14 of the most creative and unique tacos to try from the 101 Best Tacos guide
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There is arguably no dish that occupies more space in Southern California’s food scene than the taco. From puestos and food trucks to fine-dining institutions, you’ll find them listed on just about every menu, regardless of cuisine.
In the Food team’s inaugural guide to the 101 best tacos in Los Angeles, we placed an emphasis on traditional options — already an intimidatingly broad field — that trace their roots across Mexico, such as Tijuana-style queso tacos crowned with a scoop of creamy guacamole or pit-roasted lamb barbacoa that hails from Hidalgo.
Get to know Los Angeles through the tacos that bring it to life. From restaurants to trucks to carts and more, here’s 101 of the city’s best.
But we also felt called to highlight a few outliers, tacos that blend styles, draw inspiration from L.A.’s expansive dining cultures or otherwise challenge our assumptions of what this dish can look and taste like. From al pastor-style fish to oxtail and chicken shawarma, here are 14 creative and unique tacos to try from the 101 best tacos guide.
Showing Places
(Andrea D’Agosto / For The Times)
Poseidon taco at Evil Cooks
El Sereno Octopus Puesto $
Since 2018, the Eastside taqueria from Alex Garcia and Elvia Huerta has been bringing the rebellious attitude of metal music to modern L.A. Mexican cuisine. The pair first went viral for their McSatan taco, which transforms the classic American cheeseburger: The patty is smashed in a tortilla press and topped with American cheese, bacon, caramelized onions and creamy guacamole on a house-made corn tortilla that’s griddled with mozzarella cheese. Everything from pork to octopus, ice cream and lengua can get stacked on the trompo and shaved directly into tortillas, but the Poseidon is a favorite. Curling octopus tentacles are coated in the signature recado negro blend and stacked on the vertical spit with a pineapple and a white onion speared at either end. The taco is served with salsa quemada, pickled onions, cilantro, guacamole and pineapple and hits every note of spicy, sweet and earthy with a pleasant chew thanks to the slight char. The black pastor and asada tacos are almost equally delicious, or you can embrace the dark side with the Asesino that mixes octopus and pork pastor in a single taco. Evil Cooks also pops up at Smorgasburg L.A. every Sunday.
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(Betty Hallock / Los Angeles Times)
Chicken shawarma taco at X’tiosu Kitchen
Boyle Heights Chicken shawarma Dine In $
I’m addicted to the green tahini salsa at X’tiosu Kitchen, the Boyle Heights walk-up window where you order the Mexican-Mediterranean specialties of brothers Felipe and Ignacio Santiago. That means I get the chicken shawarma taco every time. The spit-grilled meat that Lebanese immigrants brought to Mexico produced al pastor. But it was also working in the Lebanese restaurant Sunnin in Los Angeles that inspired the Santiagos to create what they call Arabesque Oaxacan cooking. The spice-rubbed roasted chicken is shaved over corn tortillas and ladled with a generous amount of that green garlicky salsa verde, also referred to at X’tiosu as Arabesque salsa. The garnishes — onions and cilantro along with the pink turnip pickles that are ubiquitous in Levantine dishes — are key here to straddling two cuisines.
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(Danielle Dorsey / Los Angeles Times)
Lobster taco at Del Mar Ostioneria
Mid-Wilshire Lobster Food Truck $$
Housed in a La Brea strip mall with a wedding chapel, this mariscos-themed truck was opened in early 2023 by partners Roberto Pérez, whose father owns the parking lot, and Francisco Leal, a chef who grew up in coastal Sinaloa and once ran his own sushi restaurant in Baja California Sur. The truck with a focus on high-quality mariscos tinged with Japanese influence is also home to the best lobster taco you’ll find in the whole of Los Angeles. The taco comes on a thick blue corn tortilla with griddled queso, a generous portion of lobster that’s guaranteed to spill, thick slices of avocado, strands of crispy leeks and a house chipotle sauce drizzled on top. It’s a majestic and indulgent taco with buttery meat and an operatic range of textures and flavors. You’ll also find Kumamoto oysters and a selection of sashimi topped with house ponzu and yuzu sauces, plus aguachiles and ceviches. But the crispy octopus with a spicy tamarind sauce, Baja fish with breaded halibut and decadent filet mignon taco with pistachio sauce prove nearly as delicious as the lobster taco. My advice is to invite at least one friend. As you watch other customers retrieve their orders from the window, your hungry eyes will no doubt place orders that your stomach alone can’t cash, so you might as well share.
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(Jenn Harris / Los Angeles Times)
Beef and pickle taco at Escuela Taqueria
Fairfax Gringo Dine In $$
This is one of the tacos I recommend most in the city, partly because it’s delicious and so unexpected. It’s a singular flavor, though the name may dupe you into thinking you’re in for a hamburger taco. The fried shells are always scorching, bubbly and glistening with residual oil. The ground beef and potato in the filling become one entity, a savory paste-like substance in the bottom of the curved, hot tortilla. There’s a handful of shredded cheddar cheese that’s half melted by the time the taco hits your table. A few dill pickle chips are balanced precariously over the top, just peeking out and over the shell. I would never think to add dill pickle to a taco, but that bite of acid and freshness hits the same as a handful of pickled onions. The tacos are on the smaller side, so I typically eat four at a time. No salsa required.
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(Danielle Dorsey / Los Angeles Times)
Sweet potato taco at Guerrilla Tacos
Downtown L.A. Sweet potato Dine In $$
Guerrilla Tacos has always taken a boundary-pushing, L.A.-specific approach to tacos. Its name is a reference to the innovative strategies used in guerrilla warfare and the tenacity of street food vendors that persist in spite of threats from code enforcement. Founded by chef Wes Avila as a food cart in 2012, it grew into a truck the following year and the mural-bright Arts District restaurant followed in 2018, now helmed by owner Brittney Valles alongside chef Crystal Espinoza.
Several of the OG tacos that earned Guerrilla Tacos a Bib Gourmand nod from the Michelin Guide in 2019 are still on the menu. The hard-shelled Pocho with ground chuck is a tribute to the “gringo”-style tacos that Avila ate as a kid, but the best option on the permanent taco menu is the sweet potato that veers into Peruvian and Mediterranean flavors with rounds of buttery, skin-on sweet potato, crispy corn, slightly sour feta cheese, chopped scallions and a thick, nutty almond-cashew chile sauce. It’s a symphony of textures composed with a Gustavo Dudamel-level of culinary prowess.
If I’m being honest, I love the lomo saltado taco just as much as the sweet potato. It bulks with juicy strips of marinated steak, roasted potatoes, sauteed red onions and tomatoes, aji verde and finely chopped cilantro on a fatty, char-spotted flour tortilla. It’s available only seasonally, so don’t skip one if you see it on the menu.
Several of the OG tacos that earned Guerrilla Tacos a Bib Gourmand nod from the Michelin Guide in 2019 are still on the menu. The hard-shelled Pocho with ground chuck is a tribute to the “gringo”-style tacos that Avila ate as a kid, but the best option on the permanent taco menu is the sweet potato that veers into Peruvian and Mediterranean flavors with rounds of buttery, skin-on sweet potato, crispy corn, slightly sour feta cheese, chopped scallions and a thick, nutty almond-cashew chile sauce. It’s a symphony of textures composed with a Gustavo Dudamel-level of culinary prowess.
If I’m being honest, I love the lomo saltado taco just as much as the sweet potato. It bulks with juicy strips of marinated steak, roasted potatoes, sauteed red onions and tomatoes, aji verde and finely chopped cilantro on a fatty, char-spotted flour tortilla. It’s available only seasonally, so don’t skip one if you see it on the menu.
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(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Gringo taco at La Tostaderia
Downtown L.A. Seafood Dine In $
Don’t let the name fool you: There’s much more to love beyond the tostadas at this mariscos stall in Grand Central Market. Tacos, ceviches, aguachiles and daily specials abound at the space from chef-restaurateur Fernando Villagomez, who also founded nearby booths Villa Moreliana and La Frutería. To find his bright and tangy spin on seafood in multiple forms, look for the neon mermaid sign within the historic food hall. For many, the words “gringo taco” likely conjure hard-shell tacos stuffed with ground beef, shredded lettuce and ribbons of cheddar cheese. At La Tostaderia, the gringo taco takes an almost gobernador-like form, with not only shrimp but meaty chunks of octopus blanketed by Oaxacan cheese. The seafood and cheese are seared on the plancha and served gooey with crisp edges in a soft corn tortilla, hidden under a mountain of shredded radish, pops of Fresno chiles and green onion, and a squiggle of sweet-spicy chipotle aioli. Hot, crunchy, cool, chewy, cheesy, refreshing — this taco’s got it all. But if you’d rather sample Villagomez’s mariscos, La Tostaderia also offers a mini-taco sampler of six varieties.
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(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Chicken taco at MidEast Tacos
Silver Lake Pollo Dine In $
Armen Martirosyan’s MidEast Tacos is truly an L.A. story. The second-generation restaurateur, who also operates Mini Kabob with his parents in Glendale, began combining his family’s celebrated Armenian kebabs with Mexican flavors as specials at their takeout shop in 2016, then expanded with a pop-up at Smorgasburg and a Highland Park parking lot. In early 2024, he and partner Aram Kavoukjian opened MidEast Tacos in Silver Lake, where they serve Martirosyan’s just-charred and perfectly juicy meats in soft tortillas doused with house salsas and toum. A marinade of 24 to 48 hours makes for some of the city’s most succulent chicken, which is coated in a similar dairy-based brine as the poultry at Mini Kabob — both tinged with Aleppo pepper and toasted black pepper. Once skewered and grilled, the thighs are pulled from the heat and chopped, then spooned into a locally made Mejorado flour tortilla and topped with a vibrant house-made salsa roja that’s packed with guajillos, chiles de árbol, tomatillos, serranos and cilantro. It also receives a squiggle of MidEast Taco’s secret-recipe chile de árbol toum, a zippy blend of the garlicky Levantine sauce and earthy chiles — it’s a nod to a component of one of Martirosyan’s favorite tacos: the iconic sweet potato taco that Wes Avila created for Guerrilla Tacos, which also appears on this list.
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(Silvia Razgova / For The Times)
Oxtail taco at My 2 Cents
Mid-Wilshire Oxtail Dine In $$
My 2 Cents translates soul food through the lens of chef-owner Alisa Reynold’s L.A. upbringing, including spring rolls stuffed with mac and cheese and a handful of taco options. That’s why we’re here. The fried catfish tacos with house remoulade and crunchy purple slaw are worth an order, but it’s the oxtail tacos that you’ll keep coming back for. White corn tortillas are packed with juicy stewed oxtail, pulpy roasted tomato, slivers of red onion and topped with a fistful of kale and whiskey reduction sauce. The soft tortillas sag under the weight of the fillings, urging you to take each taco down in one or two bites so as not to waste the dripping glaze of meat juices. Raw shredded kale is a necessary foil for the sweet, tender meat, and the tacos are small enough that your order of three will disappear fast. Visit on Tuesday when dine-in taco orders come with a free taco — a crispy plantain and callaloo taco veers into dessert territory, and a ground turkey option with cheese recalls those commonly served in Black Californian households, but I wouldn’t blame you if you opted for four oxtail tacos instead.
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(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Fish al pastor at Simón
Silver Lake Fish Food Truck $
As a taquero, Francisco Aguilar leans modernist. From the admiral-blue mariscos truck he parks at Sunset Triangle Plaza in Silver Lake, he often re-conceptualizes classic combinations. See, for example, his take on al pastor, subbing fish (often tilapia, but the selection can vary) for pork over a handmade tortilla and incorporating classic elements: the ruddy stain of achiote, a slice of charred pineapple alongside, a slick of guacamole to smooth textures and unite flavors. The taco also departs from tradition. Onions appear two ways — fried for crunch and caramelized with soy sauce for umami. Cilantro, as on most of Aguilar’s tacos, appears as fronds with soft, small leaves or tiny white buds. Beyond tacos, Simón’s menu also runs through a concise list of ceviches, seafood cocktails and aguachiles. The sauce for an aguachile negro is particularly vivid, made by charring tomatillos until they’re blackened and then pureeing them unpeeled with ice and Worcestershire sauce, lime juice, habanero and garlic. Its pungency happens to pair very well with a couple of Aguilar’s al pastor tacos.
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(Bryan A’Hearn / Los Angeles Times)
Jackfruit tinga taco at Socalo
Santa Monica Vegan Dine In $$
If they’re as delicious as this one, then jackfruit should be the focal point of more tacos. The strands of the unripe fruit are adept at committing to whatever flavor or marinade you desire, and the texture is practically meaty. It’s the centerpiece of the tinga tacos at Socalo, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger’s Santa Monica restaurant. Opened after the pair ended a 26-year-run at the Santa Monica Border Grill, the chefs continue to blend the culinary cultures of the various states of Mexico and Los Angeles. They cook the jackfruit with peppers and onions in a sauce redolent with chipotle, cumin and sweet tomato. You won’t mistake it for tinga de pollo, but you might prefer it. It’s a chef-y taco with a handful of supporting components that all happen to be vegan. Ladled over the jackfruit is a mild but bright avocado salsa. It’s garnished with fried rounds of sliced jalapeno for crunch, crumbled fried kale for more crunch and slivers of pickled onion, and served on a good blue corn tortilla.
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(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Media luna at Bee Taqueria
West Adams Seafood Dine In $
Find chef-owner Alex Carrasco’s vibrant taqueria shrouded in a verdant patio space on a nondescript corner in rapidly changing West Adams, with his taco-focused omakase held just next door. When ordering at the window, it’s tempting to make your own multicourse taco feast. Blue corn tortillas are stuffed with near-caramelized roasted mushrooms, slow-braised pork, tinga-style shredded beets or tender skirt steak, but at least one media luna taco is a must. Shrimp and scallops are encased in a fried yellow corn tortilla with a generous stripe of morita aioli on top and a shrimp consomé served on the side for dipping. The mariscos are bright and citrusy, the shell adds crunch and the aioli lends a muted spiciness to the bite. The warm consomé adds depth, slightly softening each bite with brine and earthiness. It’s unlikely that just one media luna will suffice.
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(Andrea D’Agosto / For The Times)
Smoked kanpachi taco at Holbox
Historic South-Central Fish Dine In $
In 2017, Gilberto Cetina opened Holbox, his colorful marisqueria counter angled stylishly near the entrance of the Mercado la Paloma in Historic South-Central. It has grown to become one of our city’s vital dining destinations, an ever-busy showcase for seafood prepared with exceptionally creative skill. Among ceviches, aguachiles and entrees like Gulf of Mexico octopus grilled over mesquite, the menu usually includes half a dozen different tacos. They’re all excellent, constructed on fragrant yellow or blue corn tortillas made by longtime staffer Fatima Juarez; the smoked kanpachi taco is particularly inspired. Cetina and his team smoke the heads and collars of the fish over applewood, while simmering the separated meat with aromatics to create a deliciously mulchy and collagen-rich spread. The mixture gushes from its griddled tortilla, sealed with queso Chihuahua, garnished with salsa cruda and avocado and drizzled with the electric oil of peanut salsa macha. It’s more than you ever imagined in a seafood taco, a conduit equally for culinary pleasure and possibility.
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(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Short rib taco at Kogi BBQ
Palms Short Rib Food Truck $
Despite the many imitators and the unwavering fickleness of diners in a place like Los Angeles, the magic of the Kogi BBQ truck never faded. When it opened in 2008, it was a phenomenon that brought the city together, with fans following the truck’s every movement on Twitter, willing to venture to a new part of town for the promise of Korean barbecue-filled corn tortillas and good vibes. I was one of them. I considered myself a part of “Kogi kulture.” I waited in line with friends after drinks at a nearby bar. The short rib taco was the first thing I tried, and it’s still the taco I recommend to anyone who visits the trucks. The edges of the diced short rib are crusty and caramelized in a slightly sweet marinade reminiscent of bulgolgi on the grill. There’s a heap of cabbage slaw dressed in chile, soy and sesame seeds. I crave the sting of the salsa roja, with a punch of heat from both Mexican and Korean chiles. And that cilantro, onion and lime relish comes in with an eye-widening zap of freshness. It tastes like the revelry I chased in my 20s. It tastes like Los Angeles.
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(Sarah Mosqueda / Los Angeles Times)
Mushroom tinga taco at Tiendita
Anaheim Mushroom Dine In $
When Michelin-starred chef Carlos Gaytán opened three new dining concepts at the Downtown Disney District in Anaheim in May, his inspired approach to Mexican cuisine was a welcome addition to the resort. While Paseo offers a full-service experience and Céntrico is an ideal space to grab a drink and hide from the heat of an afternoon in the parks, Tiendita is where you can get Gaytán’s Mexican street-food staples on the go. Tacos are served three to an order and you can’t mix and match, which means you must commit to chicken, carne asada, pork al pastor or mushroom tinga. While the al pastor tacos are delectable, I make my case for the mushroom tinga. Gaytán’s complex refried beans smeared on a corn tortilla serve as the base for soft button mushrooms cooked in a rich and red adobo sauce with onion. A drizzle of cool sour cream and a sprinkle of queso fresco make this more than mushrooms in a tortilla. A true taco.
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