Instead of going west when getting off the 710 freeway at Olympic I headed east. All this time I’ve been going west and neglecting the east . Maybe it’s El Korita, the 50-cent tacos at El Capitan and the shrimp tacos from Mariscos Jalisco that kept me west of the 710, but east has its treasures as well. This stretch of East Olympic Blvd isn’t called the taco mecca for nothing; the boulevard is lined with sidewalk al pastor spits. At one point there was one at every block. I was tempted to pull over but since I’m on a mission to eat from every taco truck in LA I was looking for something on wheels.
carne asada & al pastor $1 each
The first truck I came to was Tapatios de Jalisco. The tacos here tasted similar to Tacos El Galuzo and Tacos Arandez, which is a good thing. I like that my tacos came garnished with minced onions, cilantro, and salsa, but the salsa could have been spicier. The grilled onions were nice but a grilled jalapeno would have really won me over. The al pastor is cut from the spit then griddled. It has a nice crispness to it with tender bits of pork; no pineapple though. The carne asada was finely chopped and mixed well with the onions and salsa. I really should have asked for a jalapeno to go with it.
About a half-mile east on Olympic I found Tacos Texano. This truck had more people at it, which may be due to the variety of salsas and condiments they offer. The containers were stocked with three salsas: roja, verde, avocado salsa, and plenty of other stuff including: pinto beans, radishes, cucumbers, onions and cilantro. The onions and cilantro were in separate bins, which is a little pet peeve of mine.
I ordered suadero, carne asada, and al pastor. The best of the three was the asada, which had nice meaty bits of well-seasoned steak. Next time I’d pair all three tacos with the salsa verde, which was spicier and more flavorful than the salsa roja. I love a good spicy salsa verde and this one didn’t disappoint. The suadero(pork rib) was just ok; a little too dry for my taste, and the al pastor was a little too sweet, but still enjoyable. I’m not sure if this Tacos El Texano is related to the one in Boyle Heights, though the flavors are somewhat similar. Between Tacos Texano and Tapatios de Jalisco its a tough call but the edge goes to Texano because of the salsa verde and better carne asada.
I had had enough for the night but drove east on Olympic just to investigate. There were a couple more taco trucks, which I jotted down in my book, and a few more sidewalk al pastor carts. The people around here must really like their al pastor.
Tapatios de Jalisco
E. Olympic and Fraser
East LA , 90022
tacos $1 each
3/5
Rate Tapatio de Jalisco
Tacos Texano
E. Olympic and Simmons Ave
East LA, 90022
tacos $1 each
3.5/5
Rate Tacos Texano
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