{"id":81173,"date":"2024-01-27T07:00:45","date_gmt":"2024-01-27T15:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/hi-lo\/?p=81173"},"modified":"2024-01-24T09:39:02","modified_gmt":"2024-01-24T17:39:02","slug":"la-county-has-the-most-mexican-restaurants-in-the-nation-here-are-our-favorites-in-long-beach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/la-county-has-the-most-mexican-restaurants-in-the-nation-here-are-our-favorites-in-long-beach","title":{"rendered":"LA County has the most Mexican restaurants in the nation. Here are our favorites in Long Beach"},"content":{"rendered":"

It came as no surprise to Southern Californians when a Pew Research Center study<\/a> found that Los Angeles County was home to the highest concentration of Mexican restaurants in the U.S.<\/p>\n

There are more than 5,000 Mexican restaurants in the county. That’s a lot of options to choose from. So, we thought we’d share some of our favorites in Long Beach.<\/p>\n

In Long Beach, one of my go-to spots is Los Reyes Del Taco Sabroso<\/a>. It’s a small eatery along the Anaheim corridor that serves giant corn quesadillas with flor de calabaza (pumpkin flower) is crispy, tangy, and cheesy. Even if I want to try other things on the menu, I\u2019ll always get a quesadilla to split with friends.<\/p>\n

Here’s what the rest of the Post staff had to say:<\/p>\n

Rivera\u2019s<\/a><\/h4>\n

Jason Ruiz, city hall reporter:<\/strong> The funny thing about Rivera\u2019s being one of my favorite Mexican spots in the city is that I used to live within walking distance from its Seventh Street location but didn\u2019t discover it until I moved away. I\u2019m more than happy to drive there now to enjoy their enchiladas, massive burritos and their albondigas soup, which is the closest restaurant version I\u2019ve found to my grandma\u2019s recipe I grew up eating. They have a to-go location located next to its dine-in restaurant at the corner of Seventh Street and Gladys Avenue.<\/p>\n

Rivera’s is located at 2901 E. Seventh St.<\/em><\/p>\n

Lola\u2019s Mexican Cuisine<\/a><\/h4>\n

Alicia Robinson, enterprise reporter:<\/strong> Nearly every section of the menu has options for vegans and vegetarians like me, I love the vegan burrito or crunchy potato tacos. The meal always starts off with salsa and a creamy cilantro sauce for your chips (try double dipping), and the Fourth Street location has outdoor seating in the front and back.<\/p>\n

Jackie Rae, multimedia columnist:<\/strong> When I go to Lola’s there are a few dishes I love to get, the smokey chicken tortilla soup, the handmade taquitos and the tinga tostaditas.<\/p>\n

Lola’s is located at E. Fourth St. and 4140 Atlantic Avenue in Bixby Knolls.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"
A Lola’s Mexican Cuisine patron reaches for a chip at the restaurant’s Fourth Street location Monday, Aug. 14, 2023. Photo by Brandon Richardson.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Los Reyes Del Taco Sabroso<\/a><\/h4>\n

Maison Tran, fellow:<\/strong> I remember coming here after a long day of filming and it just hit the spot. I\u2019m a big pork guy when it comes to tacos \u2013 al pastor, carnitas, chorizo, they do it right at this joint. It’s complete with a cold, crisp Mexican Coca-Cola and a mom-and-pop, homey vibe.<\/p>\n

Los Reyes Del Taco Sabroso is located at 2345 E. Anaheim St., Suite B.<\/em><\/p>\n

Playa Amor Mexican Cocina\u00a0<\/a><\/h4>\n

Kat Schuster, editor:<\/strong> Planning on going grocery shopping at the Trader Joe\u2019s on PCH? Forget it. Walk over to Playa Amor in the same shopping center instead. I like to get the tacos champinones. It’s a deeply flavorful mushroom medley with charred Brussels, grilled onions, chile lime, peanuts, ahi verde, and chipotle salsa. They also have $8 margaritas on Taco Tuesday. You\u2019re welcome.<\/p>\n

Playa Amor is located at 6527 E. Pacific Coast Hwy.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

La Taquer\u00eda Brand <\/a><\/h4>\n

Atira Rodriguez, director, community partnerships:<\/strong> This is my favorite spot when I\u2019m craving birria. Their street birria tacos come with three double corn tortillas filled with savory, juicy birria and a side of that delicious motor oil, AKA consomm\u00e9. This locally-owned restaurant has five locations in the area, including one that just opened in North Long Beach.<\/p>\n

La Taqueria Brand is located at 1430 E. Seventh St., 3768 Long Beach Blvd., and 6583 Atlantic Ave., Suite 106<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"
The second location of El Sauz Mexican restaurant in Long Beach, Monday, Nov. 6, 2023. Photo by Thomas R. Cordova.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

El Sauz<\/a><\/h4>\n

Jake Gotta, multimedia columnist:<\/strong> If it\u2019s 11 p.m. and you want some tacos that always hit the spot go to El Sauz on Anaheim. Make sure you check out their after-hours taco stand in the parking lot window, but they also have a new location on Fourth Street.<\/p>\n

I’m breaking the rules, but my second go-to spot is Lupitas Tacos, which sets up most nights on the Broadway bike lane somewhere around Orange Ave. You can find their menu on their Instagram. <\/a>Plus,\u00a0they make their own tortillas on the spot.<\/p>\n

El Sauz is located at\u00a01616 E. Anaheim St. and 2741 E. Fourth St.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Taco Loco #3\u00a0<\/a><\/h4>\n

Maria Rempel, membership coordinator:<\/strong> They make their own tortillas and I always get their asada tacos.<\/p>\n

Taco Loco #3 is located at 1465 Magnolia Ave.<\/em><\/p>\n

Did we miss your favorite? Email me and share your favorite(s).\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From El Sauz to Los Reyes Del Taco Sabroso, the Long Beach Post staff shares their favorite Mexican restaurants. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":314,"featured_media":76223,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_html":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[333,642],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[32152],"class_list":["post-81173","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hi-lo","tag-mexican-food","tag-staff-picks","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/314"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81173"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81173\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":81216,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81173\/revisions\/81216"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81173"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=81173"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=81173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}