Mercado

This post is long overdue. I work in Pasadena and we've all been anticipating Mercado to open. Amazing art work like bullet skulls as you walk in from the commons. By them being here, it's definitely brought a lot of life to lake avenue. I'm not even kidding when I say I've been here multiple times within a week. I can honestly say the food is that good.

Here are some food from my first visit (Full menu here for Pasadena):

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Mexican Coke - Cane sugar for the win.

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Guacamole - hass avocado, serranos, cilantro, red onions, Yxta salsa brava, spicy pepitas, and fresh chips. There dip duo is also highly recommended. It's basically guac and their choriqueso - melted cotija, parmesan, oaxaca cheese, white wine, house chorizo, poblanos, and mushrooms.

Enchiladas de pollo en mole oaxaqueno - pulled Mary’s free-range chicken, oaxacan mole, queso fresco, crema fresca, red onions, sesame seeds, mexican rice, and chile piquín black beans. The mole wasn't too sweet, velvety and luxurious. Probably one of the best Oaxacan moles I've had.

ELOTE - grilled sweet corn, caramelized onions, chile piquín butter, topped with queso cotija.

Tostaditas de ceviche - citrus-marinated white fish and shrimp, mango, corn, cherry tomatoes, serranos, fresno chilies, avocado, chile de árbol aioli. This is probably the best ceviche I've had in a while. Fresh, citrusy with a good balance of sweet and heat from the mango, corn, fresnos and chile de arbol aioli. This is a must order if you're here.

COLIFLOR AL PASTOR - roasted cauliflower, chile morita marinade, pineapple, cilantro. A great side dish if you're doing low carb and want tons of delicious flavors. GM Justin loves to eat this with tortillas. Man was he right.

Camarones al ajillo - mexican sweet shrimp, chile de árbol garlic butter, market vegetables. You will never find a dish that's executed like they do it here. I've had this many times and didn't know how it should taste until I had it here. The flavor is to die for. Another highly recommended dish.

Spicy Cucumber Margarita with Mezcal. Mez always gets me.

FLAN. 

Other items I recommend not shown:

Carnitas. Anything carnitas but I love their tacos. From their happy hour menu, order their jicama shrimp tacos. 

Cucumber salad with skirt steak (trust me it's delicious).

Tamales - I ordered their special tamale of the day. It was carnitas, but I know it changes from time to time.

tres leches - YES

Heard the fried chicken torta is a must. Stay tuned for that!

140 S. Lake Avenue #101, Pasadena, California 91101 626.345.5778 www.cocinasycalaveras.com

TLT Food - Pasadena

A good foodie colleague of mine recommended this place that just opened not too long ago. Even though I work in Pasadena, surrounded my tons of restaurants, it's still hard to find a place to eat around here. After having dinner at TLT, it definitely felt like a breath of fresh air. There's a lot of variety on their menu with playful ingredients. I didn't find their menu to be boring, but unique to their offerings. TLT used to be a food truck. Like all ambitious entrepreneurs, only a few make it to open a brick and mortar. 

36 South El Molino Ave Pasadena, CA 91101

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Tamara getting her Monday drink on. 

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Shishito Peppers

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Cali Ceviche - Cauliflower, Avocado, Lime, Red Onion, Cilantro, Jalapeño, Corn Tortilla Chips. Additional charge to add tuna.

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Ahi Tuna Tostada - Tostada with Sushi Grade Ahi, Garlic Ginger Dressing, Pickled Veggies, Avocado, Lime, Cilantro, Iceberg & Sesame Seeds

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Beet Salad - Pickled Golden Beets, Roasted Red Beets, Arugula, Mint, Spiced Candied Almonds & Whipped Goat Cheese

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Pee Wee Potatoes - Cheese Sauce, Chimichurri, Scallions (these were freaking GOOD)

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Blue Crab Grilled Cheese - Blue Crab, Cheese Blend, Scallions, Jalapeños, Sambal, Grilled Sourdough. No Substitutions (For $12, this was worth it.)

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Amazing Chimmi Wings - Tossed in Chimichurri & Topped with Chipotle-Honey Aioli. Green Apple & Lime Garnish. 6 Wings total. These were one of the best wings I've had! Not comparing them to your typical bar wings or game day wings, but the flavor of these are so different than anything I've ever had. Must order. The lime does wonders to this as well.

I'm counting on them to stay open, so check them out.

36 South El Molino Ave Pasadena, CA 91101

Tacos Ensenada - East Los Angeles

A lot of people won't even know where East LA is. To some people, this area may be extremely foreign. And it's true. East LA is known to have crime from time to time so I'm not surprised people don't pick this as their destination. But there are also a lot of love. A lot of families. And a lot of hungry people wanting good food at an affordable price. East LA is heavily populated with Hispanics, but with that said, there are some great mom and pop joints out here that I consider some of my top go-tos. That's when I stumbled upon Tacos Ensenada. And if it wasn't for taking a trip on the Metro Gold Line, this place would probably still be incognito on my radar.

5161 E Pomona Blvd
East Los Angeles, CA 90022

Here were some amazing eats:

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Shrimp Tostada

Poppy shrimp, citrus from the lime, sharpness of the onions, sweetness of the tomatoes, herbiness of the cilantro, creaminess of the avocado, and the toasty flavors of the tostada. For around $2, why even bother making this at home.

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Fish Tostada

Fish tostada is my favorite ceviche to have. I love the texture of citrus cooked fish. It really infuses the flavor and tastes that much fresher cold with fresh chopped ingredients. Another must order.

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The magic. Fish tacos and shrimp

Crunchy fresh fish tacos with shredded cabbage, pico, red sauce and crema. Finger licking good so you better chomp on these quick. Large lumps of seafood around $1.75 a pop, and well worth it.

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Carne Asada taco

Better than some street carne asada tacos. Meat was juicy, flavorful, and tons of umami in my mouth. I hope it's not lard... but a part of me loves that it might be.

Tacos and Coke. No better marriage.

Unlimited condiments. Be mindful, not wasteful.

Total for 1 bottle of coke, 4 fish tacos, 1 shrimp taco, 1 asada taco, and 2 tostadas... $20.ish dollars. Yeah you bet it was good. And guess what? They also accept credit cards, Double that what now.

5161 E Pomona BlvdEast Los Angeles, CA 90022

Antojitos Guerrero - Highland Park

Address: 5623 York Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90042, United States

Celebrating the last of the 3 day Hoorah, we've decided to go to one of our favorite places in Highland Park. Nothing fancy, nothing stressful, and definitely nothing that will break your wallet. But, it's definitely something that is delicious.

Antojitos Guerrero is a small hole in the wall that you will probably miss driving down York blvd. My heart is set on a few of their dishes, but their tostadas is definitely on top of my list.

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chips and salsa

It was hot in Los Angeles today. Really hot. So sitting outdoors, closing my eyes pretending like I'm in Mexico wasn't so luxurious anymore after over 30 minutes of waiting for our food. There was a huge part of me that said I would never come back, NEVER! Especially because the table behind us got their food first even though we ordered before they even got there (don't you HATE that?). I didn't feel hungry, but my temper sure made me feel like I was. I was giving them the benefit of the doubt, that maybe they have to marinade the seafood. Over 30 minutes later, with sweat dripping down my back, shoving chips and spicy salsa down my throat, this baby and the others started flying out.

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Tostada Mixta -  $7.99

This is their tostada mixta. Their fish ceviche is one of my favorites and it's definitely something we order every time with extra avocados. But today, I wanted something with shrimp. Noticing their Mixta consisted of Shrimp, octopus and imitation crab meat, we've decided to go for it with their success of making a legit fish ceviche. What a treat this was to see fish mixed in. I am assuming they didn't have any imitation crab meat today. EVERY SINGLE seafood you see here, is executed to perfection. The octopus was tender, the shrimp had a snap, and the fish was plump and slightly tart from the lime. The cucumber and the avocado helps balance the citrus. From this day forward, I will always order this. And, this saved them because now I must return in the near future to devour. By the way, the best part of this tostada is how every ingredient is kept to it's integrity. A lot of tostadas I've had, is extremely finely minced where you can't appreciate texture and the full flavors of the seafood. You definitely know what's in your mouth with Antojitos tostadas.

Their handmade tortillas are to die for. Go ahead and get ready to die. I love the thickness, the chewiness, and how it soaks up all the juices and salsa that you load in. (If you want to find a similar tortilla, go to Trader Joes. They have a corn tortilla that is similar to this). My favorites from this place is their lengua and their adobada. The first time I had adobada was from Antojitos. Not knowing what it was of course. Adobada, here, is pork marinaded and cooked in a red chile (not spicy). The other you see is lengua (Beef tongue) which is also one of my favorite cuts stewed to perfection. Their handmade tortillas run for $1.99 each, and they are worth it. Like why wouldn't you go for handmade tortillas?

If you decide to come, be ready to wait for your food and don't blame me for it either. Not sure what magic happens in the kitchen, but I highly recommend their ceviche/tostadas which seems to be made to order. They have other items, but it's a hit or miss. I'm definitely going back again to try their Molcajete.

Eat well!

#Foodwithinreach

Daiisies