NOTE: Dined in my car on 12/11/2021, but there are outdoor tables there as well! Valet let me park for a short period of time, but you mileage may vary. My apologies for not taking a photo of the migas tacos - they weren't much to look at after unwrapping them and we devoured them VERY quickly.
LA's official food is tacos and deservingly so. I have never been to a single metropolitan area that contains so many different types of tacos stemming from different cultures, techniques, incorporation of unique ingredients... it's honestly incredible. One area that our wonderful city has been lacking in when it comes to tacos are Texmex-style migas. Yeah, we have HomeState, but that's about it. The one complaint I'll hear from Texans who come to visit are that we don't offer good queso nor good migas.
Enter Hot Tacos, brought to us by one of the most popular migas spots in Austin, Veracruz. Now, I actually haven't been to Veracruz in Austin, so I can't really make a comparison, but perhaps that's even better, as I can craft a review from more of a "blind" experience without expectations.
Starting off with something more familiar (and since it was a cold day), we opted to try out the birria. Honestly, it's comparable to most other birria spots in LA, but the consome is REALLY good. Rich, flavorful, piping hot. If you somehow got your tongue stuck on a pole, this is what you would use to lubricate yourself to get out. That would still hurt like crazy, though... so don't do it!
The main attraction awaits you when you order the migas here. "Migas" literally means crumbs, but refers to the use of leftover ingredients like stale tortillas or bread in a dish. Now, these tortillas are freshly made if you order flour, so that's the route we selected. If you want it to be more photo-friendly, you can go for the corn tortillas. Those are dyed with beet juice to give your tortilla a signature pink hue. We opted for bacon in one taco and chorizo in the other. For me, the gold standard in chorizo is over at tire shop taqueria. Second place goes to The Chori-man in San Pedro. I enjoy my chorizo grilled until the outside is crispy and has that smokiness imbued into it. The chorizo here is definitely NOT like that. The bacon, though... the bacon is very well cooked. Crunchy and yet still retains some wonderfully indulgent fattiness to it. Perfectly complements the Monterey Jack cheese, black beans, pico de gallo, scrambled eggs, tortilla chips, and a little bit of avocado. Yes, these tacos are JAM-PACKED and you'll be able to taste each element individually as you devour it.
They're a little pricey, but trust me, that bacon one is 100% worth the price of admission. Unfortunately, it looks like the truck is no longer here but hopefully it comes back soon because despite being surrounded by all sorts of delicious tacos in this city, I feel like we're missing something now that Hot Tacos is gone. read more