Yxta (pronounced eeks’-tah) Cocina Mexicana went beyond my expectations. Driving past the more gentrified part of Downtown LA with the likes of the Geffen Contemporary and Spice Table, I wondered where I was going as I entered the industrial side of Central Ave. Motivated by the promise of a bevy of different speciality tequilas gracing my lips for a four-course Tequilo Ocho paired dinner, I woman-ed up and parked in the spacious strip-mall parking lot outside of Yxta.
I crept around the side door to do a little reconnaissance. The community table in the middle of the restaurant was packed with suited professionals blowing off work day tensions, couples and families were happily dining and the bar only had one seat available. This was all the confidence boost I needed.
Greeted immediately by a friendly hostess, I was ushered to one of the best tables in industrial-meets-artist-loft space on the opposite wall – a great people watching spot.
Announcing I was here for the Tequila Ocho dinner, I was brought a Tequila Ocho Margartia – fresh and potent – just the way I like them.
Never hearing of Tequila Ocho before, I was excited to taste their Blanco, Reposado and Anejo neat.
My boyfriend arrived and we chose the Crema de Jaiba (crab) soup for the first course, the Plantain Pork Empanada and Tamal De Puerco en Chile Colorado for the second course, and the Crab Stuffed Jumbo Shrimp and Chile Morita Chilean Sea Bass.
When the Latin American version of clam chowder came, I knew this was not just another Tex-Mex restaurant. Talking with Yxta’s owner, Jesse Gomez, he explained the dishes are based on a combination of traditional Mexican cuisine reflecting many towns and states of Mexico he traveled to including: Chiapas, Queretaro and Guanajuato.
Jesse started out as a lawyer, but with the restaurant business in his blood (he grew up helping out in his grandmother’s restaurant El Arco Iris in Highland Park) he started his own restaurant – Yxta with Chef Jose Acevedo of Guanajuato, Mexico. El Arco Iris was opened in 1964 and still a local favorite today.
Speaking of Grandma Irene Montes, many of the dishes featured on Yxta Cocina Mexicana’s menu are her recipes with creative twists by Chef Jose. In fact, I got to meet the lovely Irene as she was dining with friends (including Jesse’s law professor from LMU whom the restaurant was named after – Yxta Maya Murray) at a table nearby. Irene’s eyes were kind and her energy was glowing – it explains why her grandson was inspired to follow in her footsteps.
Distracted for a bit at the touching family story, I refocused on tasting the Tequila Ocho Blanco – yet another family owned and operated business of the Camerenas. Grown at 7503 feet in the village of Arandas, Jalisco, it was vegetal in smell and herbal in taste. Tequila “Ocho” which is eight in Spanish is named this for several reasons: there are 8 siblings in the Camerenas family, it takes 8 years for the agave to ripen, the family is in their 8th decade of tequila production, and it’s an 8 step process to make Tequila Ocho.
With the scrumptious bowl of soup practically licked clean, we dug into the tamale and empanadas. At this point my boyfriend pipes up and says, “This is the first Mexican food I actually like.” I was shocked at his endorsement. To explain, he is a Parisian with extremely high standards for quality food aka one of those French food snobs, but an endearing one at that. In my opinion, there is no higher compliment than a favorable review from a finicky Frenchman!
Although he did not join me in the tequila tasting, so on I sipped in my solitary with Tequila Ocho Resposado with sweeter flavor notes than the Blanco – it paired well with the heat of the red chili in the pork empanada.
The Cucumber-Jicama Margarita with a chili rim paired with the main entrees tasted more like a salad or a spa treatment than a cocktail, but the spicy Chilean Sea Bass was divine. And the broccoli! It was THE best broccoli I’d ever had, grilled but still crunchy. Maybe more kids would eat the dreaded childhood green if Chef Jose Azevedo prepared it.
For a ‘seafood squared’ craving, the four giant shrimps stuffed with a crab béarnaise sauce of the Crab Stuffed Jumbo Shrimp entree satisfies beautifully.
With my initial doubts about Yxta proven completely off base, I kept the critical eye out for the authenticity of the Mexican Chocolate Cake. Very often, with so much man power put behind making the savory dishes from scratch, a restaurant will understandably scrimp and serve industrial, pre-packaged desserts with a little fruit and sauce on top to make it look housemade.
After a good thirty second staring contest with the chocolate cake and canela ice cream, which involved some sniffing and poking, I let out a big sigh. Both the ice cream and cake were homemade, following suit with all the other menu items we had sampled. Que Rico!
Tequila Ocho had saved the best for last – their recently released Tequila Ocho 2007 Anejo. With the two year aging process in oak barrels, it tasted like a fine cognac. Because of the limited supply, only those stores and restaurants that carry all three of their tequila varieties are allowed to carry it. Yxta is one of the few.
With enough glasses on the table for a party of ten, our Tequila Ocho dinner at Yxta was complete. Yxta is a labor of love and passion that you can taste in every bite.
If case you don’t make it to Downtown LA too often, Jesse Gomez and Chef Jose Acevedo are moving west. Opening this February is their Santa Monica restaurant, Mercado, in the former space where La Serenata de Garibaldi was (1416 4th Street).
Jesse excitedly explained Mercado (Spanish for market) will also feature a high-end foodstuffs market, picture a Joan’s on Third, but for Latin American products. Looking forward to seeing the family legacy continue on in posh Santa Monica.
Whether you venture to downtown LA for Yxta or head to the beach for the new Mercado, your palate will joyfully dance at the taste of authentic Mexican cuisine.
Yxta Cocina Mexicana
601 S. Central Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90021
www.yxta.net
www.tequilaocho.com
