A Taco Journey: Carne Asada, Al Pastor, Pacific Spiny Lobster, and more - Leo's Tacos #2, Tire Shop Tacos, Revolutionario, Ricky's Fish Tacos, Guerrilla, BS Taqueria and more!

Americas - USA West Los Angeles
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Update 3: Checked out a few more taquerias this past week.

Mexicali Taco & Co.
Mexicali Tacos shot up in recognition a few years ago, from its humble beginnings as a late night taco stand on 1st Street, to its current incarnation as a full brick-and-mortar store.

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They specialize in Baja-style tacos, and make their salsas from scratch.

Al Pastor Taco:

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They cook their pork on a trompo and even slice some pineapple just like Leo’s and many other traditional places do, but the pork was a bit dry and one note. :frowning:

Chorizo Taco:

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Their Chorizo was better, but compared to flavors of the Tire Shop Taqueria, it was lacking.

Carne Asada Taco:

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Was really looking forward to their Carne Asada, because that was one of their standouts when they first started out as a little stand. The Beef was juicy, but the flavors were kinda one-note. It wasn’t bad, but not great either. :frowning: Maybe I’m spoiled by the recent Tire Shop Taqueria’s fresh grilled smokiness, or Revolutionario’s ridiculous deep, beefy Barbacoa Beef Brisket Tacos, but these were just not that enjoyable.

Mexicali Taco & Co.
702 N. Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Tel: (213) 613-0416

Tacos Punta Cabras
One of Santa Monica’s few legit Taquerias, Tacos Punta Cabras specializing in a modern take on Baja-style tacos.

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They seem to be chef-driven, making all their salsas and sauces from scratch, and they have Vegan and Gluten-Free Options as well.

Fish Taco:

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Their Fish Tacos are pretty light, Tempura batter-fried Fish, with a house-made Wasabi-Lime Crema. Fish was juicy, and I dug the mounds of fresh veggies on top keeping it all very light and refreshing. The batter isn’t as crackling and crunchy as Ricky’s Fish Tacos, but it’s a nice take on the Fish Taco.

Scallop Taco:

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Their Scallop Taco is also served with their Wasabi-Lime Crema. The Scallops are tender and juicy, and not overcooked.

Cauliflower Tostada:

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Just fantastic! :smile: They shave farmer’s market fresh Cauliflower with a Pico de Gallo, fresh Avocado, and a house-made Almond Crema. This Tostada tastes meaty! I coulda sworn there was some meat in there, LOL. Probably one of the best Vegetarian dishes I’ve had recently.

Tacos Punta Cabras
2311 Santa Monica Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90404
Tel: 310-917-2244
http://tacospuntacabras.com/

Guerilla Tacos (2nd Report)
We went back to Guerilla Tacos again, but that speaks volumes to Chef Wes Avila’s cooking. Every day is literally a new menu, depending on what Chef Avila sources from the farmer’s market.

Chorizo, Squash and Egg Flautas (with Market Greens, Fresno Chile, Oaxacan Cheese, Chile de Arbol, Chives):

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This is exactly the kind of outside-the-box thinking that makes Guerilla Tacos so endearing. Their “Flautas” is this awesome mixture of Chorizo sausage, lightly, naturally sweet Squash and Eggs. It’s delicious, savory and spicy.

Wild Boar Pocho Taco (with Pinto Beans, Aged Red Fox Cheddar, Cherry Tomatoes, Cilantro, Burnt Tomato Chile):

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The Wild Boar is only slightly gamy, but tender and juicy. The Aged Red Fox Cheddar is gorgeous visually and balances out the flavors. Fantastic! :smile:

Foie Gras Scramble on Toast:

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And then things get absurd: Foie Gras Egg Scramble on a freshly toasted Brioche Bun?! :open_mouth: Seriously, Chef Avila shows off his refined cooking roots with this Daily Special.

Imagine perfectly seared Foie Gras (generous portion), sweet, silky buttery, sexy, on top of PERFECTLY COOKED Farmer’s Market Fresh Eggs. The pictures don’t do it justice, but these are the BEST Scrambled Eggs I’ve had in recent memory! They are just cooked through, still silky, moist, fluffy, AWESOME!

And together? They are the best thing I ate this weekend. :heart:

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Seriously amazing stuff that Chef Avila is doing at Guerilla Tacos. Can’t wait to see what he has in store this week. :wink:

Guerilla Tacos
Wednesday 10am - 2pm at:
Cognoscenti Coffee
6114 Washington Blvd.
Culver City, CA

Thursday & Friday 10am - 2pm at:
Blacktop Coffee
826 E 3rd St. (Arts District DTLA)
Los Angeles, CA

Thursday 5 - 9pm at:
Silverlake Wine
2395 Glendale Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90039

Saturday & Sunday 10am - 2pm at:
Blue Bottle Coffee
582 Mateo St. (Arts District DTLA)
Los Angeles, CA

http://www.guerrillatacos.com/

FB Page with Daily Menu updates:

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@Mr_JJ @CiaoBob I forgot, but I feel like I forgot to order something you recommended on the old board for Tacos Punta Cabras? Or maybe I’m mistaken LOL.

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It was probably a special which they have infrequently and unpredictably.

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I like the coctels there. Tostadas so so. Tacos not so much.

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I.e. Just long enough for a tweet. It’s the fricken Loch Ness monster for me.

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a Ricky’s fish taco reminder…on Wednesdays buy 3 get one free all day!

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Awesome report and pics. In the cauliflower tostada, is the cauliflower raw??? And did you think the brioche toast was too thick (b/c it looks enormous!)?

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Thanks @Mr_JJ. Coctels. Got it. :smile: For Fish Tacos, I think Ricky’s is better for sure. Just heard so much about Tacos Punta Cabras, and surprisingly just never went before.

You have to get the Foie Gras w/ Eggs the next time you’re at Guerilla, JJ. Ridiculous.

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Chow ur blazing a trail to all sorts of good stuff I need to check out. Salut!

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Thanks @paranoidgarliclover. :smile: Yes, the cauliflower was raw, but surprisingly delicious. I couldn’t tell when I was eating it.

The brioche was actually not too thick. It looks crazy thick, but it’s besides the nice toasting, the actual brioche inside is soft (easily pliable) and then that LUSCIOUS fresh scrambled eggs (so good!) with the foie gras. :smile:

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@wienermobile I had no idea. :frowning: Missing out all this time… Thanks for the tip.

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IMO best items at Mexicali are nachos and vampiro not tacos.

Can I ask how much the eggs on toast is? I have 2 afternoons off this week so maybe it’s time to finally pull the trigger.

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Yep. Their Nachos are my favorite thing to get there!! Also, the Cachetada with egg on top. OMG.

–Dommy!

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I am a big fan of the cashew butter on the tostadas.

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I like it too, and that habanero pineapple sauce and their regular salsa too…but something is very missing in the tacos and tostadas…maybe not salty enough…I don’t know…I find them bland even with the nice salsas. in the end I think they are too clever and too expensive times two and not tasty enough divided by two. Been there 10 times or so now trying to get one of those specials, and no luck…im done trying

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Thanks @Ns1 @Dommy. Got it: Vampiros, Nachos and Cachetada. Will definitely try next time. :smile:

@Ns1: The Foie Gras with Eggs on Brioche was $10 (totally fair). Loved it. :smile: Do note that Guerilla’s menu changes daily, so I don’t know if they’ll have it when you go. Their Tacos are much less, of course ($3 and up range).

They also have Chef’s Specials that don’t show up on their FB page, so it’s more of a surprise when you get there. I do hope you dig your visit.

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Your reports have been amazing… you should have a Twitter account so we can invite ourselves to your next food crawl. :grin:

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Thinking about it some more I’d agree. In terms of a pure deep savoriness, Ricky’s Fish Tacos delivers in spades. The Fish Tacos here were Ok, but yah, it lacked the “punch” perhaps.

@snoozebutton thanks! :smile:

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Epic!!!

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Does anyone else find Revolutionario quite good, except for the horrifically thin tortillas that are completely unfitted to holding the miraculous toppings?

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