Taco Maria - Luxe Mexican

Americas - USA West Los Angeles
87

Had dinner there last Friday. Excellent. We do what OCSteve does because there’s two of us. Our menu looked different than the picture above. I don’t remember the tamal being on the menu last week though we’ve had it and love it.

Don’t overthink it. Everything is great and there was not a miss last week. Just order what appeals to you and go for it. That’s my advice FWIW ($.05).

88

If you can order ala carte I highly rec the Scallop Aguachile

89

Yes, delicious, but a wine killer!

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90

A little off topic, but these kind of wordy menus annoy me. Guarantee the first option is a bowl of retried beans with some flowers strewn on top. Same with the “Tamal”. It’s a cheese tamale. :roll_eyes:

91

Same with the “Tamal”. It’s a cheese tamale

Legit question, isn’t “tamal” an acceptable (or sometimes even preferred) option when describing tamales? I remember reading this LA Taco bit a while back addressing that issue. Not having grown up with tamales this was the first I’d heard of any of this.

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92

I agree with you, in general, about this. But this menu doesn’t read as wordy to me.
Enfrijolada is not just refried beans and I’d be surprised if that’s what they served.
The tamal is not just cheese. It’s got corn and huitlacoche, too. And it’s the correct singular of tamales (a tamale is a misnomer).

This one just seems pretty straightforward to me.

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93

hold up, wait a minute; what is this “battera” in the campechana dish? it can’t be sushi can it?

94

I agree with @frommtron. This is the Enfrijolada:

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95

Tamal is singular, tamales is plural.

Enfrijoladas are similar to enchiladas except instead of dipping the tortillas in chile sauce you dip them in pureed beans.

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96

English is tamale / tamales. Spanish is tamal / tamales.

97

A very home style dish I don’t know I’ve ever ordered at a restaurant. A typical week night dinner when I was growing up.

I imagine TM could make it great and nostalgic for someone like me

98

Many thanks to @OCSteve for the recs and @Hungrydrunk for the tip on the supplemental thing. Quick run down follows. I’m not terribly eloquent when describing food so the poor photos I took will do much of the talking.

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Amuse-bouche: Hot Cheetos and Ranch. Fun to eat with super airy ranch dressing. It’s good but nothing special. Literally just something to keep you busy while you wait for the first course.

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Course 1: Campechana. Super fresh and a great way to start. The cherry tomatoes played well with seafood and was a nice change of pace from the typical more citrus-forward raw seafood dishes that I’ve eaten.

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Course 2a: Scallop. Star of the night. Super savory but the sweetness of the scallop was evident. The squid ink crumbs aren’t just eye candy but bring a lot of unique flavor to the dish. I would go out of my way to come here and order this a la carte if it were possible.

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Course 2b: Smoked Marlin Taco. Super smokey and I loved that. Despite my efforts to use the cacahuate salsa and the slightly sweetened-briny cucumber to make things interesting, the dish became very one-note after a couple bites. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great. But if I returned, I’d just spring for the scallop, no second thoughts.

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Course 3: Zarandeado. Super crispy skin and very delicate and perfectly cooked fish. The rapini was unlike any I have ever had before and very delicious. Some purple potatoes added some nice substance to the dish. The crema (I think that’s what it was) was nice and added some acidity.

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Course 4: Mole. You remember those steak fajitas you got at El Torito when you were dragged there against your will, kicking and screaming? This is nothing like that save the fact that you assemble your own tacos. This was a fun dish to eat. You can appreciate the beautiful, fresh tortillas (3 are given) with the fresh guacamole and the expertly-cooked steak. The mole, however, is the star: warm and comforting, with a guiding rhythm of cinnamon and toasted peanuts while notes of coffee and chocolate are evident in the background. Though the steak was great, I honestly just loved ripping a bit of tortilla, wrapping up some guacamole in it, and dragging the parcel through the mole. The charred onions were nice but I wish there were more.

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Mignardise: Atole. Wow this was a great end. I didn’t expect much but great coffee, caramel, and creamy flavor. Could have hooked up an IV of this stuff.

Everything was great but to be honest, I am unsure I will return given the price tag. Do not get me wrong, everything was exquisite and the quality is undoubtedly there but with the exception of the scallop, nothing would have me running back at this price.

I will have to try their tacos. FYI for everyone and @OCSteve, they do tacos for dinner on Tuesdays and lunch on Saturday, so if a weekday lunch isn’t possible, there are a couple options.

7 Likes
99

Thanks for the report back. You have some nice descriptions. :slight_smile:

Don’t bother with their tacos - it is the worst part of their menu, overpriced and just not that good.

2 Likes
100

Thanks for the report, and I’m glad you enjoyed it!

101

Good to know. Thanks! I live and work so close, that I may try them anyway sometime.

102

Thanks! And that’s too bad about their tacos. But I may try them anyway as I don’t think I’ll be shelling out for the prix fixe any time soon.

103

How much is their set menu now? I remember TM used to be quite the bargain.

104

For what it’s worth I think their tacos are pretty great.

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105

I think the fish tacos are great albeit expensive. Still served on their great tortillas. The aguachile is a must order for me. But the prix fixe menu is still the way to go.

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106

$79 + tax and tip. $39 for the wine pairing.