The owners of Spitzer’s Corner are smart. They have a formula. They know their clientele. They pay attention to detail and they’re probably rolling in money at this point. Their LES takeover continues with Los Feliz, a cozy taqueria upstairs that opens up into a raucous fiesta downstairs. Located in the old Suba space, the entire place has been impressively (and expensively) re-worked resulting in a sprawling tequila cathedral. Think La Esquina for the common folk where the vibe and the drinks are the stars with stellar food to boot. We tried just about every taco on the menu, some were better than others but, in general, they were all tasty and affordable. With Los Feliz about to be crawling with popped collars and American Eagle button downs, you might want to check this place out before it becomes unbearable.
We understand that opening week isn’t easy, especially when it’s a taqueria/night club hybrid with multiple levels, rooms and bars to tend. Because we went two days after it opened, we’re going to judge Los Feliz on its potential and won’t fully hold them accountable for their suspect service and unfortunate hostess. A hostess who, when we asked for drink menus, responded with something to the extent of, “Yeah, people always ask me to do stuff like that, but I don’t get tipped out by the waitresses so I don’t do that.” Ok Crazy. Thanks for the info. A simple, “We don’t have drink menus.” would have sufficed. Although, considering Los Feliz carries all kinds of top shelf tequilas, drink menus might be a good idea.
Food Rundown:
Chips & Salsa
Points for presentation as the chips are served in their own bag and the salsa plastic squeeze bottles. The chips were nothing to write home about but, the smoked chipotle peppers in the salsa kept us digging in for more.
Puerco
While navigating through the menu, we highly recommend spending most of your time in the taco section. All tacos come in small pairs. This is the consensus best taco, their braised pork taco that’s juicy and delicious, overflowing with spices and cheese.
Chicharron de Pollo
A crafty take on the chicken taco, this features a flavorful couple bites of adobo chicken crackling, guac, grilled pineapple, red chile aioli and cotija cheese.
Pez Dorado
Their fish taco is another favorite, crispy Mahi lathered up in a nice cucumber-ginger relish with valentine aioli and avocado. This was a personal favorite of mine.
Barbacoa
The jury was split on the “Barbocoa,” slow cooked beef in banana leaves, Mexican beer, tequila, oregano and lime flavored roasted onions. The beef lacks flavor, but if you love the taste of roasted onions, you’ll dig this. Plus, respect for cooking this with beer and tequila.
Callo de Hacha
We had high hopes for this taco of seared dry scallops, chipotle passion fruit and hoja santa aioli. Unfortunately, the scallops were a little fishy and the chipotle passion fruit was the dominated your taste buds. The idea is there, it just wasn’t executed properly. We’ll be ordering this again to see if they improved.
Crangrejo Estilo Baja
We need to stop ordering soft shelled crab at Mexican restaurants (see Crema). This thing looked like a Mexican dragon roll, soft shell crab jutting out of a soft tortilla with some pickled chile and red cabbage cole slaw in the mix. Unfortunately, this wasn’t very good. Save your dollars and focus on the tacos instead of the entree section.
