Mariscos Jalisco

Before each home game this season, ClipperBlog will run “ClipperBlog Eats,” a restaurant recommendation from its resident restaurant reviewer, Ben Mesirow. Below is today’s suggestion:

Are you sick of tacos yet? Hopefully not, because though we’ve covered stewed tacos and border-town tacos, fish tacos and al pastor tacos, we’ve got one more for you, in a category all its own – Mariscos Jalisco, purveyor of some very different and very amazing shrimp tacos.

An order of shrimp tacos at Mariscos Jalisco will not yield the sort of thing you might expect – instead of a couple of battered and fried shrimp in a loose tortilla, your order will arrive fully realized, a crunchy taco shell stuffed with shrimp, lying on its side under a pile of bright red salsa topped with a generous slice of avocado. The salsa is outstanding, sparkling with chile heat and bright tomato, the perfect foil for the avocado and fried tortilla. The shrimp tastes fresh and lovely, just noticeable enough under the accoutrement to remind you what you’re actually eating, and the textures interplay in just the right way, a big crunch of tortilla balanced by the smooth avocado and firm shrimp, moistened with a hit of salsa.

If you somehow manage to get past the shrimp tacos, the ceviches are excellent, sharply acidic and stubbornly spicy, as is their chile-heavy version of the Sinaloan raw shrimp and cucumber dish aguachile, which may be the very best pregame meal for a 90-degree morning.  E 10th St and Towne Ave Los Angeles, CA 90021 & 3040 E Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90023; https://www.facebook.com/mariscosjalisco