Tlacolula

Located in a West Adams strip mall, Tlacolula is a mini-mart/restaurant hybrid that serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner to regulars or impromptu sit-ins who maybe walked in for some laundry detergent but stayed for tamales. You’ll also find popular Oaxacan ingredients for sale like squash blossoms, chorizo links, and crispy tlayudas by the dozen, as well as their delicious enfrijoladas that can (and should) be enjoyed at any hour. These pan-fried tortillas are covered in a smooth black bean puree and finished off with white onion and queso fresco. The tortillas are softened from the warm sauce, making them easy to cut through with a plastic fork and smear on a fresh bolillo roll from the shop’s bakery. We also love Tlacolula’s spicy red chilaquiles for breakfast that come with thin cuts of tasajo on top, which ticks several boxes on our ideal morning criteria list, as life sometimes calls for beef and salsa at 8am.

Food Rundown

photo credit: Jakob Layman

Chilaquiles Rojos Con Huevo

Perfection doesn’t exist, but these chilaquiles keep us up at night questioning this notion. The totopes are generously covered in extremely flavorful salsa roja–it’s tart, spicy, and just the right balance of sweet and savory. Along with some red onion, crumbly queso cotija, light Mexican crema, and runny fried eggs, this dish is an absolute masterpiece.

Enfrijoladas

These gently fried tortillas are doused with silky black beans and topped with crumbled queso fresco for some extra creaminess. Unfortunately, the hearty beans aren’t super flavorful, and the lack of filling in the folded tortillas leaves us mopping them up with the complimentary roll instead. An egg, some salsa, or maybe even meat would make this dish a bit more exciting, but it plays second chair next to the chilaquiles.