A Grand Forks Native of Uncertain Origin

I have not been everywhere. Therefore I cannot say 100% without a doubt that the only place you are going to find a taco meat grinder on a restaurant menu is within a 90-mile radius of the Red Pepper.

I am not 1000% sure that the Red Pepper was the very first place to put taco meat and hot sauce on a sub. I really have no clue whose idea it was or what they were smoking when the plan was hatched.

I called the Red Pepper and spoke to Jeff Tillman, one of the owners. His family has owned the Red Pepper since 1973.

The place opened in the mid 60s. The ham and taco meat grinder was already on the menu when the Tillmans purchased it.

Duhn Duhn Duhn Duhhhhhhhhhhn! It’s a mystery food! Did aliens invent the Taco meat grinder? Freemasons? Lawrence Welk in His infinite wisdom?

It’s entirely possible the Taco Meat Grinder was a Reese’s moment.

“Hey you got your grinder in my pan of taco meat!”

“Hey you got your pan of taco meat on my grinder!”

Perhaps one day Grinder just fell from the sky.

Maybe they ran out of every other ingredient.

The world may never know.

I have been to enough places to believe that the addition of taco meat and hot sauce to a submarine sandwich is unique to the Grand Forks area.

I was introduced to the Red Pepper ham and taco meat grinder while attending Schroeder Junior High. I gave the initial reaction I’ve seen from so many others: “ham and taco meat? What the hell?”

When there was a Fabulous Westward Ho in Grand Forks, I performed stand up comedy there. It was very common for the staff to take advantage of the Pepper’s late night delivery. Again and again I saw visiting comics converted from skeptic to fan after a single bite.

I would put the ham and taco meat grinder against the Reuben or the clubhouse any day of the week. Watch your back, patty melt.

A ham and taco meat grinder is: ham, shredded lettuce, provolone, spicy taco sauce (made fresh daily), cracked pepper mayo sauce (made fresh daily), and taco meat on a soft sweet foot-long bun. It is microwaved for warmth. If you get them delivered they come wrapped in parchment paper.

My mother fedexed a grinder kit to me in California.

I have a friend who wrote an instrumental song called “ham and taco meat grinder.”

There was a point in time when the Red Pepper had a web cam so you could watch what was happening at the counter. From 2000 miles away, I watched.

Upon my return to the Grand Forks area about a year ago, I noticed that restaurants had started to add the Taco meat sandwiches to the menu. I have decided to see how they stack up.

The Original Red Pepper Ham and Taco Meat Grinder is not part of this fight. They are the original so even if one surpasses them in Taco Meat Grinder prowess, the Red Pepper still gets credit for hiring the aliens that invented it.

I start at Al’s Bar and Grill on Gateway Drive. Al’s is a nice bar and grill, it’s close to many many things. They have a bar and a pretty big menu.

A lot of times, if a restaurant doesn’t focus on Mexican food, taco meat may not be their strong suit. I don’t think Al’s focuses on Mexican Food.

Al’s version taco meat grinder ($6.75) comes with ham and turkey. The turkey created a white noise of turkey flavor that drowned out everything else. If there was a hot sauce in there fighting for attention, it lost to the turkey.

Sorry Al’s, not this time.

Joe Black’s has put a twist on the taco meat grinder. They made it a wrap. For $7.95 you get what the menu writer calls “The Taco Grinder Wrap: A Tex Mex meal worth having!” I fear this may insult a lot of other tex mex meals like Fajitas, which are definitely worth having.

I also am going to be a complete asshole and point out that “grinder” and “wrap” are both kinds of sandwiches. It’s like calling it a submarine hoagie. (upon closer examination of the menu, I see that there is a sandwich that is closer in nature to the original Red Pepper Grinder. It’s got grilled ham and turkey topped with flavorful taco meat and melted cheddar cheese placed on a hoagie bun with lettuce tomatoes and onions. And I kid you not, it’s called: “The Hot Hoagie Sub.”) I feel like I’m getting a plateful of mixed metaphor.

The taco grinder wrap is more like a taco salad wrap with ham and turkey than a taco meat grinder wrapped in a jalapeno cheddar tortilla. Joe Blacks adds olives and tomatoes and serves the wrap with a side of sour cream and salsa. You also get a choice of fries or coleslaw.

It’s decent. The wrap is a nice twist. The olives really stand out. It’s not quite the awe-inspiring meal the original grinder is, but it’s a nice lunch. Very good coleslaw too.

I walk past The Italian Moon’s pizza buffet and it looks delicious.

The menu at the Moon is extensive with subs, pastas, salads and pizza. This joint has been around since 1965, so I ask the waitress who she thinks the first place to put taco meat on a sub is, she says “I’m pretty sure it was the Red Pepper.”

The Whaler at the Moon has Salami, Ham, and Pepperoni, cheese, lettuce, sub sauce and taco sauce. The bread is great. Soft, light and moist. The pepperoni is a nice addition. It adds a little extra kick. I like the taco meat. This is served with taco sauce instead of salsa and that little difference makes this much closer to the original. If I was jonesing for a grinder and surrounded by pizza eaters, this would cure my Grinder pangs.

The Taco Sub at Fat Albert’s costs $3.19 for a half sub, $5.29 whole one. I almost ask the guy if it’s just taco meat with out ham or turkey or something? I don’t because I want to find out what they mean by taco sub.

I order a half a taco sub on white. I’m thinking, “a sub with just taco meat? What the hell.” There is no other meat balancing out the taco meat? Can you do that on a sandwich? Have you gone mad, sir?!

I dig in and you know what? Hey, hey, hey Fat Albert’s: this rocks! The taco sub at Fat Albert’s is a delicious gooey mess. The taco meat is finely ground and flavorful. The bun is soft and fresh and great. The onions are a really nice touch. I really like this sandwich.

Ok, it’s time to pick a winner. This is not cut and dried. I think the Moon is the closest to the Grinder. I also think The Wrap at Joe Blacks is the most interesting interpretation. I’m gonna have to give this one to Fat Albert’s for two reasons:

1. superior taco meat

2. having strong enough taco meat to carry the whole sandwich.

Congratulations Fat Albert’s, you’ve earned it. And thanks, Red Pepper, for the inspiration. Whew, I’m really full.

P.S. If there is a place that makes a dish that you are psyched about, please email me.

P.P.S. Grand Forks Ham and Taco Meat Grinder Contest Announcement: If you know who invented the Grinder or where it came from, let me know. The winner gets to take me to lunch.

If You Go

The Red Pepper
1011 University or
415 N. 42nd St, GF
701-775-9671

Fat Alberts Subs / Slapshot Pizza
1909 Gateway Drive, GF
701-746-4771

The Italian Moon
810 Washington St, GF
701-772-7277

Joe Black’s.
118 N. 3rd St, GF
701-775-2017

Al’s Grill & Catering
3615 Gateway Drive, GF
701-795-5183