Tacos Mexico is a chain taqueria that can be found throughtout Los Angeles. There’s also several locations throughout California and a location on the Las Vegas sunset strip.
It wasn’t so long ago that tacos were .60 cents at many Tacos Mexico . Now you’re more likely to find .95 cent tacos at most locations unless it’s tuesday. Tuesday is .45 cent taco day. Hell yes.
With that in mind I made my way to the Tacos Mexico at the corner of Alvarado and Glendale blvd in the Echo Park area. I was expecting a crowd of cheapskate taco patrons but to my surprise the place was nearly empty. I may have just missed the taco crowd or maybe the tacos truly taste like .45c.
The decor is flashy with red and white tiles and red and green fluorescent fixtures. There’s a salsa bar but I passed on it after noticing a dead fly in the roja and another fly swarming around. Hoping my tacos would come with enough salsa already on them I sat back and popped open the bottle of coke.
The salted carne asada and soft al pastor went well with the dark salsa roja and the cabeza taco was suprisingly tasty with a mild salsa verde. All three tacos were far too oily however . The oil didn’t appear to come from the meats and looked to be from poor tortilla preparation. Well oiled corn tortillas are essential to a good taco but it was obvious the taco chef went overboard with the oil here. The excess grease even broke through the paper plate my tacos came on. The asada was quite good though with lots of flavor and no fatty bits.
Points taken off for the oil bath and the flies in the salsa bar but other than that these tacos had something going for them. If it’s tuesday you may still find me at a tacos mexico near you chowing down on some asada tacos.
Tacos Mexico at Glendale and Alvarado, Echo Park. Open 24hrs
i just tried this exact tacos mexico location and thought they were the worst tacos i've had in LA. i tried the cabeza and al pastor. my boyfriend had the chicken and it looked really weird and processed into rubbery bits. perhaps we should have stuck to carne asada.
ReplyDeletein this area you might try the taco truck on alvarado next to the vons (in between sunset and glendale).
bandini,
ReplyDeleteif there are flys in the food in the part of the restaurant they expect the customers to see, imagine what's going on in the area where the customers can't see. ich.
I think I was a bit kind with the 2 1/2 rating
ReplyDeleteI agree with allison that you might think about trying Taquizos a Domicilo on Alvarado & Montana, next to Vons. I'm vegetarian so I can only speak for their bean tacos, but they are the best in the neighborhood. There is always a big line of people late into the night, the sign of an excellent taco truck.
ReplyDeleteI support the taco truck and I have signed the petition and personally e-mailed my City Council rep. Go to the following link and enter your address into "my neighborhood" to find out contact info for your district:
http://www.lacity.org/council.htm
seriously, allison is right on with this review. my roommate and i headed there once on a tuesday and we immediately regretted. i tried it again later with my boyfriend and he hated it as well. just say no to this repeat offender.
ReplyDeleteI ate at the Beverly/Westmoreland location earlier tonight and didn't find the tacos to be especially oily. Quite the contrary: I thought the tortillas could have used more oil.
ReplyDeleteThe salsa is really something. As for the meats, the asada would be a 3/5 in my book, and the al pastor likewise. The pastor has a very Greek/Lebanese taste to it, almost as if a greater-than-normal amount of cumin or coriander were being used in the sauce. It's refreshingly different, and reminds me of my (Greek) mom's cooking.
The TM in Downey on Florence Ave is the best one I've been to (and I've been to a lot). Their Horchata is damn good also.
ReplyDeleteTwo and a half tacos for this dump? I thought you were a taco reporter. I guess you're just a taco hack.
ReplyDeleteWow! Its too bad most of you sound like you don't know much about real, Mexican style tacos. I am tired of Americanized taco places that are all the same. Tacos Mexico, at least is Las Vegas, has the best, most authentic Mexican "street" tacos I've ever found anywhere. Of course, the Las Vegas shops seemed reasonably clean, so maybe its just an LA problem. Tacos Mexico, in Las Vegas, rules!
ReplyDeleteyeah i;m from califronia and i never liked tacos mexico... now i leave in vegas and shoot tacos mexico here are the best!!! no joke so if you visit vegas check them out the salsa and everyting is sooo good!
ReplyDeleteSorry to say that the Tacos Mexico here in Hawthorne has really gone downhill. The carne asada and al pastor were mushy, indistinguishable from each other and the salsa was pretty bland. Also, no more Taco Tuesday specials. We really have to find something decent around here besides Acosta Taco.
ReplyDeleteFlies? Rubbery Chicken? Fatty bits? I frequent both the Echo Park AND downtown locations and have never been disappointed. If you truly saw flies in the salsa I would suggest calling the Health Dept. because as it stands now they have an "A" rating....hmmmm they must be doing something right.
ReplyDeleteJust had the asada and pastor at the Beverly location. I agree that the Pastor was not great and definitely had problems with over-oiley-ness BUT the asada was great!
ReplyDeleteFor that price I think these are some of the best Asada tacos in the area.
Tacos Mexico is good you guys are crazy. But I do agree that the one in Vegas is good. There is also on that has been my favorite. Its on Atlantic blvd in the city of Bell right near Bell High School. That one has always been the best.
ReplyDeletei came home from a quincenyetta (sp)(15 year old mexican bday) and tried them for the first time ... it was 3 in the morning and i was hungry .. i had the torta ..it was amazing .. i went back a week later, just as good, i keep going back and yet to be disapointed, would you rather have taco bell or hell del taco sells tacos del caborn that are 50 cents more EACH!!!
ReplyDeleteas i got older i decided to become a chef .. i am 24 years of age now working in a kitchen for about a year and a half .. i understand good food .. and tacos mexico has to be some of the best tacos ive tried yet ..
I used to live in Orange County and would go to the Tacos Mexico located I think in Santa Ana. I've since lived in Texas and now Oregon and find myself missing TM. I'm a white female and Mexican food is my favorite! The people working there would be friendly; there is a full Mexican feel in the restaurant, Mexican music on the juke box. I would always get the carne asada and it never disappointed me. It's inexpensive and delicious. If you're worried about going somewhere with an A rating go somewhere you'll spend more money and with higher class. This place rocks!
ReplyDeletea tacos mexico opened @ the puente hills mall in city of industry. i went there and the prices were outrageous. it was like 1.25 per taco and it was disgusting. the tortas and tacos suck so badly. it was much different than the tacos mexico in huntington park.(which i think they are mediocre) anyway anyone remember tacos arturo in south la ? i used to go there every saturday and they were the best tacos in california. i wish it was still there at the same location. now tacos arturo is a fast food restaurant and it is disgusting. it hasnt been at that location for about 6 years. it didnt have the inspected grade that is y it got shut down. too bad
ReplyDeleteThat is unfortunate because the tacos mexicos that i go to in van nuys and north hollywood are really good. their salsas are unreal.
ReplyDeletefor real the tacos mexico in vegas ROcks!!!
ReplyDeleteWOW!! Taco Mex is the GREATEST!!! but only the MEX in vegas!!! Clean Fast consistant for two tries anyway... but the mex in los angeles SUCKS BIG TIME!!! Not the same menu not the same taste. why is the menu different??? no breakfast burros no enchilada verde no chorizo no fries(vegas fresh chopped papas... so stay away from l.a taco mex travel alittle for good T.M. in Vegas
ReplyDeleteOne time at the one in Baldwin park on Ramona I had some Al Pastor that was so good I could have sworn I was in Tijuas. Most other times have been sub-par though. I guess it really depends on the attitude of the cook at the moment but god damn they were THE BEST for about 3 minutes before I finished that particular taco.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, KING MOTHAFU##ING TACO RUNS LA FOOL, NO ONE CAN STEP TO THEIR ASADA!!!!
i live in tallahassee,fl and would drive back to tacos mexico's echo park location if gas were free. the best chicken tacos ever!!!!! screw you haters
ReplyDelete"Las Vegas sunset strip"? Are you retarded?
ReplyDeleteThere's the Las Vegas Strip AKA The Strip AKA Las Vegas Blvd in Las Vegas
and there's the Sunset Strip AKA Sunset Blvd in Los Angeles
There is no "Las Vegas sunset strip"
Also, it's either ".45 dollars" with the decimal or "45 cents" with no decimal.
".45 cents" means 45 hundredths of a cent
I have only gone to Tacos Mexico in victorville, CA and that place is bomb. I still prefer King Taco though.
ReplyDeleteI have been to 2 Tacos Mexico in LA & 2 in Las Vegas. I used to always go to the one in Hawthorne & thought they were the best tacos for a great price! Would try to make a pit stop in Vegas once a month. However, I stopped going about 2yrs ago because no matter how many times I went back, it seemed like the tacos kept getting worst & worst. All of the tacos were always oily & the meat full of fat. It just isn't the same. I'm willing to give them another try, but somehow, I think it would be the same: ( oh well, there's always Acosta Tacos.
ReplyDeleteWOW!! Taco Mex is the GREATEST!!! but only the MEX in vegas!!! Clean Fast consistant for two tries anyway... but the mex in los angeles SUCKS BIG TIME!!! Not the same menu not the same taste. why is the menu different??? no breakfast burros no enchilada verde no chorizo no fries(vegas fresh chopped papas... so stay away from l.a taco mex travel alittle for good T.M. in Vegas
ReplyDeletefor real the tacos mexico in vegas ROcks!!!
ReplyDeletei came home from a quincenyetta (sp)(15 year old mexican bday) and tried them for the first time ... it was 3 in the morning and i was hungry .. i had the torta ..it was amazing .. i went back a week later, just as good, i keep going back and yet to be disapointed, would you rather have taco bell or hell del taco sells tacos del caborn that are 50 cents more EACH!!!
ReplyDeleteas i got older i decided to become a chef .. i am 24 years of age now working in a kitchen for about a year and a half .. i understand good food .. and tacos mexico has to be some of the best tacos ive tried yet ..
I used to live in Orange County and would go to the Tacos Mexico located I think in Santa Ana. I've since lived in Texas and now Oregon and find myself missing TM. I'm a white female and Mexican food is my favorite! The people working there would be friendly; there is a full Mexican feel in the restaurant, Mexican music on the juke box. I would always get the carne asada and it never disappointed me. It's inexpensive and delicious. If you're worried about going somewhere with an A rating go somewhere you'll spend more money and with higher class. This place rocks!
ReplyDeleteThe TM in Downey on Florence Ave is the best one I've been to (and I've been to a lot). Their Horchata is damn good also.
ReplyDeleteseriously, allison is right on with this review. my roommate and i headed there once on a tuesday and we immediately regretted. i tried it again later with my boyfriend and he hated it as well. just say no to this repeat offender.
ReplyDeletei just tried this exact tacos mexico location and thought they were the worst tacos i've had in LA. i tried the cabeza and al pastor. my boyfriend had the chicken and it looked really weird and processed into rubbery bits. perhaps we should have stuck to carne asada.
ReplyDeletein this area you might try the taco truck on alvarado next to the vons (in between sunset and glendale).