Lisa Paradise: Juicy, spicy tacos
dipped into a cup of piping hot consomé.
If you're not paying attention,
you could walk by some of the
best tacos in New York City.
Customer: I've had tacos all over the world,
and this is probably one of the best I've ever ate.
I have to stop here every day after work.
[laughing]
Lisa: Queens has some of the most diverse food
in the continental US,
and one of the buzziest new spots here
is this unassuming taco truck.
Now, I love very little in this life
more than a good taco, and these tacos,
these specific kinds of tacos
have been taking over my Instagram feed,
they've been taking over LA,
they have finally hit New York,
and I cannot wait to get my hands on them,
so let's go check it out.
Food truck Birria-Landia
opened in the fall of 2019,
and it didn't take long for
New Yorkers to take note.
It even received a two-star review from
The New York Times, which rarely covers food trucks.
Brothers José and Jesús Moreno
run the whole operation,
with José taking the day shift to prep and cook
and Jesús staying until the early morning hours
to serve hungry night owls.
There are only four items on the menu,
tacos, tostadas, mulitas, and consomé,
and each is stuffed with this:
a spicy beef stew called birria,
which has its roots in Mexico but has, in recent years,
dominated the Los Angeles food scene.
José Moreno: I went to California,
and these tacos of birria
are so popular over there in LA.
I get back to New York,
I feel like I miss them.
The only way, if I want to eat tacos of birria again,
is if I make them. Nobody sell over here this way.
Lisa: The birria begins here,
in a shared kitchen space where various
New York City food trucks prep for service.
Three times a week,
José fills these four massive pots
with the ingredients needed to make
enough fresh birria to feed an army.
José: I'm using all my experience of 20 years
to put in this taco birria. We make with love.
Like, we take the time to pour the salt
piece by piece. Then you let it rest,
that meat can absorb the salt,
and then it's much better.
Lisa: In its birthplace of Jalisco, Mexico,
traditional birria is made with lamb or goat.
But because it's a bit more accessible,
Birria-Landia's take starts with
100 pounds of beef, cut into large chunks
and seasoned generously with salt and pepper.
To each pot, José adds a blend of spices,
all of which he measures not-so-precisely
with a serving spoon.
Paprika, bay leaves, oregano, cumin,
cinnamon, cloves, salt, and pepper.
He blends together chipotle peppers
and fresh onions, boiled guajillo peppers,
and garlic — like, a lot of garlic —
to give this dish its signature depth and spice.
The blender is tiny, so it takes a lot of batches
to pump out enough puree to flavor all this birria.
The birria is left to marinate
for about four hours, then separated.
The beef from the stew is chopped up
and used in the tacos, mulitas, and tostadas,
and the broth is saved to make
a hearty cup of soup called consomé.
Then it's all packed up and loaded onto the truck.
Birria-Landia parks in the same spot
starting at 5 p.m. every day,
on Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights, Queens,
right under the elevated tracks of the 7 train.
The perfect spot for hungry commuters and pedestrians.
José: People from everywhere are eating my tacos,
and that make me so happy.
We are in the right moment. Right now,
it's tacos fever, all New York.
Lisa: Once parked, the real work begins.
These tacos are all about flavor,
so it's no wonder the tortillas
are dipped in the residual fat from the consomé.
Not only does this add flavor
and the signature bright red color,
but it also saves some money
because there's no reason to buy frying oil.
They're topped with the beef from the birria stew,
of course, then onion and fresh cilantro.
Customer: I usually don't like tacos in New York City
because of the tortilla, because it's pretty bland,
and these are very good.
Lisa: Was it worth coming out here
on this cold, cold day to eat a taco?
Customer: We live right around here,
so it's just a walk for us.
Lisa: Oh, so you're cheating. [laughs] OK.
And according to chef José,
if you don't get a cup of consomé to dip your tacos in,
you're doing it all wrong.
José: We are right now the classic taco de birria.
This is the classic. It's the meat,
onion, cilantro, and sauce.
This is the magic.
This is the magic, it's true.
You eat the taco and the consomé in one bite.
So, I mean, this is genius.
Lisa: On a day like today, when it is
25 degrees outside,
this is the best thing
I could have thought to have eaten.
You can tell with the meat
that you really took the time to season it.
And it's spicy, but it's not overwhelmingly spicy.
José: Yeah, it's....
Lisa: It's built for all different kinds of palates.
And the tortilla.
It's, like, crispy, but it's soft.
José: Exactly. You have both texture when you eat it.
Lisa: Yeah. I could eat 12 of these.
[laughing]
José: A lot of people, they just dip the taco,
eat, then finish, and they left the consomé.
Lisa: That's a crime. The consomé is the best part.
Next time I have a cold,
will you bring this to my house?
[laughing]
José: Of course, yeah.
Lisa: This is very special.
José: Thank you so much. Lisa: Cheers.
Both: Cheers.
José: One day one lady, this is true, it's true,
one lady tell me, "Can I have one of these to go
for my boyfriend?"
I say, "Yeah." She say, "Two."
I say, "Oh, you have two boyfriends?"
[laughing]