First off, let me admit to not being a fan of Mexican food. Even though I grew up a stone's throw away from East L.A. my palate never quite acquiesced to the floury taste of tortilla, the staple of Mexican cuisine. As a kid I would cringe everytime I found out the cafeteria was serving burritos. Burrito days at school left me with no other option but to skillfully suck my burrito dry with a plastic straw, leaving the deflated tortilla wrap behind. Sad, I know. My sidekick, J., on the other hand LOVES Mexican food. I stumbled upon a food blog dedicated to finding great taco digs in and around Los Angeles. The Great Taco Hunt recently posted their best finds of 2006 and La Taquiza was voted best place to get carne asada tacos. I half-heartedly mentioned to J. that we should drop in and try it out-and just like that we were in the car and headed to La Taquiza before I could finish my suggestion.
Situated a couple of blocks from the University of Spoiled Children (Bruin alum here), La Taquiza sits snugly in the corner of a shopping plaza. The crowd at the taqueria consisted mostly of Hispanics (always a good sign of authenticity) with the occasional maroon and gold-cladded student dropping in for what I'm sure was breakfast for them (~1 pm on a Sat.). I admit, I felt a bit apprehensive when we entered. I don't know if it was the thought of eating tortilla (freshly made from scratch here) or maybe it was the group vato locos that shot me a glare when I entered the joint, like I stepped foot into their territory. J. noticed my uneasiness and asked me what was wrong, but before I could answer, she began to list all the things she wanted to order.
I had J. order because she took 3 years of Spanish in high school, which I find questionable after I heard her order:
J: Dose tacos carnee ay-sada, poor pre poor.
Cook: [Amused look on his face]
J: and one mole-lita.
Situated a couple of blocks from the University of Spoiled Children (Bruin alum here), La Taquiza sits snugly in the corner of a shopping plaza. The crowd at the taqueria consisted mostly of Hispanics (always a good sign of authenticity) with the occasional maroon and gold-cladded student dropping in for what I'm sure was breakfast for them (~1 pm on a Sat.). I admit, I felt a bit apprehensive when we entered. I don't know if it was the thought of eating tortilla (freshly made from scratch here) or maybe it was the group vato locos that shot me a glare when I entered the joint, like I stepped foot into their territory. J. noticed my uneasiness and asked me what was wrong, but before I could answer, she began to list all the things she wanted to order.
I had J. order because she took 3 years of Spanish in high school, which I find questionable after I heard her order:
J: Dose tacos carnee ay-sada, poor pre poor.
Cook: [Amused look on his face]
J: and one mole-lita.
...
The order went on, excruciating as it was, we ended up with most of our food. The ordering system at La Taquiza works in what I think is a confusing manner. You tell the cook what you want and then move on to repeat your order to the cashier. You then wait for your items to be called, which come out in increments and might be difficult to follow if you ordered an array of items.
The order went on, excruciating as it was, we ended up with most of our food. The ordering system at La Taquiza works in what I think is a confusing manner. You tell the cook what you want and then move on to repeat your order to the cashier. You then wait for your items to be called, which come out in increments and might be difficult to follow if you ordered an array of items.
Above: Notice that fluffy stuffed-animals enjoy Mexican food as well.The salsa bar had an array of salsas that you can dress your tacos, burritos, etc. with. They also had pickled jalepenos, pickled carrots and fresh sliced beats to munch on if your mouth gets overheated by any of the salsas.
I must confess that I took a liking to the tacos here. The carne asada taco was good, although I really have no benchmark to compare it to. J. thought it was a too salty and said it was leagues behind King Taco, the Mexican temple of choice for J. to pay her respects to the Taco God. The taco al pastor, layered marinated slices of pork compressed tightly and roasted on a vertical spit, was a bit salty. The tacos I enjoyed most were the shrimp (del carbon) and the fish taco. The liquidy sour cream mixed with guacamole and topped off with a bit of salsa verde complimented the deep fried fish very nicely.
What about the tortilla, you ask? Well, La Taquiza's made from scratch tortilla is not like the average stain-repellent brand you find at your local supermarket, where any excess liquid will run off and drip out the side of your taco. The tortilla at La Taquiza is more absorbant, the Bounty Extra Strength of tortillas, leaving the sauces to seep into the tortilla and inject it with flavor. It was "aight" and that's just about all you will get out of me.
Thanks to La Taquiza, I now no longer dread my next visit to a Mexican restaurant. This doesn't mean that I'm gonna rush out and stock up on frijoles, just that I will no longer throw a fit if J. or any of my other dining mates suggest a Mexican place to eat at.
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