11 Clubby Restaurants In LA, Explained - Los Angeles - The Infatuation

"What It Is: Toca Madera is a very popular and very corporate “modern Mexican steakhouse” on 3rd. Street in Beverly Grove. It’s so popular that, since opening in 2015, it’s expanded to both Scottsdale and Las Vegas, bringing the same bland and generic Mexican food to two other states that don’t need it. Verdict: Most places on this guide aren’t serving great food, but at least the majority of them have other fun, over-the-top elements to distract from it. At Toca Madera, people are there solely to eat—and that makes the level of food here unforgivable. We’re talking about $16 for a scoop of soured guacamole and $22 for an al pastor taco with a tortilla that crumbles in half when you pick it up. If there was something more exciting going on here than a bored DJ in the corner and a crowd full of people who still haven’t gotten cast on The CW, we might see the appeal. But at Toca Madera, what you see is what you get, which, unfortunately, isn’t much." - brant cox