Look Inside Yellow Door Taqueria’s South End Expansion

A small but mighty Dorchester restaurant full of Cali-Mex dishes expands to Boston’s South End neighborhood this week, bringing with it powerhouse cocktails, seasonal tacos, and antique decor. Yellow Door Taqueria debuts Wednesday, February 12, at 4 p.m. in the former Lion’s Tail location at 354 Harrison Ave.

The team behind the South End restaurant includes co-owners of the original Yellow Door in Lower Mills (2297 Dorchester Ave., Boston) Brian O’Donnell and Ken Casey, along with Lion’s Tail co-owner Jarek Mountain, who will serve as general manager and beverage director at the new Yellow Door Taqueria.

In reshaping the Lion’s Tail space in the South End, designer Taniya Nayak expanded upon her work at Yellow Door in Dorchester with rustic, antique-washed accents and color pops of teal, rose, and yellow. The South End restaurant features tin ceiling tiles, exposed brick walls, patterned tile flooring, and banquette seating with vegan leather and crushed velvet fabrics.

One wall features a mural portrait of Frida Kahlo, while accents throughout the restaurant include tufted barstools, ambient lighting behind the curved wooden bar, beaded chandeliers, retro neon signs, and decorative frames. The restaurant is also equipped with accordion windows that will open to patio dining during seasonal months.

The South End restaurant, like its Dorchester sibling, will feature the culinary work of executive chef Carolina Curtin, who has made several additions to the menu in Dorchester since her arrival.

Yellow Door’s new location will offer a selection of more than 12 seasonal tacos, including meat, seafood, and vegetable options, as well as some gluten-free selections. The restaurant’s masa tortillas are made in-house, and its empanadas are sourced from Buenas in Somerville. Additional menu items include pupusas, elote, crudo, and salads. Yellow Door also carries over its “Buy the Kitchen a Six-Pack” option from Dorchester and will sell house-made tortillas to go.

On the bar side, Yellow Door will highlight selections of tequila and mezcal, with additional beverage offerings including cocktails, mocktails, sangria, beer, wine, and margaritas, which will have optional fruit flavors like winterberry, prickly pear, guava, and more.

Two drinks exclusive to the South End restaurant include the Road to Jalisco (made with blanco tequila infused with strawberry and vanilla beans, mezcal washed with olive oil, amontillado sherry, banana, black pepper, and cinnamon tincture) and Mucho Guapo (reposado tequila with green chartreuse, pistachio, lime cordial, lemon juice, egg white, apple bitters, and sea salt tincture).

Yellow Door Taqueria will operate for dinner service starting at 4 p.m., beginning Wednesday, February 12, with weekend brunch service to come at a later date. It will operate until 1 a.m. Monday through Wednesday and until 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. The kitchen will close at 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 12 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. The restaurants will introduce reservations through Open Table within the first week of operations.

• Yellow Door Taqueria Coverage on Eater [EBOS]