Counter-service burrito spot a block from the sand, splitting each order into two tightly wrapped halves. Small indoor room and shaded patio see breakfast and lunch regulars cycling through until midafternoon.
Loud, festive Oaxacan institution serving complex, family-recipe moles and a deep list of mezcals. Live music from the bandstand fills the sprawling dining room most nights.
Family-run Inglewood dining room serving fiercely spicy Nayarit-style aguachiles and mineral water micheladas. Charcoal smoke from the whole grilled snook often fills the casual space.
Distinctive Culver City A-frame serving casual modern Mexican small plates. Tables fill with duck albondigas, homemade tortillas, and salt-foam margaritas.
Parking lot taco stand centered on a vertical trompo, where al pastor is shaved to order with a slice of pineapple. A long communal bar holds salsas, grilled vegetables, and potatoes for topping off fresh tortillas.
Highland Park walk-up serving tacos with the energy of a backyard party. Mesquite smoke fills the sidewalk as staff crisp up blue corn tortillas with a signature layer of Monterey Jack.
Long-standing Highland Park fixture dishing up huge, Mexico City-style antojitos from a simple, open kitchen. The specialty is the namesake huarache – a fried, bean-stuffed masa base piled high with toppings like asada, pastor, or chorizo.
Snug Highland Park storefront serving hearty dishes that merge Mexican and Italian cooking. The compact dining room runs warm, spilling out onto a back patio for elote agnolotti and masa-laced pasta.
Black-walled El Sereno taqueria running to a heavy metal soundtrack. The open kitchen slings dark-marinade al pastor on black tortillas, dessert flan tacos, and a full vegan menu out to counter seats and a small back patio.
Downtown mezcal bar pouring hundreds of agave spirits in a loud room lined with rough wood and wrought iron. Live Latin bands and DJs play late into the night while tacos cook on the back patio grill.
Historic Olvera Street food stand frying crispy beef taquitos and smothering them in green avocado sauce. Orders come fast over the counter, handed off in paper trays to eat while walking through the busy marketplace.
Permanent corner stand serving Tijuana-style tacos with 24-hour marinated meats on handmade tortillas. Al pastor is sliced from a spinning trompo at the open-air counter; seating is limited to a few sidewalk stools.
Street-side taco stand grilling carne asada over charcoal and shaving al pastor from a spinning trompo. Taqueros press corn tortillas by hand; the cash-only line moves quickly under a canopy of string lights.
Lush plants soften an industrial Arts District warehouse serving Enrique Olvera’s modern Mexican cooking. Tables fill with seafood tostadas and duck carnitas alongside small-batch agave spirits.
Airy Frogtown warehouse serving elevated Baja seafood, from raw bar ceviches to fatty tuna tostadas. The signature zarandeado-style whole fish arrives with tortillas and salsas for the table to share.
From tacos to ceviches, Holbox offers Yucatán-style seafood in a bustling South Central market hall.
South Central backyard pop-up grilling massive Oaxacan tlayudas over open mesquite coals. The informal Friday night operation serves huge, crispy portions loaded with meat and quesillo, built to share alongside a BYO bottle of mezcal.
Cash-only Boyle Heights food truck serving Michoacán-style goat and beef birria. Long sidewalk lines end with crispy, cheese-crusted quesatacos dunked into cups of rich consomé at nearby folding tables.
Vibrant, no-frills taqueria that started as a food truck, built on the strength of its griddled mulitas. Orders come up fast, with a small self-serve bar for adding fresh salsas and beans.
Sinaloan-style taqueria focused on wood-grilled carne asada served in tacos and mulitas on handmade tortillas. The simple space has a self-serve bar for loading up on fresh beans, radishes, cilantro, and salsas.
Craft molino and food counter inside Mercado La Paloma, milling heirloom corn from Mexico into fresh masa. The menu showcases Oaxacan antojitos – quesadillas and tlacoyos served from the counter to the market's shared tables.
