F4 THURSDAY, AUGUST 1, 2019 LATIMES.COM/FOOD
BIRRIA DE RES
Teddy’s Red Tacos
The birria de resscene’s rising star,
Teddy’s grew from owner Teddy
Vasquez’s car trunk to multiple loca-
tions and a Super Bowl commercial.
According to L.A. Times critic Patri-
cia Escárcega, “The restaurant’s
consommé-stained, orange-on-red
Deluxe plate has become an Insta-
gram commodity as captivating and
instantly recognizable as an oversize
Rothko.”
731 E. Slauson Ave., Los Angeles;
46 Windward Ave., Venice,
facebook.com/teddysredtacos/
Burritos La Palma
Jonathan Gold described the Zaca-
tecan beef birriaburrito as “a toasty,
stretchy tortilla wrapped tightly
around a few tablespoons of mildly
spiced shredded beef,” while Gustavo
Arellanocalled it “the best taco in
Southern California” in 2016.
5120 N. Peck Road, El Monte,
(626) 350-8286; 410 N. Bristol St., Santa
Ana, (657) 266-0575; 3939 S. Figueroa,
Los Angeles, (213) 419-9465;
burritoslapalma.net
L.A. Birria
This street-side griddle recently
opened to bring the pleasures of
birria de resto West Adams. You’ll be
greeted with a complimentary cup of
hot consommé before tearing into
juicy, packed quesadillas, burritos
and tacos dorados.
4422 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles,
instagram.com/l.a_birria
Birrieria San Marcos
Birria de resis served in a variety of
menu items at this San Fernando
Valley truck wrapped in a photo of a
Dodgers game in full swing. Tortas,
tacos, mulitasand vast containers of
birria en caldoare available. The
essential thing is one of the town’s
cheesiest, crispiest, most indulgent
vampiros.
8660 Woodley Ave., North Hills,
facebook.com/birrieriasan
marcos1
Birrieria Gonzalez
With multiple trucks and an East L.A.
cafe, Gonzalez is spreading the gospel
of its birria de resthrough meaty
mulitas, quesadillas, tacos dorados
and tacos rolled into distinctive,
Tijuana-style cones, bearing intricate
spices and a pronounced heat.
2524 Maple Ave., Los Angeles;
5458 Whittier Blvd., Los Angeles;
4408 E. Rose St., Compton;
5000 Pacific Blvd., Vernon;
1301 E. Rosecrans Ave., Compton,
instagram.com/birrieria_gonzalez
Birria de Res La Tia Juana
This colorful truck sets up seven days
a week in South L.A. to sell tacos,
quesadillas and birria en caldoover-
flowing with spicy, broth-saturated
meat, as well as mulitashemmed
with lacy webs of crisp cheese.
4027 S. Main St., Los Angeles,
(213) 985-9778, instagram.com
/birria_la_tiajuana
Tacos El Primo
At this birria de resstand that mate-
rializes Saturdays and Sundays in a
vacant South L.A. lot across from
Tejada’s Auto Electric, you’ll watch
your taquerohoist a massive cut of
beef from a huge pot of broth, slicing
it into bite-size bits and bobs for your
tacos, tostaditasand tacos dorados.
You’ll need to arrive early before it’s
all gone, but at least you’ll have great
consommé to warm your bones.
2214 S. Hooper Ave., Los Angeles,
(213) 245-0768, facebook.com
/Tacos-el-primo-571429759901875/
Pobres Tacos
Opened by a former sushi chef, this
family-run sidewalk griddle offers
Westsiders and midcity residents
their shot at juicy quesabirriasfilled
with red-stained beef and glued to-
gether with mozzarella, as well as
tacos, quesadillas and giant burritos
with toppings that include pickled
nopales.
6136 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles,
(310) 621-5283, pobrestacosla.com
BIRRIA DE CHIVO
El Parian
This Pico-Union stalwart may be
L.A.’s most famous birria de chivo
destination, thanks to boosting by big
fan Jonathan Gold. Enter to the per-
cussive beat of a cleaver before sitting
to a slow-cooked, spice-rich Jaliscan
broth bearing the occasional bone
splinter, served with a stack of hot
tortillas and compulsory lime, onion
and cilantro.
1528 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles,
(213) 386-7361, instagram.com
/elparianbirriaBirrieria Nochistlan
Formerly known as Flor del Rio,
Nochistlan is No. 1 when it comes to
Zacatecas-style birria de chivo.
Thick, handmade tortillas attend
tender steamed goat, offered on or off
the bone, saturated with a buttery
tan broth you will cut with a searing
salsa roja and the customary accou-
terments.
3200 E. 4th St., Los Angeles,
(323) 268-0319, instagram.com/
birrierianochistlanTacos y Birria La Unica
The biggest name in birriatacos dora-
dos(thanks to an endorsement from
Chrissy Teigen), this Boyle Heights
truck draws lines for quesa-tacosand
tacos doradosfilled with shredded
birria de resor chivoin the style of
Michoacán. An excellent salsa selec-
tion, house-made aguas frescas and
proximity to Mariscos Jalisco (in case
you are planning a surf-and-turf taco
expedition) only sweeten the deal.
2850 E. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles,
(323) 715-4025, facebook.com
/TacosyBirriaLaUnica/Birrieria Calvillo Aguascalientes
Descended from a beloved birrieria
in Aguascalientes, Mexico, this SoCal
outfit offers bowls of shredded goat
buried beneath a blanket of thick,
spicy and bright red salsa. It’s open
Fridays through Sundays.12056 Valley Blvd., El Monte,
(626) 443-1940, facebook.com
/pages/Birrieria-Calvillo
-Aguascalientes/520198314797451?nrBirrieria Apatzingan
Representing the city of Apatzingan,
in Michoacán’s Tierra Caliente Valley,
chef Martin Cruz’s simmered medley
of aromatic herbs, spices and succu-
lent, shredded boneless goat is popu-
lar with the Pacoima public and crit-
ics alike. Find it en caldoor on gener-
ous combo plates paired with hand-
made tortillas and a coffee cup full of
red consommé.10040 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Pacoima,
(818) 890-6265, facebook.com
/Birrieria-Apatzingan
-174092355959537/Birrieria Baldomeros No. 2
Back in 1994, Jonathan Gold dubbed
the birriaat this 49-year-old South
L.A. classic “good and strong ... stewy
and soft as a long-cooked lamb
shank, generous in bones and carti-
lage and secret bits of flesh.” It’s nice
knowing that little has changed in 25
years.3104 Maple Ave., Los Angeles,
(323) 482-7355, birrieria
baldomero2.comBirrieria de Don Boni
This 47-year-old Boyle Heights birri-
eriarepresents Guadalajara with a
100-year-old family recipe. Tender
goat is offered in part-specific serv-
ings, including ribs, legs and hulking
foreshanks, served with a squeeze
bottle of dark red salsa and a thick
gravy of a consommé that tastes
more than a little like tomato soup.1845 E. 1st St., Los Angeles,
(323) 262-4552, birrieriadonboni.comBirrieria Tlaquepaque
These purveyors of Jalisco-style
birriaare a favorite of chivolovers,
serving goaty birriabowls with a
carnivorously unbalanced meat-to-
broth ratio, as well as plates of bone-
less birria, dry or drenched in broth.
On the side, you’ll have tomato-based
consommé, a squeeze bottle of very
hot salsa, handmade tortillas and, if
you order right, a cup of tepache.1734 E. Florence Ave., Los Angeles,
(323) 581-0800; 10904 Rush St., El Monte,
(626) 279-9191The Goat Mafia
You’ll find Juan Garcia, a fourth-
generation birrierofrom Compton,
and his family recipe (from Tamazula
de Gordiano, Jalisco) Saturday nights
at his Echo Park pop-up and at events
around the city. Simmered up to nine
hours with ingredients including
chocolate and oranges from his uncle’s
house, he covers the stew with a brick
of pork fat. The pork, imbued with the
flavors of young goat, is then turned
into a chicharrón-topped taco.625 N. Alvarado St., Los Angeles,
facebook.com/TheGoatMafia
GrillandCateringTasty picks for
L.A. birria fix
In 2019, Los Angeles’ bowls runneth over with birria, the Mexican confederation
of recipes involving meat rubbed, roasted or slowly stewed in an alloy of chiles,
herbs and spices. ¶ While different states and scholars may debate the dish’s
defining features — with proud, multigenerational birrierosin Jalisco
frequently taking a stance against the goat-less, beef-based style recently
imported en masse from Tijuana — we see only a blessing: a shining city in
which more than a few regional styles and long-held family recipes are available
in just a short drive.¶ Be it cuts of kid drowning in a bowl of broth, shredded
birria de resscooped into fresh tortillas, or sauceless goat plated in an
assortment of ribs and backbones with consommé on the side, the variations
out there appear infinite, though you can expect diced onions, cilantro, lime
and some form of molten salsa.¶And if you’re anything like us, you’ll slop as
much broth into, onto and over your tacos or plate as possible.¶Here’s a
primer on the places you need to know right now to get your birriaon:
By Hadley Tomicki