Small plates, recession deals, guest chefs, celeb chefs, pre fixe, two for one, et al, all buzz words to entice people into restaurants these days. But there’s nothing cheaper than a good old fashion LA taco. No celeb chefs, no 3 or 5 course meals here. Just good, honest asada, pastor, and pollo. They’ve been doing it since 1974 at King Taco.
The self disputed king of LA tacos started as a taco truck in East LA way back when polyester and bell bottoms were all the rage. Now there are twenty plus locations, and despite its ill fated stint in Dodger Stadium (the food at that stand was mediocre at best), it’s still serving up great tacos all these years later. Conveniently located east of K-Town and west of downtown, King Taco #10 is situated on Pico Blvd near Alvarado. Chances are there is one a few miles from you too.
They are not only famous for their perfectly marinated asada, but for their amazing (and super spicy) red and green salsas. Their closely guarded family recipe carne asada has a definite citrus flavor. It’s lean and cooked to perfection, placed in a perfectly grilled corn tortilla. At $1.25 per, you can’t get a better recession deal.
By far my favorite meat on the menu here is Pastor. Similar to Shawarma, this heavenly hog is cooked on a rotating, vertical rotisserie (or Trompo) then topped with a juicy pineapple. The juice breaks down protein and makes the meat very tender .The red colored pork gets its color from the red vinegar and achiote it’s marinated in. Once cooked, it’s sliced into little chunks, and grilled with some onions to give the meat a crispness and delicate onion flavor. It’s by far the best pastor I’ve ever had.
They also have great Sopes for just $2.59 each. Sopes are slightly concave crispy thick cornmeal shell topped with refried beans, meat, lettuce and Mexican cheese. These taco alternatives are similar to tostadas but have a much richer corn meal taste. The Sopes at King Taco are exceptional and I highly suggest you go and get one. Now!
Other items on the menu, burritos for $4.99, a whole rotisserie chicken for $11.99, nachos for $4.75, and fresh tamales for $1.59 each. My 2009 food trend prediction, people looking for cheaper food options turn to taco stands for fresh cooked asada, pork, and chicken. Take that Bon Appetit. More food trends at Eater LA.
23. December 2008 at 9:48 am
Yep, nothing beat tacos and sopes for satisfying food on the cheap (and pastor is my fave meat too) — was at Taco King this past weekend for a sope, and went one of my fave trucks last night!
4. January 2009 at 1:11 pm
It’s true… the best. I love the red salsa.
btw: it’s sopes, (sopa = soup)
5. January 2009 at 1:38 pm
Noted and fixed, thanks!