I will say that the line there at 12:15pm on a Tuesday was initially startling — even though I knew to expect it — but it moved pretty efficiently, all said. I think it took me and my friend ~15-20 minutes. I’m sure it can be worse on even businer days but that seemed fairly reasonable given how much press Holbox receives.
My friend, who goes there all the time b/c she works at USC, got a ceviche platter (not photographed), I went with my own sampler of two tacos (pulpo + baja fish) and a tostada with the smoked kanpachi.
Starting backwards: the smoked kanpachi was great. The smokiness isn’t overpowering but it adds something extra which I enjoyed and I really liked the arbol-peanut-soy sauce that they smear on the bottom (I initially though it was a uni spread; same color). I’d order this again or maybe try the kanpachi in taco form instead.
The baja fish taco was solid but not so special/unique to make me think “damn, I can’t wait to try this again.”
The pulpo — a fan favorite — was great. They nail that important balance between a crisp exterior and the soft/chewy interior, and combining that with a squid ink sofrito? Brilliant. Can’t wait for my wife, who loves octopus, to try this one.
Overall: I thought it lived up to the hype. Very curious to go back and try Komal (their new spinoff) as well.
***
I’ve [already written](https://www.reddit.com/r/FoodLosAngeles/comments/1gzrf0i/green_chorizo_burrito_tacos_evil_cooks_el_sereno/) about [Evil Cooks](https://www.evilcooksla.com/) in El Sereno before so I’ll also dispense with the basics with them. I just want to say that I’m psyched for their new brick-and-mortar, especially since it’s a few minutes closer to where I live. Their lengua (aka The Simmons) — which uses thick slices that you don’t normally see at your average street stand — is excellent; one of the dishes I always get here. And for the first time, I tried the “black asada” which was fine but not as good as some of other tacos I’ve had there, like their black pulpo (aka The Poseidon).
One thing I didn’t realize until this last visit is that they have a seperate dinner menu now — “A Corazon Abierto” — with new dishes and larger platters. They haven’t updated their website with those dishes yet but they’ve mentioned some of them on [their IG page](https://www.instagram.com/evil_cooks/).
jake_rawr_meow
Smoked Kanpachi tostada is literally my go-to every time I’m there! Make sure you check out some of their entrees too: the camarones al mojo and the filete al carbon are both superb!
Their tacos are good but I tell everyone that goes there to get anything else but the tacos. There are so many better things on the menu that are so much better and worth having over the tacos. It’s the weakest items on their menu
zsantiag
I also had Holbox for the first time today! I had some friends in town from San Diego and we tried a lot of items from the menu and it was very good! I love the fish taco! Perfect batter and it melts in your mouth! Their Ceviche Mixto was my favorite!
The_Homie_Tito
good time to visit holbox if I want to avoid lines?
5 Comments
Not sure what too me so long to go back to the Mercado Paloma near USC and *finally* try [Holbox](https://www.holboxla.com/) but glad I did this past week. I’m going to dispense with the usual basics of introducing people to a restaurant that [many of you have already been to](https://www.reddit.com/r/FoodLosAngeles/search/?q=holbox&cId=8f607c25-764c-4870-93e0-4becead1ac97&iId=1a82e9ac-fbfa-4d74-95b6-677c462d243d).
I will say that the line there at 12:15pm on a Tuesday was initially startling — even though I knew to expect it — but it moved pretty efficiently, all said. I think it took me and my friend ~15-20 minutes. I’m sure it can be worse on even businer days but that seemed fairly reasonable given how much press Holbox receives.
My friend, who goes there all the time b/c she works at USC, got a ceviche platter (not photographed), I went with my own sampler of two tacos (pulpo + baja fish) and a tostada with the smoked kanpachi.
Starting backwards: the smoked kanpachi was great. The smokiness isn’t overpowering but it adds something extra which I enjoyed and I really liked the arbol-peanut-soy sauce that they smear on the bottom (I initially though it was a uni spread; same color). I’d order this again or maybe try the kanpachi in taco form instead.
The baja fish taco was solid but not so special/unique to make me think “damn, I can’t wait to try this again.”
The pulpo — a fan favorite — was great. They nail that important balance between a crisp exterior and the soft/chewy interior, and combining that with a squid ink sofrito? Brilliant. Can’t wait for my wife, who loves octopus, to try this one.
Overall: I thought it lived up to the hype. Very curious to go back and try Komal (their new spinoff) as well.
***
I’ve [already written](https://www.reddit.com/r/FoodLosAngeles/comments/1gzrf0i/green_chorizo_burrito_tacos_evil_cooks_el_sereno/) about [Evil Cooks](https://www.evilcooksla.com/) in El Sereno before so I’ll also dispense with the basics with them. I just want to say that I’m psyched for their new brick-and-mortar, especially since it’s a few minutes closer to where I live. Their lengua (aka The Simmons) — which uses thick slices that you don’t normally see at your average street stand — is excellent; one of the dishes I always get here. And for the first time, I tried the “black asada” which was fine but not as good as some of other tacos I’ve had there, like their black pulpo (aka The Poseidon).
One thing I didn’t realize until this last visit is that they have a seperate dinner menu now — “A Corazon Abierto” — with new dishes and larger platters. They haven’t updated their website with those dishes yet but they’ve mentioned some of them on [their IG page](https://www.instagram.com/evil_cooks/).
Smoked Kanpachi tostada is literally my go-to every time I’m there! Make sure you check out some of their entrees too: the camarones al mojo and the filete al carbon are both superb!
https://preview.redd.it/gerj4bgtfg8e1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9384ee5ed24b566541286acc50e7113f72f5493a
Their tacos are good but I tell everyone that goes there to get anything else but the tacos. There are so many better things on the menu that are so much better and worth having over the tacos. It’s the weakest items on their menu
I also had Holbox for the first time today! I had some friends in town from San Diego and we tried a lot of items from the menu and it was very good! I love the fish taco! Perfect batter and it melts in your mouth! Their Ceviche Mixto was my favorite!
good time to visit holbox if I want to avoid lines?