Manuelito's, Winnetka, CA

Well damn, it has been a really long time.  This is the first blog of 2016 and we are already in May!!  Outraged as I'm sure you are, sorry, I've been busy.  I have still been eating tacos, well, I've been eating a lot of them, but I have not bored you with the stories.  Prepare to get bored, here we go again.

I pass this place pretty often.  It is right next to the Smart and Final that is close to the bar.  I was running some errands, going to be at the bar all night and knew I needed a bite.  I got the burning urge to get some information for a blog.  So, I decided to try this spot and damn am I glad that I did.  They have all sorts of different options and meats, but keep it simple which if you read one of the old blogs which might as well be archives by now, you know I'm all about.

They have a larger menu, but I decided today was a hard focus on the tacos.  It has been a long time.  These guys do a nice job on their menu.  It is fair pricing, good looking food, nice pictures in the restaurant and I will say that my food looked just like the picture.  The kitchen is small and managable. The lady cooking knew her way around a kitchen and was pretty darn quick.  She looked like she was having some fun, but who wouldn't working in a great little restaurant like this?

I didn't realize until I posted this pic on here how blurry it is.  Why would I leave it up?  Well, it is the only pic that I have of the whole working area.  Plus it also shows you how inept I really am so you can laugh about me later, or now...I did not try the waters, but will on another visit.

Nice TV set-up with your favorite shows on Uni-Vision, that is always pretty cool. Decor is nice, appropriate and isn't too much in this place.  Tables/booths are nice.  They really fit and give it a good homey feel inside of this place.
RATINGS:
CABEZA: 3, this is not bad, not bad at all.  Don't let a 3 fool you.  This is a tasty treat.  It is well made, quality meat and delicious, it just didn't go above and beyond.
PASTOR: 3, again, not a bad choice, it just didn't make me say "wow" need this one right away.  It is good meat.  They season it well, it is solid, just not a mind blowing experience.
POLLO: 4, OK, this is a special chicken.  Not just well flavored, but really damn tender.  They know how to cook, how to hold, how to serve chicken, this is a taco you want to try if you are in the Valley.
LENGUA: 4, nice stuff here.  This is flavored well, served hot and nicely shredded.  I recommend this to lengua lovers everywhere.
TRIPA: 4, this is one of those that I had to revisit.  It was a 3, I went back and got it again, asked for it a little more crispy, wow!  This might be a 5 if it was that way the first time I had it.  They do a really nice job with the tripa and you want to go get this, ask for it crispy, you will NOT be disappointed.
ASADA: 4, yeah an above 3 asada.  This is some good stuff.  They didn't go cheap, they went good.  I was surprised their wasn't an up-charge.  If you are only into asada, you will like this joint.
CARNITAS: 4, this was on visit two.  Didn't get it visit one, what a mistake!  This is really good stuff, one of my favorite carnitas.  I want to go back and try again, hope they have some consistency!
SALSA BAR: 5, not all of the salsas were amazing, but there was not a bad one.  The variety was great and they have some amazing salsas!  I did not like their jalapenos, but they had the pickled onions, oregano, fresh lime and some amazing variety in the salsa department to make sure that anyone who comes in is satisfied.
TORTILLAS: 5, why would I rate tortillas?  They have regular ones which are good, they have handmade ones which are incredible.  They are some of the better ones I've ever had.  They are perfect in texture, flavor is good and they don't fall apart.  These guys know what they are doing and she presses them to order, it is worth the wait, I will only be getting the handmade going forward!

Hell of a spread here.  Yeah, I ate all of those in one sitting and I have no regrets, I was damn hungry!  The salsa like I said is solid.  The green with avocado is my favorite.  It is some good stuff.  I of course had my Crazy Harry's Gear with me.  You can look and see the handmade vs the store bought tortillas.  I can't say it enough, get the handmade!

This is that salsa bar that I've been bragging about.  Pretty epic looking right?  It does not disappoint at all.  You will be happy with at least two or three items on here, so get ready to party at the salsa bar.

This adventure was solo, but I'm going to start dragging people with me again soon.  These adventures are always more fun when there are more people with you.  Though the food was good, a great experience has awesome people there with you.  Hope you enjoyed an installment on a blog that's been quiet for a few months, thanks for sticking with me!

Today's goodbye/gratuitous photo is of my youngest son Jason and I at Knott's Berry Farm.  We went on Journey to the Iron Reef, 4 times that day.  It was his favorite as he liked shooting the bad guys.  I was impressed and proud that he beat adults on this one.  He has a hell of a shot and really had some fun, obviously so did I.  Sadly we had to turn the 3D glasses in before we left, I think it's a good look for us.

Stay Excellent!

June Lake Brewery/Ohanas Hawaiian Food, June Lake, CA

Entrance to the brewery is pretty cool.  I'll tell you, I was so excited to go here that I couldn't see straight.  Mammoth Brewery is so damn good, I though this place had a real shot.  Small, nice area, beautiful scenery.  They do well with the decor, they are smart to have a taco truck parked in their parking lot.  Brewery is convenient if you are heading to the ski area or fishing one of the June Lake Loop Lakes.  Clean, good water helps your beer taste better, take advantage of it if you have it available!  We made this official bar business as we were hoping to get some solid relationships going with both June and Mammoth Brewery.

As you are pulling up to the brewery, this is what you see.  Yes, that's a taco truck.  This little gem is serving up Hawaiian inspired food.  Yes, they are advertising tacos and they were not too shabby.  The owner had her whole family working.  She lived in Hawaii, SoCal and they just love it up the Eastern Sierras so they figure out how to make it happen.  This chick goes a long way to make sure that she is getting the right product.  She wasn't taking any short cuts and you can really taste it.

We spent the day fishing.  Alexander got some great support from Uncle Paul, Uncle Brando, Uncle Tim, Moose, and his Papou.  If anyone got a bite, Alexander was pole in hand.  He caught a good amount of fish in our three days and had the best time he's ever had.  He drove the boat and nicknamed himself The Captain, he earned it.  Above is Uncle Brando with the net and Alexander and his Papou reeling in a great catch together!

One of my favorite shots of the trip, Alexander and Uncle Brando reeling a big trout in.  Yes, I'm proud they are sporting Crazy Harry's hats, but they really bonded, had a great time and Alexander was so proud that he caught the fish that fed the family dinner, yes, they were really good.  This was Alexander's first "guy's trip" and he relished and really grew up with the experience.

Another pretty epic picture.  Alexander's so proud that Doctor Uncle Paul and him caught some fish together.  Paul is one of my brother's and Alexander and I are very close with him.  He's a man second to none and it is great that he took time off of work to spend time with us in the mountains.  Paul and I use to fish these mountains together when we were younger than Alexander which makes it really special for us to do with him.  I'll lay off of the sappy bullshit and stories of us fishing and teaching Alexander how to be a fisherman and get to the tacos!

So we were pretty excited to walk up and see this.  We just went there for some quick tasters and when we say this, umm yeah, I had to run and get tacos for us hungry men to share!  It was a nice snack getting off the lake and it tied us all over nicely before we got into our big dinner.  When I say big dinners, I mean big dinners.  We went all out cooking together and had some pretty epic meals!

Here is a closer look at this rare gem hidden in the hills of the Eastern Sierras.  Yes, they have a convenient bike rack, I think it gives them so pretty great street cred!  This is such a nice family.  They make the sauces from scratch and pair each sauce with each bit protein.  Another big plus, they aren't beef crazy, they have delicious pork and chicken!

This is what we paired with the tacos.  I have been to a ton of breweries, obviously own and run a craft beer and boutique wine bar, the scenery surrounding this brewery and the inside itself are so amazing.  They really nail the ambiance.  Place is clean, they keep it nice and pretty.  Flights that they do are solid and they have some great custom taster cup holders that are pretty sick.

Every so often, I don't do rankings, this blog is one of those.  I can tell you that I'd eat all of the tacos that we tried, yes, we tried them all!  My favorite is the spicy pork.  Why am I not doing rankings this time?  They don't have the same ones!  This chef does a great job of using what is fresh, using what is in season, she does a great job and the salsas, well I didn't write all of these treats down.  FYI, Kahlua Pork and the Chicken, also BOMB!  They go a little happy on the slaw, but it is good. It doesn't taste wilted or cheap, it is really solid.

 Look at these three handsome-ass men!  We did some tasting, some pairing, some good laughs and fun!  The tacos totally overshadowed the beer here.  There is some serious thought, care and experience put into these tacos.

We got lucky with the weather and the scenery!  We were happily surprised that the colors were changing while we were up there.  I have been all over the country during the change of the seasons, this was the most beautiful and we were so grateful that we got to take it all in!

Did I tell you to check out the scenery?  Alexander was so happy, as I keep stating that he was the Captain, but if you look past his sick driving skills, you can see the amazing colors in the background.

Thank you for indulging me on this one.  It is always about the story, about the adventure, not just what you get to eat, but who, when, where and how you get to eat it.  This trip was beyond amazing and we were just extra pumped to get to do some impromptu Tacoteering on this one trip.  Really big thank you for the reads, re-posts, re-tweets and for continuing to follow though I haven't written as much lately.  I haven't forgotten there are more blogs to come, I know you all care what/where I'm doing, especially in relation to tacos.

Today's goodbye/gratuitous photo is of my oldest son Alexander.  Alexander as many of you know has CP.  He does not allow himself to be bound to his wheelchair.  He does archery, Brazilian Jui Jitsu, wheelchair dance, acting and still makes it to school, therapy and everything else.  Much of that is of course because of his mother and his grand parents getting him everywhere.  The cool part is that it is not just him, but our family and friends don't allow him to either.  Brandon and Tim invited us up to go out on their boat to help make it a bit easier for him to fish.  It was awesome.  Alexander did a great job, caught a bunch of fish and Tim helped show him how to properly filet a trout.  Amazing to see his progress and our friends push him more and more.  Alexander and his fish:

Stay Excellent!

Taqueria Mexico, Roscoe and DeSoto, Canoga Park, CA

I've run into some pretty bad taco luck lately.  I haven't written because much of the tiny, short adventures have been pretty poor and it is depressing to write about.  This place was different.  It is so bad that I must warn you.  It is so horrible that I would be doing you a complete disservice by not telling you how disgusting this place is.  It is beyond bad and I don't know how they in good concious can serve anyone food that tastes this bad.

The decor is promising.  It is a good looking little spot that has it all kind of split from the kitchen but you can still see it.  Tables and chairs are comfortable.  The place just shows so many good signs until you get your food!  It is really sad that they failed so miserably.

The menu is great and again it just sets you up to think that they won't suck as much as they do.  Lets get this over with...
ASADA: 1, made me want to vomit.
LENGUA: 1, more of a mystery meat.
CABEZA: 1, not sure if they were serious when they gave this to me.
PASTOR: 1, eww.
CARNITAS: 1, what the heck was that?
SALSA: 1, if you can really call it salsa, OK?

So I didn't finish my meal because it was that bad.  Yes, it truly was that disgusting.  Those photos are after I was done eating.  There was nothing edible.  This place made me crave a fast food restaurant.  It was so bad.  I literally ran to the car and drove as fast as I could to Rigo's to clean my palate.   


This adventure was horrible and I'm glad that you read it so that you don't go there.  I assure you that I took one for the team even walking into this place.  The only positive thing is this mural on the wall, it is your gratuitous photo.  Better blogs to come in the future.

Stay Excellent!

Queries Tacos Way, Northridge, CA

Wanted to try this place for a while.  They just moved into this spot.  Mario, a regular at the bar kept telling me to go and try it.  He does their apparel, go buy some.  Brandon and I have been talking about this and we finally pulled the trigger.  Jason and I had gone swimming and he ended up falling asleep.

So what do we do.  We have Tacoteering plans and the third of the three amigos is out.  We set up his car seat, first time a car seat has been in Uncle Brando's sweet ride.

 He still did not wake up.  Jason was out hard.  He went from being so excited to go tacoteering to sleeping without moving.  We were excited.  We've read, we've driven by and we've heard nothing but great things.  The tables are cool.  We did like that.

Table was sweet.  Jason loved sitting next to it!

The sleeping continued.  We got to the place and Jason decided to get in a few more winks while at the restaurant.  He didn't last long in the chair, he wanted to sit with his dad, I sure didn't mind.

Isn't it great to see how happy he is?  He is loving this trip so far.  Either way, he did really enjoy the quesadilla.  Can you see the shared excitement that we have.  It might have been the best quesadilla I've ever had, not made at home.  Yes, you read it, this is a 5.  While we're at it, lets do the ratings:
RATINGS:
ASADA: 3, good, nothing amazing.  This middle of the road stuff was good, worth having again , but it won't make you want to sound the horns with excitement.
PASTOR: 2, why is this so low?  It was just ok.  It didn't impress me and as I was tacographicdreaming about other pastor, this just didn't do it for me.  It was hard to identify.
POLLO: 4, I can't tell you what flavors made it stand out, but it really did stand out.  Smooth and it became almost creamy with the cheese, guac and spices.  I also might be on a chicken kick lately.
CHORIZO: 4, I do not like chorizo.  It's not very good to me in general, however, this was amazing.  I love this stuff.  Try it.  Clove, flavors that were earthy, but not over the top.  Worth having.
CARNITAS: 3, pretty run of the mill, but pretty good.  You'll like it but it won't give you an amazing tacogasam.
CABEZA: 3,  I like it, I don't love it.  They should probably cook about five more minutes.  I'm a fan of the less cooked food, but this needed an extra couple of minutes.
LENGUA: 4, this stuff was nice.  Texture was on point, flavor was really good.  It melted nicely in with the cheese, try it.
SALSA BAR: 4, they get a four because of their spice and balance.  They do a nice job on the salsas.

What a great looking spread.  This stuff is some great stuff.  I've been a fan of the Mulita for a long time.  Not many places make it, but these guys make it pretty amazing.  How do you not love a taco with melted cheese and guacamole?  They do a nice job.  They crisp the tortillas nice without burning them.

So the food did not end with the mulitas.  We had an amazing beverage.   We shared this bad boy.  If you go, and you are over 21, you should try this.  It is super tasty.  Brandon is not into the tomato thing and he still loved this.  We did get two straws and shared this like Lady and the Tramp.

I've read a lot of knocks on the service, especially on Yelp.  Our service was solid.  Really solid.  The girls was sweet and attentive.  It was great to have such great service.  I am thinking that people were frustrated in the first few days of being open.  That is common, you've got to give them a chance to get settled.  My advice, give them another shot!  Check out their menu, that might entice you.

Not a bad looking menu.  Look at the variety without going overboard.  They do a nice job of giving options of the same great stuff.  I do think this place has staying power.  Give them a shot if you didn't love them, come try them if you haven't.  Support the little guy getting off the ground.  The food is good, our service was solid, worth going to if you ask me, I'll be back and I can assure you it is a huge upgrade from Anna's that use to be there.

This was a great adventure with a great friend and of course Jason the Juggernaut.  It was an added awesome surprise that Melissa showed up and joined us.

Today's goodbye/gratuitous photo is of Brandon.  Uncle Brando is a favorite of my kids.  They love him.  He's so great with them and is a great support of Melissa and I as we are taking this bar scene on.  We did some great marketing and got some real ideas going and in play with this meal.  That's a big reason why we had Jason with us.  Here is a shot of Jason at the bank before the goodbye photo.

 Here is a great shot of Brando and a cool photo on the wall.

Stay Excellent!

Los Tapatios, Lennox, CA

When you walk in, this is what you see.  A nice meat display, this is a pretty cool looking butcher shop.  I think this just heightens my frustration.  The meat that they have looks great.  Variety was pretty incredible, especially for such a quaint space.  If you haven't gotten the tone, the vibe yet, the tacos sucked.

I know, you are asking, how bad was it.  It was horrible.  It felt like my taste-buds were being punished.  Most everything was horrible.  The food was no bueno.  Aside from the company, the jalapenos were good.

The best part about this blog is probably going to be the pictures, because the food sucked.  The location, the photos, the Yelp all gave this place some promise.  Sadly it ends there.  Not the pictures, I have some salsa porn to share with you, but the ratings are going to suck, hard...

So the menu is, well, um, yeah a bit disjointed, but looked promising.  The broken sign doesn't  bother me, I think it adds some character.  They have too much for them to handle.  Yeah, the menu is too big for them.

This is the kitchen that makes food that sucks.  I just wanted you to see it first hand.

This is the unimpressive, flavor wise, salsa bar.  Enough of the pictures, its time to get to business:
RATINGS:
ASADA: 3, this was OK.  If I was trapped in this taco hell again, this is probably the only thing that I would order.
PASTOR: 1, you broke my heart.  Putting a ton of citrus on dry pork does not make it pastor, you should be ashamed of yourselves.
LENGUA: 2, flavorless and not exciting in anyway.  You can add salt to poorly boiled meat...
CHICHARRON: 1, a very under-cooked, unappreciated meat here people, it makes me sad.
PIERNA: 2, this was dry and flavorless.
CHICKEN: 2, here's the shocker, dry and flavorless...
JALAPENO: 4, this was the second best part of the trip. My company was obviously the best, but these were pretty tasty.  I think they are the only way that I was able to get through these tacos.
SALSA: they get a 4 on variety, a 3 on flavor.  PRESS THE LIMITS GUYS!  They need to be more bold in their flavor, really any bit of boldness would be appreciated.

Do you understand how I feel about the food?  Is there a question?  Is there anything left to ambiguity?  I sure hope not!  I feel it's clear.  If it is not, let me re-explain.  If you are by there, run in, grab those delicious looking jalapenos and run out and go somewhere better.

Chicken stock on the sope.  This excited me.  You would think this adds flavor, you would think this would make it a moist treat.  Not the case, chicken still was dry, the cheese tasted old and dry and I was beyond unimpressed.  That is so sad to me, I love sopes.

Thank you to anyone and everyone for reading.  Please keep spreading the taco word.  Get people to read.  Let them know where to go, or in this case where not to go!!  Shoot me messages of places you want me to check out, if you love the place, hate the place or if you want me to try it first because you are scared.

I hope you agree the pictures are the best part.  I just don't feel like Nicole and I deserved such a poor taco experience.  You should drive Chef Zadi's restaurant if you are planning on going to this one and eat his delicious tacos I wrote about in my last blog.

Nothing could be obvious in this blog than the message I've echoed in blogs for quite some time.  It doesn't matter where you eat, but who you get to do it with.  I sure got a BIG win in that department.  Nicole Merizalde is a great friend and colleague.  She's a really cool chick that everyone she meets wants to connect with.  She is a heck of a Tacoteer and I appreciate knowing her.  Obviously today's goodbye/gratuitous photo is of her making her way back over to our table.

Stay Excellent!