Critics’ choice: Where Mexican meets upscale

Petty Cash Los Angeles

Is there a more perfect food than the taco? said Jonathan Gold in the Los Angeles Times. “Delicious in even mediocre incarnations,” it’s a cousin to the sandwich, but with more of a yen for life’s edge. And though passions about authenticity will never die among taco enthusiasts, many members of the fraternity long ago embraced the idea of the taco “as a medium of culinary expression rather than of cultural expression.” Chef Walter Manzke, a master of molecular gastronomy, does honor to both schools. His first taqueria has the graffiti art of a hole-in-the-wall cantina, but you’ll know you’re not in a standard taco joint when you detect sea urchin in the guacamole. Nachos here arrive scattered with strips of deep-fried pig ears, and much is made of the aguachile, a spicy ceviche popular on Mexico’s Pacific Coast. Then come the tacos, filled with everything from fried potatoes to duck gizzards. “The truly cool kids” will order the off-menu tacos with toasted crickets, while “hedonists will just order multiples of the tacos al pastor.” No one will be wrong. 7360 Beverly Blvd., (323) 933-5300

ABC Cocina New York

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When a Michelin-starred chef starts serving tacos, you know a shift has occurred, said Adam Platt in New York magazine. “The great Alsatian chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten didn’t start the Great Taco Craze,” which has chefs all over New York packing artisanal tortillas with signature ingredients, “but his latest venture validates it.” Tucked inside the high-end furniture store ABC Carpet & Home, ABC Cocina is a hot ticket right now among New York’s “comfort-food cognoscenti.” Though the restaurant’s conceit is global Latin, talk will focus on Vongerichten’s tacos, which “have their charms” but earn mixed reviews. Overly busy toppings, like the aioli and pickled cabbage smothering the fried flounder, can be an annoyance, so your $6 is best spent on the simpler pulled-pork or short-rib varieties. The drinks are a treat though. If ABC Cocina seems less focused than a typical Vongerichten establishment, it’s arguably “a good deal more fun.” 38 E. 19th St., (212) 677-2233

La Casa del Caballo Houston

It’s not often that you see the words “Mexican” and “steakhouse” paired together, said Kaitlin Steinberg in the Houston Press. But in a city with an overabundance of steakhouses and Mexican joints, La Casa del Caballo is uniquely, and proudly, both. Chef-owner Carlos Abedrop, a native of Saltillo, Mexico, attracted so many Texas diners to his Saltillo steakhouse that he finally opened this upscale yet unstuffy Houston outpost. The steaks here are awe-inspiring, beginning with the tender, mesquite-grilled tapa de lomo, a $170, foot-and-a-half-long rib-eye cap that’s meant to feed six and comes with a habanero-papaya salsa. A few of Abedrop’s Tex-Mex offerings might tempt, but do yourself a favor on your first visit and order the tapa de lomo. “Take it home and eat it all week if you must, but I doubt it will take you that long.” 322 Westheimer Rd., (832) 623-6467

Correction:

Last week’s Food page misidentified the location of the Ahwahnee Hotel, a landmark lodging in Yosemite National Park.