On the banks of the LA River, a taste of Norteño Mexican food

In a tiny kitchen on the banks of the LA River, a boombox blasts “All My Lovin’” by the Beatles while two women press balls of dough into paper-thin flour tortillas that are roughly 3 inches wide. When the translucent tortillas come off the grill, they are steaming, stretchy and delicious. “We’re making close to 1,000 tortillas on the weekends,” says Esdras Ochoa, a trim 34-year-old bearded chef who grew up just south of the border in Mexicali. “It’s tortilla heaven over here. They’re just flying out of the kitchen.”

This is Salazar, a restaurant that opened in LA’s Frogtown neighborhood, also known as Elysian Valley, in May. Chef Ochoa has another restaurant in Los Angeles, Mexicali Taco on Figueroa, and Norteño Mexican-style tacos made with flour tortillas are being served there too. But those tortillas are not being made in LA and Mexicali Tacos doesn’t have an outdoor dining area. At Salazar, you park your car on the street and walk past a pretty bar to one of a dozen or so wooden tables shaded with umbrellas and olive trees. You might try the chorizo breakfast burrito on the weekend or the pescado zarandeado — that’s the catch-of-the-day grilled over mesquite wood — for dinner. (Jonathan Gold has several other recommendations too.)

On a hot summer day, the margaritas, palomas and micheladas are refreshing. But it’s the tacos that Ochoa really takes seriously: “It’s only three elements that make a perfect taco: it’s got to be a perfect tortilla, a perfect cut of meat cooked the right way and a good salsa… Because it’s so simple, you’ve got to refine it perfectly.” To that end, the veggies and meat are cooked on the Santa Maria-style grill for the carne asada, al pastor, pollo asado and seasonal vegetable tacos on the menu. Ochoa has been refining his flour tortilla for two years using local ingredients and recipes from family members in Sonora and Mexicali.

For dessert, Salazar has roasted corn flan on the menu and tres leches, which features four milks actually, one of them being goat. Don’t mind the dust or the occasional beetle that crawls onto the table while you eat, or the electric buzz of the I-5 freeway. It’s all part of the experience. Ochoa grew up eating tacos outside in Sonora and Mexicali and he’s trying to bring a little slice of that childhood to diners at Salazar — dust, trees, cacti, flour tortillas and all.

Abbie Fentress Swanson: What’s the idea behind the menu and concept at Salazar?

AFS: Jonathan Gold is a huge fan of your tortillas. What’s different about yours?

AFS: Everything affects how the tortillas turn out right? From the humidity to the temperature to the water?

AFS: Where do you get your meat from?

Recommendations: Tacos (signature carne asada, veggie, pollo asado, al pastor), gem caesar, pescado zarandeado, esquites, jardin en escabeche, la paloma, margaritas and micheladas, quatro leches and roasted corn flan.

Location: 2940 Fletcher Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90039

Find more of Jonathan Gold’s restaurant recommendations here.

Photos by Stan Lee, FCS 2016 James Beard Foundation visual storytelling award winner.