Tom Soucek/Verge/Corbis
You thought bison and rattlesnake were exotic? One Tucson, Ariz. restaurant is spicing up its offerings.
Boca Tacos y Tequila, a Mexican dive near the University of Arizona, is known for its offbeat offerings. Each week the restaurant hosts “Exotic Taco Wednesday,” serving python, elk and kangaroo tacos in the past. But their latest announcement is causing quite a roar in the local community.
(More on TIME.com: See photos of the gorgeous African plain at night.)
Bryan Mazon, Boca’s owner, is putting African lion on the menu in February. He told the Arizona Daily Star that according to the FDA, it’s perfectly legal to sell lion meat, since it’s not an endangered species. Mazon is purchasing the meat from a Perris, Calif. farm that raises lions specifically for the dinner plate.
But it comes at a price that some patrons are sure to growl at. While most of Boca’s tacos run about $4, a lion taco will cost more than double that, a whopping $8.75 for a sample of Simba. Even at that price, Mazon says he’ll be losing money: a single pound of ground lion meat runs him $100.
(More on TIME.com: See the top 10 daring zoo escapes.)
It’s all about the exotic experience, though. So how do you serve a lion taco? The daring diners can add cabbage, guacamole, pickled red onions and diced cucumbers to the tacos before they dig in.
All hopeful diners had better pounce now. The lion will only be served on Wednesday, February 16th, and must be reserved in advance. (via Arizona Daily Star)