The Colorado Springs Local Cheat Sheet
Twenty years of a local’s picks: the best taco, the best hike, the Garden of the Gods parking trick, and the altitude mistake newcomers always make. What I’d actually tell a friend.
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Inside: best tacos · best burger · best BBQ · best breakfast burrito · best coffee · best easy hike · the before-9am parking trick · the altitude rule — and more.
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- 🌮 Best tacos: El Chapin Taco Truck on E. Fillmore, my current top pick. (Also great: Taco Star for classic street tacos.)
- 🍔 Best burger: El Chapin Food Truck on E. Fillmore, for burgers and shakes. A different truck than the taco one, parked right there.
- 🔥 Best BBQ: Front Range Barbeque is my number one. (Runner-up: Bird Dog BBQ.)
- 🌯 Best breakfast burrito: King’s Chef Diner, the green chile legend.
- ☕ Best coffee: Loyal Coffee, if you care about the espresso.
- 🌶️ Best Mexican (from a New Mexico native): Amanda’s Fonda is worth the trip.
- 🥾 Best easy hike: Garden of the Gods Central Garden Trail. Beautiful and doable for anyone.
- 🏔️ The Garden of the Gods trick: go before 9am and park in the free lots most visitors never find. You’ll skip the crowds entirely.
- ⛰️ Altitude tip: 6,035 feet is real. Double your water, go easy on the alcohol the first night, and save the big hike for day two or three.
That’s the cheat sheet. Every week I send The Springs This Week: what’s happening around town, worth-it or skip-it, in plain language.