Tijuanazo Opens in East Los Angeles With Top-Level Tijuana-Style Tacos | Eater LA
"In East LA, I experienced Tijuanazo’s family-style Tijuana tacos as presented by Aria Esquivel: a 40-seat, sit-down dining room (the former Tacos Mexico spot) with a black wall decorated with cowboy boot cutouts and a kitchen staff flown from Tijuana to train the team. The chain—which began as a polished stainless-steel taco cart in Playas de Tijuana and now counts seven Tijuanan locations—serves marinated carne asada (paired with a cooked-tomato-and-raw-serrano salsa), tacos dressed with finely chopped onions, cilantro, and abundant, smooth guacamole, and an adobada that’s cooked on an automated trompo and finished with a distinctive crema de adobada (cilantro, crema mexicana, avocado, and chives) and even a slice of pineapple; Aria suggests enjoying the adobada as a taco or mulita. While the East LA spot uses gas grills and thus lacks the charcoal char of some Tijuana taquerías, the outstanding salsas, umami-rich steak, handmade corn tortillas, paper-wrapped taco construction, vasos de frijol (beans in a cup with cheese, meat, consomé, and extra guacamole), a surtido of grilled onions/cactus/roasted chiles, a comal de acero for fritanga, and a slow-marinated birria de res all show the chain’s attention to detail and its Tijuana DNA." - Bill Esparza
