Richard C.
Yelp
Well, the lure of fresh-made tortillas finally got me in the door, and I am so glad that it did.
tl;dr - richly flavored, well-cooked small menu, friendly service, generous portions. Did I mention the freshly made tortillas? Worth the visit and then some.
I asked the-woman-who-lets-me-live-with-her (thanks Mike) if she'd like to take a short walk to go and grab some dinner at Birrias Tamazula. The heat of summer had finally broken and it was a lovely evening for a stroll, especially one that ended in dinner.
A part of the lure was that Tamazula make Birria de chivo, aka goat. It's delicious when made with beef to be sure, but there is an earthiness when it is made with goat that is not to be missed. I ordered the Birria Dona Lidia's, which is just birria in consomme with garnish and tortillas on the side.
Mi esposa loves shrimp and they have some lovely looking platters of shrimp prepared in various ways and so she decided on the Camarones Zarandeados, which is head-on shrimp (from this hemisphere) perfectly cooked and tossed in a spice mixture with fresh veggies on the side and tortillas.
The consomme was wonderfully flavorful. If you needed more heat, the selection on the garnish and salsa plate would have allowed you to adjust it to your taste, and I appreciate the opportunity to make that decision on my own. The meat was spectacularly tender and flavorful. If you mind picking out bones, then order the beef, because the bone-quotient is higher in goat, but it is worth the work. tender meat, rich broth, fluffy fresh tortillas, with a sprinkling of chopped onion and cilantro with a squeeze of lime? Heaven!
Shrimp are always a good test of a kitchen. Easy to overcook, easy to get scared and undercook. These were just right, firm without tipping over into rubbery, with a fresh sweetness countered by the rich-red spice mixture they were tossed with. Fresh tortilla, fresh veg, bite of shrimp and lime and you've got my wife right where you want her
THIS DISH IS VERY MESSY - you have to shell everything yourself and they are generous with the "sauce" so be prepared. Maybe they could offer a wet-wipe like they do at bbq places?
The owner looked very familiar to me and when we chatted (he is VERY friendly and engaging) we discovered that we had worked together at a car dealership some years ago. It is just that easy to talk to them here and that is also very nice. The-woman-who-lets-me-live-with-her spoke at length (we were the last customers of the night) about a dish she had enjoyed in California that nobody seemed to be able to duplicate. Seems like the kind of place that might let you buy a bucket of beers at the end of the day and invite the staff to join you. Maybe I'll try that next time!
I suppose my only wish would be a touch more variety in the menu, but if they are going to do these things this well, I'll just know where to come when this is my hankering. Do not pass it up, not to be missed.