La Casita Mexicana and Jitlada are two of the best restaurants in Los Angeles. Although Mexico and Thailand are very different geographically and culturally, the two restaurants have a lot of similarities.
First, authenticity is what sets them apart from the thousands of other Mexican and Thai restaurants in LA. Both get ingredients from their home countries and use those ingredients in recipes brought from their home countries.
Second, the flavors are so bold, unique and complimentary they cause addiction. The human body craves them shortly after consumption, causing the brain to think about them until the next visit. It has a lot to do with the balance of salty and sweet. Every time I find myself craving a dish it tends to have salty and sweet fighting a heavyweight battle for ownership of my tastebuds.
Third (and probably most important), the proprietors (Jaime Martin Del Campo and Ramiro Arvizu at La Casita Mexicana and Jazz Singsanong at Jitlada) are caring, knowledgeable, enthusiastic and passionate people, intent on delivering the best possible meal day in and day out.
After trying at least 50 different dishes between the two restaurants I can fairly say that they are two of the best restaurants in LA. The Churros filled with Cajeta (Dulce de Leche) from La Casita Mexicana are worth the trip:
The Deep-Fried Softshell Crab with Sweet Mango Salad at Jitlada hurts so good:
I implore you to visit both before summer, especially La Casita Mexicana as it’s a bit further off the beaten path. You can’t get authentic cooking like this everywhere, so take advantage of what LA has to offer.
Jitlada
5233 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 663-3104
La Casita Mexicana
4030 East Gage Ave
Bell, CA 90201 (about 5 miles southeast of downtown LA)
323-773-1898
March 30, 2009 at 2:03 pm
true points about each place, though i need to go back to la casita. I’ve only been once.
March 30, 2009 at 3:02 pm
dude, didn’t you take more photos of La Casita than that? ha.
March 30, 2009 at 3:36 pm
I have yet to try La Casita except for their flan which is delightfully unlike the ordinary yellow, gelatinous flan I’m used to seeing and never order. It was so good! Now I can’t wait to try the food! And now you have me craving delicious thai-spicy food. I like both of these places for hot summer days. Or just hot days. Or even when it’s cold out. mmmm…
March 30, 2009 at 3:37 pm
I promise I’m gonna add photography to my list of skills eventually- for now it’s just food marathoner…
April 1, 2009 at 1:38 am
i want those churros! Im snaggin some this friday when i go to la casita fo shizzz
June 15, 2009 at 11:59 am
[...] heavy, these sweets are some of my favorite desserts in the world. It’s hard to compete with La Casita Mexicana’s, but these pier churros were definitely better than [...]