlessly rewarding exploration of the unexpected. Signature tacos include the Crispy Tikka Chicken — fried chicken thigh in spicy tikka sauce, raita crema, marinated red cabbage, cucumber, and Thai basil on a corn tortilla — the Slow Roasted Angus Brisket with queso blanco, roasted corn pico, red chile aioli, and comté cheese on a house tortilla, the Nashville Hot Tofu for the plant-based crowd, and the Spicy Fried Paneer drawing from Indian street food tradition. The weekly WTF — Weekly Taco Feature — is a rotating limited-time creation that keeps even the most seasoned regulars checking the website and social media every Monday for the new reveal, and has produced everything from lobster rolls to Korean BBQ pork belly to wagyu beef tacos in its run. Backdoor Chicken — a whole rotisserie bird with elote-style corn, tortillas, pico, and Korean BBQ sauce for $20, with $10 Monday specials — is one of the great fast-casual deals in Fort Worth. Brisket nachos, queso blanco with chips, elote guacamole, Velvet Bowls with lettuce wrap options, and the legendary red velvet cake round out a menu that delivers from the first course to the last bite.
Velvet Taco Fort Worth at 2700 W. 7th St. is open Monday through Wednesday from 11am to midnight, Thursday from 11am to 1am, Friday and Saturday from 11am to 3:30am, and Sunday from 11am to midnight — making it one of the latest-closing quality restaurants on the West 7th strip and a natural destination for late-night dining after shows, games, or a night out. A second Fort Worth location operates at 2852 N. Tarrant Pkwy. in the Alliance area. Dine-in, takeout, delivery, catering, and the Velvet Taco app with exclusive pricing and rewards are all available. For more of Fort Worth’s best dining destinations, explore the Fort Worth restaurant guide on Selling the Fort.
