Oh good god. I might not be able to do justice to how amazing the restaurant inside La Michoacana #4 is. Located near the Billiard Club on Rte. 161, this little gem is tucked away inside a plaza and deserves your patronage immediately. This is the best Mexican I've had since we first went to the original La Michoacana on Morse Rd. over a year ago.
This store is small, but it has all of the essentials - from the Virgin when you walk in (we crossed ourselves as we left of course, [guilty] Catholics that we are!), to every kind of merchandise you can imagine crammed into four of five small isles - everything from La Preferida canned and boxed products to a great selection of holy candles, to toys, candy, and fresh made panaderias (sweet breads). We, however, made a beeline for the restaurant in the back of the store, so that we could grab some delicious foods before heading back to the Billiard Club.
We ordered two each of pork tamales and chorizo tacos. This is simple, delicious fare that will make you fall off your barstool (eat in - it's fun!) when it hits your tastebuds. The tamales were as good as the boy's mom makes, and that's hard to beat. I'd never had pork tamales, but they were excellent - the mazo in particular was very flavorful. The tacos were just out of control. Each consisted of two baby corn tortilas, softened on the griddle, with chorizo, cilantro, lime, and roasted jalapeno pepper... so simple, so delicious, and so filling. I am not at all doing this food justice with my inadequate descriptions, but check out my pictures, because they'll make you drool. Our friends came by and tried some, and ended up ordering food for themselves as well.
I love this place because it's the real deal. It is pretty much the epitome of what makes me happiest in this lil ole world - just people being people, engaging their culture, doing their thing. There's no putting on, it's all completely humble, and it's not about getting ahead - it's about living within one's culture instead of trying to obliterate it in favor of assimilation. America would be a truly more diverse and interesting place if more people rejected the white middle class ideal we hold so dear. La Michoacana is an excellent example of a place that does so, Oh, and... it's beyond delicious.
Finally/PS - just as we were checking out with a few more items as we left the store, one of the workers wheeled a cooler overflowing with huge Coronas and ice right next to us. Best grocery store ever. read more