[dropcap size=big]T[/dropcap]here's a new tune on La Tijera, and it's about a taquería serving San Diego-style tacos and burritos. It also has a club-like bathroom for your own private listening experience. We'll get to the musical John in a minute, but first, let's digest.
Owners Jessica and Cesar De Santiago, like most people, love tacos as much as music and decided to combine the two with their new restaurant, Acapela. They come from San Diego, where they own Tacos el Paisa, a family taquería Cesar has worked at since he was 14 years old. As he grew up and eventually took over, he learned the power of simplicity and technology, both of which are fully represented in their newest restaurant on La Tijera Boulevard.
Acapela aims to bring the best of San Diego-style tacos and burritos to Los Angeles. To accomplish this, they source all that they can from San Diego, including the tortillas to keep that S.D. sazón as much as possible. "We picked our top items [at Tacos El Paisa], making the menu more simple and efficient without compromising recipes and flavor. We used technology to see what sells and what to keep on the menu." If you haven't learned this yet, San Diego loves french fries, and the menu is covered with fries in burritos, adobada fries, and even fries as a side for your tacos (if you want). And you best believe that breakfast burritos with fries instead of hashbrowns can come in clutch for lunch.
As to why they came to Los Angeles from down south, Cesar tells L.A. TACO, "The opportunity in the L.A. area for this style hasn't been taken advantage of.”
The tacos are served with a generous amount of meat. The adobada is seasoned enough to differentiate it from the rest of the al pastor in L.A. Still, customers flock to the crispy fish taco. The tortilla for the shrimp taco is dipped in their “diabla” sauce, similar to how birria tacos usually are prepared and finished hot orange on the plancha.
While most spots can misunderstand a burrito and just start throwing everything into a flour tortilla, Acapela focuses on the less-is-more approach for each burrito. The carne asada, for example, is prepared with just pico de gallo and guacamole, preventing that Angus flavor from being lost in rice, beans, and crema that usually spill out of other burritos around the city. The adobada only has cilantro, onions, and guacamole. The same simplicity can be said of their breakfast burritos served with either ham, bacon, steak, or bean, cheese, and egg. Simple, hefty, and satisfying.
But of all their burritos, the “California-style” burrito that is proudly born in San Diego is the thing to order. It could arguably be among the best “California-style” burritos in Los Angeles with Angus steak, cheese, sour cream, and of course, great fries. It's the one menu item you would expect this spot to get right, and they nail it.
But before you leave this modern Mexican taquería, walk down the hallway past Joan Sebastian, Elvis Pressley, Drake, and other artists on the wall. Unlock your phone, open your Bluetooth preferences, and have a song ready to go. Walk into the restroom, find the light switch by the door, press the "Music" button, and sync the bathroom to your phone. (Yes, you can connect your phone to the bathroom by Bluetooth). Press play and hit the "Night Light" button, and be ready to experience Club Taquería Toilette up in there. Groove to a corrido tumbado while you freshen up.
When asked, "Why? Why this bathroom?" Cesar responds with, "In the Mexican food industry, bathrooms are always forgotten, and they [usually] have ugly-ass bathrooms. So I was like, let's make it very different, very clean, nice, and easy to maintain."
Jessica and Cesar both believe two things are closest to your soul; food and music. They tell L.A. TACO, "When you eat something tasty and listen to good music, it fills a lot of the voids. It feels good, and we want people to feel good."
Acapela is located at 6913 La Tijera Blvd, Los Angeles, CA
