What To Eat This Weekend: Kalua Pig and Pastrami Tacos, Shrimp Fries, Filipino Loco Moco, and Roy Choi’s Taco Stand
Plus taco kits with swordfish and rock shrimp, loco moco, goat ribs with handmade tortillas, duck confit kibbeh, Argentine choripan, and some slow-and-low smoked meats.
Westlake
Oh my god, Becky, look at these tortas cubanas! You'll find them on Becky's Taco Truck, which is posting up around Westlake and Downtown with chicken milanesa melt tortas, cemitas photogenic tortas cubanas, shrimp fries, asada fries, nachos con queso, alambres, burgers, tacos, and more.
Mon-Fri. 11 AM-10 PM, 664 Lucas Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90015. Closest Metro line and stop: Bus Line 51 - "7th/Lucas."
Sat. 4 PM-3 AM, 815 Olympic Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90015. Closest Metro lines and stop: Bus Lines 28, 81, 460, J Line (910/950) - "Olympic/Figueroa."
Santa Monica
Layla opens tonight at Santa Monica's Sonder Hotel from chef Chris Sayegh, founder of the cannabis dinner party company The Herbal Chef. Sayegh is cooking dishes inspired by the home cooking of Layla, his Jordanian jiddeh (grandmother), and his French training, including dips like leben zaat and zataar served with warm balloon breads, chickpea beignets topped with smoked beet and goat cheese, kibbeh made with confit duck inside of a shell of ground beef and bulgur wheat, beef-and-lamb sourdought toast, lamb-stuffed grape leaves with a Jordanian seven-spice mix, dry-aged ribeye cooked on an open fire, lamb rack tagine, and butterflied, dry-aged whole branzino with spicy gremoulata. Cocktails are by Dushan Zaric and include Matahari milk punch, an arak Collins, and baklava punch served with two pieces of baklava.
1301 Ocean Ave. Santa Monica, CA 90401. Closest Metro lines and stop: Bus Lines 4 and 33 - "Broadway/Ocean", Bus Line 720 - "4th/Arizona", or Metro E Line - "Downtown Santa Monica Station."
Northridge
Argentine asado experts The Gauchos are meeting up with Peruvian street food vendor Punku tonight in Northridge to make choripanes and charcoal-grilled anticuchos together. Last we saw The Gauchos, they were cooking a whole lamb for smashburger business ,Proudly Serving at Bee Taquería, so we can attest they play nice with others.
5-11 PM, Corner of Nordhoff Street and Balboa Boulevard, near Target, Northridge, CA 91325. Closest Metro lines and stop: Bus Lines 166, 235, and 236 - "Nordhoff/Balboa."
Downtown Arts District
Family-owned Slow N' Low LA BBQ is popping up weekends in the Arts District, preparing almond wood-smoked chickens, trip-top, racks of lamb, shrimp, skewered shrimps-and-scallops, and spare ribs.
704 Traction Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90013. Closest Metro lines and stop: Metro A and E Lines - "Little Tokyo/Arts District Station" or Bus Line 106 - "1st/Vignes."
Long Beach
Goat ribs and thick handmade tortillas. There's nothing wrong with that. Birreria La Comadre's truck is a source for birria de chivo in Long Beach, as well as tantalizing mulitas, tacos dorados, birria ramen, quesadillas, and beef cuts including labio, cachete, and cabeza.
1320 Atlantic Ave. Long Beach, CA 90813. Closest transit lines and stop: Long Beach Transit Lines 41, 46, 61, and 71 - "Atlantic/Anaheim" or Metro A Line and Metro Bus Line 232 - "Anaheim Street Station."
Koreatown
Local Moco is open in Koreatown for takeout Hawaiian eats. In addition to its namesake dish, there's kalua pig, Portuguese sausages, longanisa patties, SPAM and egg, and garlic shrimp over rice, as well as musubi, Kalua pig fries, sliders, and a Kalua pig taco.
4574 Beverly Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90004. Closest Metro lines and stop: Bus Lines 14, 207, and 210 - "Beverly/Western."
Palms
Tacos Por Vida, Roy Choi's new street taco stand, will be soft-open this Tuesday, praise be to Xenu! A sign shown on his Instagram account suggests we all may eating the local hero's $2 tacos and $10 burritos with charcoal-grilled asada, pastor, chicken, and shrooms soon. Now we just gotta make it 'til Tuesday.
3434 Overland Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90034. Closest transit lines and stop: Santa Monica Big Blue Bus Lines Rapid 12 and 17 - "Overland/Palms", Culver CityBus Line 3 - "Motor/Palms", or Metro E Line - "Palms Station."
Hancock Park
Zozo, chef John Sedlar's new L.A. restaurant, has begun lunch service, served Tuesdays through Saturdays. The menu includes pastrami tacos, burgers on Tartine's buns, chile rellenos with mushroom duxelles, Santa Fe-style red chile carnitas tamales, and piquillo peppers with Gryuere, chorizo, and golden raisings.
148 S. La Brea Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036. Closest Metro lines and stop: Bus Line 212 - "La Brea/2nd" or Bus Line 16 - "3rd/La Brea."
Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills Mexican restaurant The Hideaway now has a delivery and pickup concept named Hernando's To Go. As only the best visitors do, it will come to your place with arms full of panko-crusted fried avocado slices and vegan chipotle ranch, taco kits with tortillas, salsas, and your pick of N.Y. steak, garlic-marinated chicken, carnitas, rock shrimp, and grilled swordfish, among other choices, along with roasted mushroom bowls, seafood burritos, taquitos de papa, beans, and more.
Ordering is available on all the major delivery apps.
Oaxaca
A reminder that fires in Oaxaca have hit communities there very hard. Here's a guide to L.A. restaurants that are helping raise funds for those affected.
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