Birrieria Nochistlan — Restaurant in Los Angeles

I WAS ASKED TO TRY THIS SPOT BY 1 OF MY CO-WORKERS. USUALLY WHEN I GO, I GIVE THEM MY HONEST OPINION ABOUT THE PLACES I VISIT. I LOVE SMALLER FAMILY OWNED BUSINESSES BECAUSE THE FOOD IS TYPICALLY AUTHENTIC. THIS SPOT NOT ONLY GAVE ME SMALL RESTAURANT HOMETOWN VIBES, BUT THE FOOD GAVE ME THE EXPLOSION THAT I LOOK FOR WHEN I'M EATING MEXICAN FOOD. THE HOSTESS GREATED ME AS SOON AS I WALKED IN WITH A HUGE BEAUTIFUL SMILE. SHE LET ME KNOW WHAT THE SPECIALS DISH WAS AND THEN BEGAN TO ASK ME IF I WAS FAMILIAR WITH BIRRIERIA WAS. I TOLD HER YES AND SHE LET ME KNOW THIS WAS THE REAL DEAL AUTHENTIC BIRRIERIA (GOAT). I REALLY APPRECIATE HOW DELICATE THE YOUNG LADY WAS WITH ENSURING AND SECURING MY ORDER. THIS MEANT A LOT BECAUSE I COULD TELL WALKING INTO A MEXICAN FOOD RESTAURANT AS A 6'4 BLACK MALE SOME PLACES HAVE JUST LET ME ORDER AND NOT TOOK THE EXTRA TIME TO MAKE ME FEEL LIKE I KNEW EXACTLY WHAT I WAS GETTING SO THAT MY MEAL WAS MADE JUST FOR ME. ONCE MY FOOD CAME SHE SECURED MY ORDER ONCE AGAIN TO ENSURE THAT EVERYTHING WAS MADE TO PERFECTION. THE SERVICE WAS TOP TEIR AND I LOVED IT. THE CHEF EVEN CAME OUT TO ENSURE THAT MY FOOD WAS TO PERFECTION. I ORDERED 2 BIRRIERIA TACOS AND A BIRRIERIA QUESADILLA. LET ME TELL YOU! THE COMBINATION OF HOMEMADE/HANDMADE TORTILLAS AND REAL BIRRIERIA HAD MY TASTEBUDS GOING LOCO! HAHAHA. THE FOOD WAS SO GOOD I CLEANED MY PLATES AND ORDERED MORE TO GO. I TOLD THEM I'D BE BACK AND I MOST DEFINITELY WILL.

THANK YOU ALL ONCE...

The name of this restaurant refers to Nochistlán de Mejia in the Mexican state of Zacatecas, the town where chef-owner Javier Moreno learned how to make "Birria de Chivo" (aka goat birria) from his grandfather. This is a restaurant with no menus, as they only serve their birria, and there are only two options: you can have it wet in a bowl or dry in a taco.

The house's spirited, mood-altering birria is rustic and gamey, yet not at all unpleasant. It is tender young goat braised until it reaches its purest, softest, meltiest form, and it stands up to condiments and a house-made tortilla in a way that other birrias can kind of fade into the background. Here, the garnishments harmonize with the birria rather than sing over it -- and even once you spray your taco with a few squeezes of lime, add some onions and cilantro, and spoon on some of the lava-like salsa, you still are left with that delicate goat flavor that you'll begin to look for in each bite. Birrieria Nochistlán's salsa, by the way, is one of the best I've had at any restaurant anywhere, and is purportedly made with Yahualica chiles de árbol, a potent árbol imported from the region around Zacatecas.

On an early Sunday morning, service from my waitress was attentive and efficient and my tacos, which were filling, were just $2 each,...

This place serves one thing and one thing only. Birria. They don't even have a menu it's that simplistic. Luckily the servers were able to tell me what they serve. I got a bowl of birria that comes with a few tortillas. I also ordered one taco de cabeza. And lastly a mulita de birria. Ok I guess the cabeza isn't really birria but I assume it's the head of the goat. In total the price came out to $31. The bowl was $18, mulita $9, and taco $4. All items came out fresh and is very delicious! I do agree with the other reviews though. The portions are kinda small. So don't expect big servings. Also the place reminds me of a tiny hole in the wall than a restaurant. I'm not saying it's dirty but they don't have a big sitting area. Luckily they have a TV for entertainment when dining alone. Would I come back to this place? Yes if I was around the area but I would not go out of my way...