There are many unique gourmets in Okinawa, but one of the representatives is "Taco Rice"! Lettuce, cheese and meat, which are served like mountains on rice, have a strong visual impact. I went to the birthplace of such a taco rice "King Tacos Kinbu Honten".

What is "taco rice" in the first place?

Tacos is a Mexican dish in which minced meat and other ingredients are wrapped in corn skin and tortillas. It is also familiar in Mexico's neighboring United States, but in the United States, the hard type with crisp texture is the mainstream because tortillas are fried in oil. Hard-type tacos became widespread in Okinawa as it was under American rule for 27 years after the war. King Tacos tortillas are also of this type. Taco rice is a menu in which the ingredients of such tacos are placed on top of rice.

Approaching the history of the birth of taco rice!

"King Tacos" is located on the main island of Okinawa, a Tacos Takarais chain with six stores. The main store is located in the northern part of the main island, in Kin-cho, and this store is considered the birthplace of taco rice. When I entered the store, a display board with the wording of the origin of taco rice was placed in one corner of the counter. We talked to the third-generation owner, Sayuri Shimabag, about how the taco rice was born.

In 1984, Shimaburo's grandfather, King Tacos's founder, Shozo Ibo, opened a shop called "Senri," near the US military facility in Kin-cho, Japan. We started to devise a new menu that will be the centerpiece when it opens. Taco rice was thought to be "cheap and tummy-filled menu" because of the large number of places and American usage.

儀保さんはかつて経営していた店舗でタコスを提供した際、アメリカ人客の多くがタコスから野菜を取り除く姿を見て、タコライスはご飯の上にタコスミートのみをのせたものにし、トッピングとしてチーズ、野菜、チーズ＆野菜を用意しました。苦労して考案したタコライスですが、当初はまったく売れず、飲んだ帰りに立ち寄れるようにと深夜まで営業するなど苦労を重ねたそうです。ある夜、1人のアメリカ人がふらりと入ってきてタコライスをオーダー。気に入ったその客が後日、友人を連れてくるようになり、そこからタコライスが評判になっていきました。そして金武町からやがて沖縄中にタコライスの名が広まっていったのです。

I went to "King Tacos Kinbu Honten"!

タコライスの評判を受け、今では沖縄各地へと店舗を広げ”キンタコ”の愛称で県民に親しまれている「キングタコス」。金武本店は2階に座席がありイートインもOK。また、テイクアウトしてビーチで食べるのもおすすめです！

Taco rice is gaining popularity for locals, tourists alike. Taco Meat is the deciding factor in its taste. It uses minced meat and concocts spices with recipes inherited from its founders, so it is firmly familiar with the minced meat.

なお、記事中の写真はお皿に盛り付けていますが、現在は、上記の写真のように全メニューをフードパックで提供しています。

Not just taco rice! Surprise with a full-volume menu in American size

"King Tacos Kinbu Honten" has a lot of American customers, so the non-taco menu has a surprising volume. Let's introduce two representative products this time.

まずは「チキンバラバラ」です。ネーミングのインパクトがありますね。オリジナルスパイスで仕上げた鶏のから揚げで、モモ、ムネなど5つの部位がセットになっています。オーダーを受けてから揚げるため、20分程度かかりますが、これがとってもおいしい！ 皮の部分はパリッ、サクッとした食感で香ばしく、鶏肉には塩コショウがよくなじんでいます。見た目よりさっぱりとしているので1人で1パックを平らげるという人もいるそうです。

This is a "Taco Cheeseburger" with taco ingredients in a giant bun. When I actually measured it, it was about 13cm in diameter and about 11cm in height. It's going to take a lot of time to finish eating. It's big anyway, so it's going to be exciting.

ほかには、タコライスチーズ野菜のライス部分が、フライライス（チャーハン）になった「タコチキンフライライスチーズ野菜」1000円も大人気のメニューです。

■キングタコス 金武本店（きんぐたこす きんほんてん）

Address: 4244-4 Kinmu, Kinmu-cho, Okinawa

※写真の一部はキングタコス提供

• This article is created based on the contents of "Rurubu Information Edition" or "Rurubu & more." "Rurubu +".
• The data listed are as of March 2025. Prices, business hours, regular holidays, menus, etc. may change or may not be available due to temporary holidays. Please check in advance when using it, as the content may change.
• The holiday of stores and facilities omits the year-end holiday, Obon holiday, Golden Week, and temporary holidays in principle.
• The fee for posting is in principle the fee including consumption tax that we have confirmed at the time of the interview, and the entrance fee is the adult fee if there is no special mention.
• In principle, the time to be posted is open (hall) to closed (hall). Please note that the last order or entrance (hall) time is 30 minutes to 1 hour before the normal closing (hall) time. The last order is denoted LO.
• For the spring quality and efficacy of the hot springs listed, manuscripts are prepared based on answers from each facility.