La Esquinita — Restaurant in Oakland

Met a few friends at the pink palace; we always love to try new places. We all made takeout orders. The cashier was in training. There is a menu on the wall, but there is also a paper menu if you asked for it or look like you’re straining to read.

I enjoyed the mushroom 🍄 and the Carmelo special tacos that I got. I had to borrow my friends fork because the tacos are overflowing with stuffing and very messy. She automatically got a fork spoon and knife with her quesadilla but that was not messy and she did not need it. You will need a lot of napkins. I was a fan of the blue corn tortilla on the Mushroom Taco, but not really the flour tortilla as it was soft and had soaked through on one side by the time I had got into it.

Another friend liked his Lengua and crispy beef tacos, but he was not into the chicken because he’s not into chipotle sauce. Another friend was not that enthusiastic about her Carne Asada.

We all took our takeout boxes to the bar to eat as there’s more space plus we had dogs with us. There are a few outdoor seats here, but they are against the sidewalk.

You get a number after you order and they bring out the food to you. Hopefully they will have compostable or use paper bags to go instead of plastic bags next time.

You have to ask for salsa special if you want it. They gave me a little container of a red and a green salsa. Neither of them were spicy, but they were sour. I would’ve preferred more spice, but I do enjoy sour food.

Good first experience for me, and we were looking for another place that people can take to go to a McNally’s Bar down the street. I was full after two tacos.

One unisex restroom is...

Off the bat I was impressed by the presentation and flavor of everything I ordered. You can't expect table service from a place whose name can losely equate to "hole-in-wall". There are tons of places like this in Mexico that are tiny, dark, with bad music, but food has to hit right. Today it did.

I had not read any reviews before entering. My friend and I were walking by and simply walked in. The meat selection is limited, but I tried two of which to judge the place: Asada and chorizo. If you can't do either justice you may as well be Taco Bell. I also tried the camote (sweet potato) taco.

The camote taco gets most of its flavor from the frijoles molidos, which were tasty, very filling if you're on the veggie tip. The asada by itself had lots of flavor and good texture, not too chewy. The chorizo on the menu is presented as a Vampiro, but really what I got was a queso-taco. The vampiro stands out because the tortilla is toasted and crispy (not fried), and a layer of skirt cheese is the base for the meat. Take away the toasted tortilla and... I already told what that makes. It was delicious nonetheless and enough for me to come back for more. The jamaica was refreshing and not too sweet.

It seems La Esquinita has been evolving and anyone who hasn't been in months should give them another shot. One note I have is for them to add a salsa bar with...

I was excited to see La Esquinita getting ready to open. The pink walls, the cool name, a taqueria! Finally tried it out and sadly I was underwhelmed. No beer. Who eats tacos or burritos without beer. I realize many people don’t, but many do! Fish tacos. Yay! But wait…tilapia?!?! No!! At least use rock cod or something not farmed. Al pastor is my favorite. But this meat was cut too large and was undercooked. I really want to like this new addition to College Ave. I will be waiting a couple of months before I give it another shot. Hopefully things will smooth out. I would suggest to the owner(s) to visit taquerias around the Bay Area, from food trucks to holes-in-the-wall to restaurants for some inspiration (and strong competition). As an aside, as we were sitting down, two customers got up from their table, having finished. I asked, “how was your meal?” They responded: “mediocre.” Here’s hoping La Esquinita ups their game soon. A missed opportunity...