Just east of Soto and the Metro Station’s E Line, where street vendors and taco stands abound, a small mariscos restaurant quietly provides the flavors of Mexico’s Pacific coast to Boyle Heights.
In 2007, Isauro Solis, who is from Zacatecas, took over the 1st Street restaurant, located just steps from Boyle Heights’ landmark restaurant “Otomisan." He kept the original name of the space, "El Sarape," which specialized in tortas. But he changed the menu.
“The previous owner couldn’t keep up with the place. So I offered to take it over, and he agreed,” Solis tells L.A. TACO. “But he wanted me to keep it as a torta restaurant, but I told him that I love mariscos and want to make it a mariscos spot.”
Solis is not a cook, but the timing couldn’t have been more perfect, as Solis may be the owner, but the kitchen here belongs to Maria Benitez.
“I had just met Maria, an amazing cook from Nayarit,” Solis says. “Back home, she was studying to be a baker. That is her specialty, but she also knows how to make amazing mariscos dishes from Nayarit.”
Nayarit is a coastal Mexican state known for its delicious seafood traditions, sending mariscos lovers hurtling towards the destination when they’re traveling in Mexico.
El Sarape is a modest building with a large back patio, tables covered in bright plastic Mexican tri-colors, and a menu featuring shrimp and fish ceviche tostadas, tacos, a fried fish plate, and molcajetes.
What keeps regulars coming back is the unmistakable taste of Nayarit-style mariscos, the dishes Benitez learned growing up along Mexico’s western shoreline.
“Mariscos in Nayarit is like no other place,” Benitez tells L.A. Taco. “It is made with intensity, love, and passion. When people taste it here, I want them to feel like they’re sitting on the coast.”
Aguachiles arrive, sharp with chiles and lime, along with the spicy homemade green salsa served with ceviche appetizers. You can also add a smoked dark red salsa made in house, which helps customers cool their mouths after dipping into the green one. Tostadas come piled high, next to your ceviche, cucumber, and avocado.
“The flavors are meant to be bold, bright, and refreshing to reflect the coastal culture where fishermen haul in their catch every day,” Benitez says.
For Solis and Benitez, bringing this cuisine to Boyle Heights was about more than just opening a restaurant. Like many immigrants who arrive in Los Angeles seeking work and stability, running their own restaurant became both their livelihood and a way to hold on to their roots.
Outside, customers gather around colorful tables or take their food to go. Some are longtime residents of Boyle Heights, and others drive in from other parts of Los Angeles, drawn by word of mouth and the promise of delicious mariscos.
El Sarape is a lowkey mariscos spot. They don’t have Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook to advertise, making it a true hidden gem in L.A. — only those in-the-know recognize it.
“We are trying to convince one of our kids to help us with social media to promote, but we’ll see who takes on that responsibility,” Solis says.
In Boyle Heights, tacos and birria are popular dishes, but El Sarape reminds us that the Los Angeles Mexican food scene goes far beyond a single tradition.
Here, the flavors of Nayarit come alive in every bite, as if you’ve time-warped from Boyle Heights to Mexico’s Pacific Coast in a matter of minutes. Not to mention the warmth and love one feels from Solis, Benitez, and their three boys.
El Sarape ~ 2522 1st St. Los Angeles, CA 90033
