While we were in Los Angeles, my wife Jun and I wanted to check out another Mexican restaurant besides Holbox (which we absolutely loved when we first visited in 2023 and then returned on our most recent trip). Taqueria Frontera in Cypress Park had my attention after a glowing New York Times review over the summer, and it turned out that the restaurant was not that far from the hotel we were staying at so we made a trip for a quick lunch on our second day in LA. We only tried tacos at Frontera given our dinner plan at Somni for my birthday that day (review coming soon!), and it was a delicious lunch, with one non-food related caveat.

There is a concise menu at Frontera from tacos to burritos to quesadillas. The restaurant has been popular for its al pastor taco, and I’m happy to report that it did live up to its reputation, with juicy marinated pork shaved from the spit that you can see at the kitchen. My favorite from the various tacos we tried, though, was the asada taco with grilled skirt steak. Not only was the steak spot-on for its texture, but the spicy kick coming from the salsa was one of the most addictive flavors I had encountered in a while. The birria taco was another standout that I would’ve gladly eaten at least two more if I didn’t have to control myself before the big dinner. The only taco that was slightly off was the lengua taco with beef tongue; nothing wrong with the flavor but the texture of the beef tongue didn’t quite match my expectations.

We were fortunately one of the first diners to arrive; the restaurant quickly filled up with guests for both sit-down dining and take-outs. One tip when dining at Frontera: instead of sitting at the outdoor counter facing the kitchen, we sat at the indoor space. We had no idea how much this choice would ruin our clothes as the smoke wouldn’t come off of them even after a few days. In any event, our lunch at Frontera was memorable to the degree that it closely matched what we had at taquerias in Mexico City. It also confirmed my belief that when it comes to Mexican food in the U.S., it’s hard to beat LA.

KenScale: 8.25/10 (Jun’s Score: 8.0/10)

Address: 700 Cypress Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90065

Website: None

Reservation: None