After the holiday break(oops sorry Bill O'rielly, I mean Christmas)I was back on the taco hunt. It's funny how before this taco hunt I was always hesitant to go to westside taquerias. I live on the westside but I would always get my mexican food east of La Brea. All this time these great taco places have been right under my nose and I never had the sense of adventure to try them. Perhaps the unfair stigma when it comes to taquerias on the westside influenced me but now that I'm on a taco hunt I'll try anything and I've become a more complete taco eater for it.
So I walked into Don Felix, a taqueria on Sawtelle and Washington blvd and ordered some tacos. Don Felix is a taqueria adjacent to a carneceria and market of the same name and your able to place your order inside the market.I ordered two al pastor and one asada taco and popped open a lime jarritos and sat outside taking in the winter Los Angeles sun until my order number was called.
My tacos came with a spicy habanero salsa that made me curl up into a ball and want my mommy. After a few bites the cold lime jarritos I was drinking was almost gone and the sweat from my brow started to run down into my eyes. Emeril Lagasse must have been in the back with the habaneros yelling "bam!" because this was some intense heat. I dug through my pocket to get some change to purchase another drink and to my dismay I was out of cash. No need to panic I thought, I've got cold beer at home.But I couldn't psyche myself out, this was Homer Simpson hot pepper shit.
ok we get it you say,the salsa was spicy...but how were the tacos??
ok the tacos were frickin great. The al pastor was full of bits of sizzled pork and the asada was charred and just greasy enough. The salsa while kicked up to notches unknown to this taco reporter until now was still enjoyable. I like it when a taco can make me sweat it out a little and I'm proud to say these tacos had more going for them than that, the meats were well prepared and these were great tacos.
I was pleasantly suprised by Don Felix and I really shouldn't have been. The westside is on the map as far as tacos now. But dont take my word for it try it yourself my friends.
Don Felix Meat Market 3987 Sawtelle Blvd. Tacos are $1.25 each
Hi Bandini - Was this "sneaky Habanero" salsa - you know, you take 2-3 bites before it hits you? At least you could still taste the Al Pastor. Hope your tastebuds have recovered.
ReplyDeletehey kirk
ReplyDeleteyeah! at first it's a little sweet and you smell the habaneros and then it builds up and hits you.
Mmmmm.... Don Felix.
ReplyDeleteI really miss this place since moving away from the Westside.
One thing you should try is the burrito mojado w/ red sauce. Doesn't matter what kind of meat...but it has to be the red sauce. I'm not normally a smothered burrito fan, but that stuff is like liquid cocaine; dangerously addictive...even my chile-phobic wife craves it. It's got a serious mole-style vibe, but when I questioned the folks there about this, they kinda clammed up and smiled (and pointed out that it can be purchased separately). The sauce seems to change slightly from visit to visit, so there's some home-cooking variation going on.
Give it a try (even though it's not a taco).
yclops
ReplyDeletethanks for the info..even though i am a taco hunter I do like a good burrito now and then and smothered burritos(when done right) can be delicious :)
Bandini, Don Felix is our family's favorite taqueria by far. our favorite is the asada. Ummmmmmmmm. Keep up the great work!
ReplyDeleteyclops,
ReplyDeletehad a chicken burrito mojado and you were right...it was excellent
paliman,
I live in the area and it's become my weekend taqueria. I think I'm gonna have to kick up Don Felix to a 4 taco rating. They are consistently great.
You should note that the habanero salsa you speak of is actually the "salsa roja" (red) even though it looks "verde" (green) in those pics. It should also be noted that the asada and carnitas we not as good as the Al Pastor, but that's my observation.
ReplyDeleteBandini knows taco! Just tried Don Felix, it was excellent. A little more cilantro would've made it a four star taco but that's just me. I believe everything goes better with cilantro. It's ironic that the place is just a couple of blocks west of Tito's, consistently one of the worst tacos on the Westside, but they probably sell more in one day that Don Felix does in a month. Go figure!
ReplyDeletehot damn this is a great site!!
ReplyDeletetried this a couple weeks ago, been back several times since.
as noted above: the "salsa rojo" is the habernero. don't let it scare you, king taco's red sauce is hotter (in my opinoon). i think the habernero is a perfect heat for its flavor. i too found the al pastor better then the rest of the meats -- carnitas was a bit dry.
love this place, may get some on the way home. i still feel it from yesterday -- 4 tacos seems to be a bit too much for me.
also, they've only been charging me .99 per taco, and i've gotten a six pack in their store and it was less then most too.
still looking for that taco truck at santa monica/westgate. but this place is great!
Sadly, I was extremely disappointed. I ordered both an asada and carnitas taco, $0.99 each, and I still feel cheated. They gave me both the hot (NOT) and mild (same heat) salsas along with some really chewy/stale chips. Mmmmm. Don't know if this'll work, but I took a pic of the pitiful offerings- http://www.kodakgallery.com/BrowsePhotos.jsp?&collid=198691336108.774371336108.1170799458195&page=1&sort_order=0&navfolderid=0&folderid=0&ownerid=0
ReplyDeleteUpon tasting it- DISGUSTING, unless you like onion tacos w/ old boiled meat. I'm sticking w/ paying more at King Taco for much better quality & consistency.
I'll still try out your other suggestions, 'cause this sure as heck isn't your fault!
hey ruby...
ReplyDeleteI tried to email you back but it bounced back to me =]
the hot wasn't hot enough? that habanero is usually firing on all cylinders.
This place can be good, average, or bad (though rarely). It's pretty inconsistent. I've been going to DF for years and I've noticed that their staff (and more recently, their ownership) always changes, and their recipes change with the staff. I've had some amazing tacos de carne asada and some really sorry ones there and more recently, I got sick from eating there. Seems like the ownership needs to keep its best cooks for it to remain consistent.
ReplyDeleteHey just ate here based off of your post...
ReplyDeleteI thought the tacos were great. I had a carnitas and a carne. Both good, but I don't understand the salsa notes? I got both the mild and HOT, and neither were anyway near what I expected on the hotness factor (and I'm a total salsa whimp!)
The lady running the counter was not very pleasnat either. But whatever the food was good, and the rice had a nice seasoned flavor.
Thanks
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Hey just ate here based off of your post...
ReplyDeleteI thought the tacos were great. I had a carnitas and a carne. Both good, but I don't understand the salsa notes? I got both the mild and HOT, and neither were anyway near what I expected on the hotness factor (and I'm a total salsa whimp!)
The lady running the counter was not very pleasnat either. But whatever the food was good, and the rice had a nice seasoned flavor.
Thanks
Bandini knows taco! Just tried Don Felix, it was excellent. A little more cilantro would've made it a four star taco but that's just me. I believe everything goes better with cilantro. It's ironic that the place is just a couple of blocks west of Tito's, consistently one of the worst tacos on the Westside, but they probably sell more in one day that Don Felix does in a month. Go figure!
ReplyDeletehot damn this is a great site!!
ReplyDeletetried this a couple weeks ago, been back several times since.
as noted above: the "salsa rojo" is the habernero. don't let it scare you, king taco's red sauce is hotter (in my opinoon). i think the habernero is a perfect heat for its flavor. i too found the al pastor better then the rest of the meats -- carnitas was a bit dry.
love this place, may get some on the way home. i still feel it from yesterday -- 4 tacos seems to be a bit too much for me.
also, they've only been charging me .99 per taco, and i've gotten a six pack in their store and it was less then most too.
still looking for that taco truck at santa monica/westgate. but this place is great!
yclops
ReplyDeletethanks for the info..even though i am a taco hunter I do like a good burrito now and then and smothered burritos(when done right) can be delicious :)
hey kirk
ReplyDeleteyeah! at first it's a little sweet and you smell the habaneros and then it builds up and hits you.