The viral, overflowing tacos of Flavor Hive arrive in Maryland

Perhaps a wiser customer than I would have created a more modest lunch from the rice, meat and toppings from the assembly line at Flavor Hive, a new Rockville eatery.

But as I handed a full-size bag of Fritos that I had purchased at the nearby Giant over to the worker behind the counter, I was consumed with the thought that I must meet the decadence of this restaurant that has gone viral online for its “walking tacos” — all of those ingredients crammed into a bag of chips.

I ordered everything. I cradled the bag that had grown to the weight of the smallest dumbbell at your local gym. I gazed into the void of goop.

And honestly? I wasn’t mad.

The restaurant built its identity around the walking taco, which allows customers to bring any unopened bag of chips into which Flavor Hive workers will pile ingredients from its menu of options. The add-ons are just as influenced by Tex-Mex Frito pie as it is fast casual eateries such as Cava. The latter serves as the easiest comparison in my mind for what to expect: Is it the finest meal you’ll ever have? Probably not. Does it get you on with your day in a pinch? Sure. Will you have enough food for a few meals? Certainly.

Flavor Hive started in 2024 — and celebrated its second anniversary Tuesday — as a food truck in Alexandria, Virginia, and became a sensation thanks to its relentless stream of social media videos and cosigns from influencers like Keith Lee.

The eatery has rapidly expanded to a mix of seven permanent storefronts and food trucks across Virginia. The Rockville outpost, which opened Feb. 12 at 5568 Randolph Road, is Flavor Hive’s first retail foray into Maryland. Co-founder Shihan Chowdhury has a local connection: He graduated from Germantown’s Seneca Valley High School.

Given its aggressive expansion plan and insistent social media and marketing campaigns, Flavor Hives will likely continue to sprout up across Maryland and beyond. When a close friend who lives in Malaysia learned I went, he mentioned how friends there knew the brand from its videos. But on the recent visit, the restaurant still suffered some growing pains.

Fine-not-fab flavor

Diners in Rockville must first pick a base, which includes rice, salad and fries. These can be ordered as a regular bowl, but if you bring your own chips, those bases can be added into your bag. Then you can pick one to three scoops of protein: original or hot honey chicken, ground beef, steak or falafel. Top it off with cucumber, pickled cabbage, sesame chickpeas and other ingredients. Then drizzle it with three sauces, including a white, yogurt-based option, a zesty green, cilantro-forward topper and an orange Hive signature sauce that leans a little sweet.

During this lunchtime swell, employees said the fryer was broken and deliveries had been delayed for up to two days, so steak and falafel were unavailable. Other Flavor Hive locations have lattes and build-your-own desserts, but they have yet to arrive in Rockville.

The ground beef and original chicken were fine, if under-seasoned. The hot honey chicken had a bit too heavy a dollop of honey for my taste, but was balanced out nicely by the richness from the sauces and tang of pickled cabbage. As I stirred up my Fritos bag and kept going in for more bites even as it sat heavy in my gut, I was struck by a wave of nostalgia for deeply Americanized, school-lunch tacos.

Maybe that’s the key to appreciating Flavor Hive. Its ingredients tasted no better or worse than any of the various slop bowls that dot fast-casual eateries across Montgomery County. It certainly doesn’t promote the virtue of protein like a Chipotle or Sweetgreen.

But in a world where tapping your phone a few times can make food frictionlessly appear on your doorstep, I have to admire the possibility — and whimsy — of walking into a store with friends to split a decadent dish that may also make you laugh. Just don’t forget your chips.