This is the end, beautiful friend.

Well my friends, I’m throwing in the tortilla. It was fun and it was new and it was all that. But I’ve realized for some time now that I don’t have it in me anymore. Taco blogging is a young man’s game. The taco scene has been changing so fast in LA and I no longer have my pulse on it (if I ever did). And I don’t have it in me for a third-act.

I was driving around LA the other night and I realized it. I was looking for a taco truck I think. Or maybe I was looking for something else. On the radio was The Beatles “Oh! Darling”, and I was in East LA; a city I have grown to love and a city that has grown to love me. We have grown to love you El Bandini? Ha! How preposterous! The city does not love. The city is just like that lightning bolt that came from the sky the other night that destroyed that poor woman’s roof. The city is indifferent to love. The city is just the new wilderness.

Well, I was in this new wilderness, and I found myself unable to get out of my car. I just drove and drove and I passed taco truck after taco truck. I wanted to get out of my car, pull out my camera, and get back into the game, but I couldn’t. I got an eerie feeling and I felt strange and lonely. I had lost my taco mojo.I felt uneasy about the darkness and the shapes that formed the city. It was as if the city had finally figured me out. I knew that I couldn’t do it anymore. I left El Bandini at the corner of City Terrace and Pomeroy St and drove home.

This was several months ago. I thought the mojo might come back, but it hasn’t. So rather than just go quiet, I thought it was best to tell anyone who still reads the blog that there will be no more updates.

So, thanks to everyone who read the blog over the years. Thanks to my friend Shelby Lewis. And most of all thanks to all the taco truck workers and taqueros out there that work so hard.

Oh, and one more thing – fuck you Taco Bell!

2012 Taco of the Year- Mariscos Jalisco Shrimp Taco

My taco reporting has been less than prolific this year. So, when thinking about naming the 2012 Taco of the Year, I had to look to the past. And the shrimp taco at Mariscos Jalisco immediately came to mind. On a recent trip to the legendary East LA truck I devoured a plate of shrimp tacos and was amazed at how consistently great they have been over the years.

The taco hails from the Jalisco town of San Juan de Los Lagos, but it’s a secret recipe. There are some other mariscos trucks in East LA that sell a version of it, but they don’t match up to Mariscos Jalisco.

The taco is comprised of a deep fried taco shell filled with shrimp, topped with slices of avocado and then dunked into a delicious tomato broth. It’s hard to explain how good this taco is.

Mariscos Jalisco’s shrimp taco is the 2012 Taco of the Year!

Mariscos Jalisco 3040 East Olympic Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90023 $1.75n per taco

Henry's Tacos to Close for Good

photo: LA Observed

Well this is bad news. It looks like Henry's Tacos will shutter this month for good. A taco stand loved by locals and non-locals alike, Henry's has been serving some of the best "gringo" style tacos in LA for over 50 years. The googie architecture taco stand has been a fixture at the corner of Tujunga and Moorpark for half a century, yet efforts to get the building declared a historical site fell short.Now, inexplicably their landlord is threatening not to renew the lease.

From Henry's Tacos Facebook:

I am very sorry to have to announce to everyone that it looks like Henry's will be closing for good on December 31. As some of you know, Henry's is just too much for me as a single, childless woman approaching 60 with no family within 1700 miles. I have had several prospective buyers committed to continuing the tradition, but all have been turned down by the landlord. The current prospective buyers have agreed to all the landlord's terms, but he has ceased communicating with them. Therefore, I have given my notice and it has been accepted by the landlord. I believe this all goes back to my unwittingly angering the landlord by nominating Henry's for Historic Cultural Monument status. As Councilmember Krekorian put a stop to that, the landlord may want to bulldoze Henry's and build something else. I am hoping to get some media coverage in the next few days. Needless to say I am heartsick that after 51 years, Henry's may end for no good reason. Thanks to you all for your support.

My Five Favorite Taco Trucks at the Moment

It’s been a couple months since I’ve posted so I thought I would get back into the swing of things with a list of my top five favorite taco trucks at the moment. This list is always evolving so bear with me. And if you have your own list feel free to share it in the comments.

 I’m very particular about what I like in a taco. First, I need a good chile salsa and it has to be spicy. If it’s not spicy there at least needs to be a freshly grilled jalapeno on my plate.The meat has to be up to par as well. Some gristle is okay, but if I have to do a meat inspection after my first taco that’s not a good sign. I think the least important part of the taco is the tortilla. I like tortillas hecha a mano as much as the next taco lover, but I’ve had plenty of very good tacos with regular store bought tortillas. The tortillas have to be prepared right however. This means properly oiled,hot on the plate,and not burned.

 5. El Taquito Mexicano (510 S. Fair Oaks Ave, Pasadena)



I love these kinds of tacos. Right off the grill, topped with onions, cilantro, and a spicy chile salsa. Try the al pastor, which is more like seasoned carnitas. The asada is very good too. There’s nothing ground breaking here; just some great LA tacos. Though on a recent night, after a good session in Old Town, they were especially delicious.

4. La Isla Bonita (4th and Rose, Venice)

  


 This is my local taco truck on the weekends. My usual order is a shrimp tostada and three tacos (asada, carnitas). The tacos come garnished with onions, cilantro, pinto beans, and a flavorful medium spiced salsa. If your lucky your plate comes topped with grilled onions and a grilled jalapeno. Some may be surprised by this inclusion since La Isla Bonita doesn’t usually get name checked among LA’s taco truck elite. But I’ve been eating here for years and it never disappoints.

3. El Matador (Western and Lexington, East Hollywood)

 


 There is a lot to like about El Matador. The taquero is friendly, the service is quick, and the salsa roja is blistering. The meat is quality too but for me its all about the salsa here. You don’t pay until your done eating so don’t worry if the taquero hands you your plate of tacos and then ignores you. Just settle up your bill in the end. Try the asada, al pastor, and longaniza (sausage).

2. Tacos Leo (La Brea and Venice)



I remember the first time I tried the al pastor at Tacos Leo. I couldn’t wait to get home and tell the Internet. These days it’s hard not to notice the bedlam at the corner of La Brea and Venice. If it’s a Friday night it looks like a party atmosphere with half the neighborhood converging around a spinning wheel of pork, hungry and willing to wait for as long as it takes. However long it is, it’s always worth it.

1. El Chato (La Brea and Olympic Blvd)

 
You would dance too if you were about to eat at El Chato




Well what more is there to say about El Chato? This is one of the most popular trucks in LA. I always order six tacos evenly split between al pastor and carne asada. Sometimes I’ll sub a chorizo for asada. The tacos come piping hot on your plate with a delicious and spicy salsa roja. They are the size of your palm and can go down in one bite. The lines can get long but the crew inside the truck is very efficient and professional. When I have friends visiting from out of town this is the first truck I take them to.

Gringo Taco Showdown - Rick's Drive In vs Alberto's

As far as gringo tacos go it’s hard to beat Rick’s in Pasadena. Only, now it’s called Bobby’s Place. But the food is the same: the spuderito, the beef and bean with hot, and of course the crunchy ground beef tacos, are all still ridiculously delicious. This hybrid taco-burger stand is legendary.




The taco comes with ground beef, lettuce, tomato slice, cheese, and hot sauce. The shell is pre-fabricated and has a good crunch to it. I’m not sure what the secret is with these tacos but they are some of my favorite gringos.



About a mile east of Bobby’s, across from Pasadena City College, is an Alberto’s Mexican Restaurant. Alberto’s is a chain that is mostly in the San Gabriel Valley but I’ve seen them all over the place. I’ve only ever ordered a bean and cheese burrito at Alberto’s and depending on how generous they are with the cheese they can range from being great to just barely edible.



The beef taco at Alberto’s was just okay. For gringo tacos I prefer pre-fabricated shells and ground beef. Alberto’s has a sturdier taco shell and they use shredded beef. The beef is fried together with the shell so there is a lot of oil that gets trapped inside the taco. There was plenty of cheese but the taco was so oily and greasy that it was hard to find much flavor.

The gringo taco at Rick’s wins this challenge hands down. The taco from Alberto’s did nothing for me. For those that have yet to try Rick’s I suggest you head out to Pasadena. When you get there order couple of beef tacos, a beef and bean spudderito w/ hot, and a large root beer. You’ll thank me later.

taco wire: 40 Knockout L.A. Tacos, Indian Tacos,LA Otra Taqueria Escuela

Tacos Leo's al pastor

Tortilla Truimphs: 40 Knockout L.A. Tacos [Grub Street Los Angeles]

Taco Thursday: Tongue Tacos [LA Times]

23rd Street Cafe: Indian-Mexican Tacos! [LA Weekly]

La Otra Taquería Escuela, West Hollywood [the backyard bite]

Tacos Baja Ensenada, East Los Angeles [NJinLA.com]

Tulia's Tacos - Covina

I pulled off the 210 freeway to look for a gas station and there she was; a taco wagon hitched to a truck, and she was calling my name. Not literally calling me over, but beckoning me, like a lighthouse, as if I was adrift out at sea and lost, and looking for some kind of sign. The sign I was looking for read “tortillas hecha a mano” and it was game on.



I ordered al pastor and carne asada. The al pastor was close to ground pork but the flavor was good. The carne asada was the better of the two. There were no fatty bits and the meat was seasoned well. These would have been just okay tacos if not for the fresh homemade tortilla and the excellent salsa. I love a salsa with good heat to it and this one didn’t disappoint.


tacos $1.25 each

The plate was loaded up with a bunch of good stuff: radishes, grilled seasoned onions, and a grilled jalapeno. I love when taco trucks load your plate up with good stuff. I never used to be a radish or cucumber guy. My plate would come with radishes and cucumbers and I would just fire them off into the closest bin. But now I love all that stuff. Give me a fat blistering jalapeno and then a cool cucumber to finish it off. Give me an ice-cold jarritos, a plate of tacos, and the sun in my face. Or the rain in my face for all I care. Just as long as my plate of tacos comes piled up with the good stuff.

3/5

Tacos Tulia
100 E Arrow Highway
Covina
Tacos $1.25 each

Tacos El Chavito - Huntington Beach

It’s hard to beat four tacos for two bucks. But sometimes you get what you pay for. And on this day, the tacos were of poor quality.

Tacos El Chavito has a certain kind of legendary stature in Huntington Beach. This is partly due to the fact you get two tacos for $1. But get this; they also give away free pineapple juice. Two bucks gets you a plate of tacos and something to wash it down with. That’s pretty incredible. I feel kind of cheeky for complaining about my tacos.




cheap tacos but the meat was too fatty on this day

I ordered al pastor and carne asada. Both meats were fatty, the asada particularly so. The salsa was of medium heat with good flavor. The tortillas could have used a little more grill time. I washed the tacos down with a coke instead of pineapple juice. Sometimes I like a coke with my tacos.

The guy in line before me ordered ten tacos “para aqui” and the woman inside the truck gave him a curious look and said “ para aqui or llevar?” He repeated “para aqui” and I thought – oh no, i’m never going to get my tacos now because of this gordo. But it turns out they weren’t all for him. His family was waiting for him, and one by one he brought over plates of tacos and cups of pineapple juice.

2.5/5

Tacos El Chavito
Morgan St
Between Slater Ave and Speer Ave
Huntington Beach, CA 92647

Tacos Puebla - East LA

Tacos Puebla may serve the best tacos arabes in Los Angeles. I say they may, because I haven’t had many tacos arabe, and these are the best tacos arabe I’ve had.



The tacos arabes come with beef instead of pork. The beef is tender and mixed with onions and a spicy chile salsa. When you order they will ask if you want it spicy. The tacos are $3 each but well worth it. The tortillas are freshly made and the tacos have excellent flavor.


Tacos Puebla's tacos arabe are like mini burros



Tacos Puebla parks not far from where Mariscos Jaliscos parks during the day. This stretch of E. Olympic Blvd is sometimes referred to as the taco mecca. During the day you’re more likely to find mariscos and cemita trucks. At night the taco tables come out with rotating al pastor spits. If you’re looking for a night of taco exploring you can’t go wrong with this stretch of Olympic.

3.5/5

Tacos Puebla
2900 East Olympic Blvd
East Los Angeles

Taco Bell's Cantina Bell Menu is Terrible

What a surprise. Actual burrito looks nothing like this.

I thought I’d never have to blog about Taco Bell ever again. Not after I declared them dead to me for what they did to the 1980’s Taco Bell.

But now Taco Bell has launched their new Cantina Bell menu, which was created by Chef Lorena Garcia. That’s okay, I’ve never heard of her either. But lots of people on the internet have and they have been giving the new Cantina Bell menu rave reviews. And not just people on Yelp who will like everything. These are people who actually get paid to eat food and tell you what they think of it. The new menu has been compared to Chipotle. It’s Taco Bell’s entry into the fast-casual they say. Westword.com says "Taco Bell's Cantina Bell Menu May Make Chipotle a Little Nervous." The OC Register says that the “Taco Bell Cantina Bell Menu Beats Chipotle.”


this is just weird


actual burrito

So I ordered the chicken burrito, which came to $4.79. A bit expensive for Taco Bell I thought and I yearned for the days when three bucks would get me 4 hard shell tacos and a cinnamon crispas.

I’m not sure what to say about this burrito other than it’s terrible. Ok, I will say a few things. There’s hardly any chicken, which at first is a disappointment until you taste the chicken and then realize that it’s pre-cooked, fake pressed meat, and flavorless. There’s some kind of green sauce that is gross, there’s fucking lettuce, there are dry flavorless black beans, and there is white rice. The only thing this burrito has in common with Chipotle is the white rice. What’s so special about white rice? Apparently serving a burrito with white rice makes you fast casual now.

It’s probably the worst burrito I’ve ever had.

Give it up Taco Bell. Do us all a favor and dig up those 1980’s recipes and start giving us what we really want.

Tacos El Gallito - Westwood

A few years ago if someone said that they ate some good tacos from a taco truck in West LA you would probably want to punch them in the face. Or at least call them a newb for not knowing what a good taco is. But its 2012 and I’m here to announce that the era of bad tacos on the streets of West LA is over. Well, you’ll still find bad tacos from taco trucks in West LA, just not at the corner of Santa Monica Blvd and Westwood. At this corner you’ll find good tacos.


carne asada $1.50 each

I’m not sure what’s been going on with El Gallito but I like it. The carne asada they’ve been slinging at this truck and some of their other trucks has been top notch. Back in October I gave a mixed review for the El Gallito truck that parks day and night at the corner of La Brea and Venice (bad during the day , good at night). That truck busts out the charcoal grill at night and has developed a bit of a following despite parking across the street from the legendary Tacos Leo.


at night the counter is stocked with salsas and all the fixins


el gallito carne asada...I think ur freaky and I like you a lot.

For what its worth I’ve also found the carne asada to be slightly better at the Westwood location at night, though they're still pretty good during the day. I’m not sure why this is but I’ve been eating from the El Gallito truck for a few weeks now and it seems to be the case. The al pastor and carnitas are okay but are lesser tacos when compared to the carne asada which is just a ridiculously addictive taco. For optimum flavor drizzle some of their salsa verde over your tacos and have a freshly grilled jalapeno ready to chomp on.

4/5

El Gallito
Westwood Blvd and Santa Monica Blvd
Tacos $1.50

Gringo Taco Showdown- Tacos Por Favor vs Taco Plus

tacos por favor hard shell taco $3.35


For the second installment of the Gringo Taco Showdown I decided to pit two Westside taco establishments against each other. Tacos Por Favor is pretty well known to anyone who eats tacos and lives on the Westside. Their chorizo and cheese taco with the spicy salsa roja never disappoints. The carne asada is above average as well. It’s the Westside so you’re going to pay more. Soft tacos are over $2 each and the hard shell taco I had was around $3.60 with tax. But generally everything at Tacos Por Favor is pretty good.

Taco Plus however might be the blandest taqueria in all of LA. Now and then someone will tell me I need to try the tacos at Taco Plus. I can only gather that these people have never been east of La Brea if they think these are good tacos. Not to mention they are also around $2.25 a taco.

The Tacos Por Favor hard shell taco came with carne asada which was suprising. I don’t think I’ve ever had a carne asada hard shell taco. It also came with pico de gallo, sour cream, and guacamole. The asada was fresh and seasoned well and the shell was nice and crispy. I’m not sure this taco falls into the gringo taco category. It’s not what I generally look for when I get that gringo taco urge and I probably wouldn’t order it again. But it was good for what it was.





I was looking forward to the Taco Plus gringo taco. They even call it a gringo taco on their menu. It comes with the three main ingredients associated with the gringo taco: ground beef, lettuce, and grated cheese. However, this may be the worst gringo taco I’ve ever had. The ground beef was cold, unseasoned, and tasted like it had been sitting around all afternoon.



Sometimes for a treat I will cook up some ground beef for my dog. After draining the fat I’ll let it sit and cool for a bit and then spoon some in her dish. The beef has a very bland, beefy, unseasoned taste to it but she loves it. Well, that’s what this beef tasted like. My dog loved this taco but she doesn’t blog, I do.

Winner: Tacos Por Favor

Gringo Taco Showdown- El Taco vs Pepe's

Ever since I ate the horrendous dorito loco taco I have been thinking about the American hard shell taco. It is commonly referred to as the gringo taco and this is as good a name as any I can think of. For many people the gringo taco is what comes to mind when they think of tacos.

I was also thinking about how once I had graduated to “real tacos” I began to disassociate myself from the gringo taco. I think this happens to all taco eaters. At some point we reject the gringo taco as something inauthentic, too white, and just a bastardized version of a real taco. This rejection of the gringo taco is similar to how the American teenager pretends not to know their parents during their formative teenage years. Then they reach a certain age when it is ok to admit to their peers that they have parents. Similarly, the taco eater eventually comes around and admits to his peers that he eats gringo tacos.

My ideal gringo taco comes with a prefabricated taco shell, ground beef, lettuce, cheese and hot sauce. Tomato is cool too but not a deal breaker. Shredded beef will do too. The gringo taco just must have some kind of beef. My favorite gringo taco remains the 1980’s Taco Bell taco; may it rest in peace.

So for every tuesday for as long as I feel like eating gringo tacos I will put two gringo tacos against each other and then determine which taco I enjoyed more. This week’s taco showdown starts in the city of Downey where I munched on gringos from both El Taco and Pepe’s.







I was really looking forward to El Taco after reading a little about its history. Apparently Glen Bell modeled the original Taco Bell taco after the tacos at El Taco. So as I was getting closer to Downey I felt a little tingle go up my leg. Was I once again going to taste that magical taco of the 80’s? It was too much to bare really. And I should have known I was setting myself up for disappointment because after that first crunchy bite I quickly realized I was eating a very poor taco with overly seasoned ground beef that did not taste good. I started to wonder if I had heard correctly about this El Taco – Taco Bell connection and then I started to wonder if the 1980’s Taco Bell taco was really that good to begin with. Had I just tricked myself all these years into thinking it was better than it ever was? Had time deceived me or had El Taco met the same tragic fate as Taco Bell?






With the bad taste of El Taco in my mouth I drove about five minutes until I came to Pepe’s. Someone once mentioned that this Pepe’s makes a good bean and cheese burrito so I ordered one with my taco. The bean and cheese burrito was good but it was too big and I became demoralized as I got half way through it and the beans began to gush out of the bottom on to the plastic tray. If it was the best bean and cheese burrito in the world then I would have implemented an all hands on deck approach to save the burrito. This would have included using tortilla chips to stabilize the leak or in an extreme case saving the burrito by allowing some of the beans to gush out and then grafting the wrapper to the bottom of the burrito, attaching napkins to my palm, and then eating it with the base of the burrito sitting firmly cupped on my palm. It is a ridiculous way to eat a burrito and should really only be implemented with really good burritos.

The taco was big as well and it really required a fork to eat . The beef was shredded and had okay flavor. The cheese spilled out all over the wrapper and there was a lot of lettuce.It was not a fun taco to eat and eating tacos should be fun. I ate about half of it.

Well there you have it my friends. This was the first gringo taco showdown and there should be many more to come. I wouldn’t order either of these tacos again so there is no winner this week.

Taco Bell's Doritos Locos Taco

If you’re under 30 you probably don’t remember how good Taco Bell tacos once were. You’re probably thinking I’m having a laugh or that I’ve finally gone mad but it's true.Now make no mistake, these weren’t the kind of tacos you’ll find on the streets of Boyle Heights or El Sereno. But they were traditional tacos in their own way; crunchy ground beef tacos that were greasy and delicious.

I don’t remember the exact date when the Taco Bell taco began to degrade in quality but it was some time around the beginning of the 1990’s. Like most young people during this time I used to eat at Taco Bell religiously and when the poor quality taco came to be me and my pals recognized it instantly. Everything changed about the taco right down to the type of pre-made taco shell used. The Pre-90’s tacos were packed with fresh finely grated cheese. Post-90? A few strands of thick cheese that taste like they were grated during the Reagan Administration. Pre-90’s Taco Bell ground beef was cooked at the restaurant. Post-90’s “beef”? Outsourced to Mars I think. It’s funky, mushy, and just gross. The only thing that hasn’t changed at Taco Bell is the hot sauce. The only difference is with post-90’s tacos you need about 6 of them per taco to prevent the gag-reflex.



Which brings us to Taco Bell’s latest disaster, the doritos loco taco. It’s a post-90’s taco(gross beef, a few strands of cheese) with a doritos flavored taco shell. The commercial says one guy drove 965 miles to get one; I drove two. I really only have two words to say to Taco Bell about this taco and I think I’ve been waiting since 1990 to say them. Fuck you.

Guisados- East LA

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,—
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,
And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;

-Keats "To Autumn"



It’s the first day of spring and I’m back. I wasn’t really gone but I’ve been really lazy. It’s easy to be lazy during the winter. I know, it’s LA, we don’t really have proper seasons, but now it’s spring, and I feel like I’m back. Back from what, I’m not sure. But that’s the thing about spring. You feel brand new. I saw a bird yesterday and I said to him, “tomorrow is spring” and he said, “go fuck yourself” but today I’m sure he would say, “it sure is!”


Guisados sampler taco plate

Guisados has been very popular with LA taco aficionados since they opened their doors. It took my awhile to try the tacos. It usually does with the popular places. And since the blog has mostly been about taco trucks the last couple of years rather than taquerias I hadn’t written about Guisados until now. Well, what a mistake, guisados may be my favorite place for tacos in all of LA. LA Taco asked me for my top tacos in LA recently for their Taco Madness, I put Guisados cochinita pibil #1.I really love this taco.But all the tacos on the sampler are great. The chicken mole with sesame seeds is delicious; the bistec with chile rojo is a wondrous blend of tender beef, beans, and chile, the tinga de pollo and chicharon are also unforgettable.

Some friends from Scotland were visiting LA and wanted go out for tacos. Normally I take out of town people to El Taurino for a pitcher of beer to wash down some carne asada and al pastor with the spicy salsa roja. But this time we went to Guisados. They had never had homemade tortillas before. They wanted to move to LA after eating their tacos. Not just LA but right across the street from Guisados. They talked about the tacos everyday for a week. Scrap the itinerary they said. Forget Disneyland they said. Take us to Guisados. Forget Hollywood they said. Take us to Guisados.Forget Venice Beach they said.Forget Malibu too. Forget everything you know about tacos. Forget the lonely days of winter. Just sing us the songs of spring.

5/5

2100 E Cesar Chavez Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90033
(323) 264-7201
http://www.guisados.com