BLOCHO'S TACOS

Upon hearing that I have a blog devoted to tasting tacos from around the country (and globe), people ask me where to find the best tacos -- what is my favorite?  I tend to give a complicated answer.   "It depends what you're looking for." In New York, if you want upscale Mexican with delicious tacos and kick-ass margaritas: Empellon Taqueria in the West Village. If you're looking for super standard street-style no-frills tacos,  Tehuitzingo Deli. The spot for delicious tacos but where the all-star menu item is   not  tacos: El Centro . The list and descriptors goes on. Well, when venturing to Los Angeles, it seems that everyone agrees upon one favorite: Guisado's .  Guisado's on Sunset (original is in Boyle Heights) Now I understand why.  These tacos are easily in the top 5 of all tacos I've tasted.  They win big with the tortillas.  Stone ground corn masa is turned into delectable, hearty, fresh-made torti...

My best friend/neighbor has a dog named Nellie.  Over the past few months I've attended Nellie's birthday party, walked through the Farmer's Market with her on Saturday mornings, spent countless hours snuggling on the couch with her, and even invited her to sleepover when her mom was away. This is Nellie! This morning, I saw Nellie across the street and when she noticed me her entire body reacted.  Tail wagging ferociously, she tried to bound into the street without care for the cars zipping by just to great me.  When she finally made it over, we spent about 2 minutes saying hello.  Watching the progression from walking, seeing me, anticipating our reunion, and experiencing it was a lesson in the beauty of raw and unbridled emotional expression.  Dogs just do what they want. I started feeling a bit like Nellie later in the day.  My heart was pounding and my body temperature was rising.  As a thin layer of sweat coated my hands an enormous s...

During my annual check up, I sat and watched the phlebotomist draw blood for my standard blood tests, thinking everything would be just dandy. 3 days later I found out that my Vitamin B12 levels, while in the "normal range" are on the low side.  This slight B12 deficiency likely explains why I've been going to bed at 10pm and still feeling exhausted. So, how do you amp up that B12? Two options: with a supplement or by eating foods in which B12 occurs naturally. Part of my feels strongly opposed to taking a supplement because there are natural sources for B12, but most of them are animal products (red meat! clams! liverwurst!) and I'm always conscious of the ethical - and health - impact of animal products/animal protein.  Plus, my recent trip to Israel has not convinced me to keep Kosher, but I certainly take note of when I'm not doing so.  Yay treif! Looking at the list of foods my doc recommended, I could definitely see myself heavily consumer many of t...

When in Argentina, eat meat. It seems that on every block there is at least one parilla  (Argentina steakhouse/grill) emanating the incredible smells of steak, chorizo, and melted cheese.  Tourist-trap steakhouses exist as do fancy Peter Luger status steakhouses.  Up until this trip I had only been to local parillas and was more than content with my $15 (or less) all you can eat meat extravaganza. As part of my UJA Mission to BA, we got a special treat and had lunch at Cabaña Las Lilas in Puerto Madero.  On TripAdvisor  there are 2,502 reviews and 83% of reviewers recommend this steakhouse that boasts of using their own meat from a farm in rural Argentina.  I was prepared to be blown away by this luxury steakhouse.  And, in the end, it was fine.  My favorite parts of the meal were the appetizers and the  chipá (post coming soon!)...and the Malbec.   Provoleta  - Grilled Provolone Cheese with Roasted Veggies (photo...