Driving down Bay Road, you might just miss Taqueria La Cazuela, a quaint, family-owned taqueria with authentic Mexican cuisine in East Palo Alto. Hidden behind a fence and draped in foliage, the little green restaurant bustles with locals and employees from nearby tech companies stopping by for a delicious bite.
Gabriel Sanchez and his wife Mayra Rivera opened the restaurant in 2011 after moving from Mexico. Sanchez said, “My wife liked to cook every day, so when I came from Mexico I started working on making a restaurant. I always liked working in the kitchen with my wife.”
When I walked into the restaurant, I was greeted by a fresh vase of pink flowers and a jolly statue of a man wearing a sombrero. The staff greeted me with a smile, and the muted sounds of upbeat music floated into the room from the kitchen. I ordered four dishes: the chilaquiles con pollo, albóndigas de pollo, tacos con frijoles y arroz, and tortitas de papas. As a vegetarian, I was excited to see plenty of meatless options.
The tacos con frijoles y arroz were wonderfully colorful and satisfying. Each bite was packed with flavor; the warm beans and rice blended perfectly with the crunchy lettuce and sprinkled cheese.
The sauce tied it all together and the house-made tortillas took the dish to another level.
The tortitas de papas are a great option if you’re looking for a hearty meal and a meat substitute. The outer, deep-fried shell was thin and crisp. The dish was topped with cheese and corn and filled with a mix of cheese and greens.
I enlisted my meat-eating mother to review the other two meals. She said, “As a soup fan, I have to say that the albóndigas con pollo sopa was truly outstanding. The savory broth with meatballs and vegetables made it a generous meal. The extra garnish of onion and cilantro gave it a nice fresh crunch and a burst of flavor.”
On the chilaquiles de pollo, she commented, “It was a great dish—the crispy tortilla chips smothered in a rich red sauce combined with the chicken and eggs was a fantastic combination of textures and flavors.”
Sanchez shared that several of the items on the menu are recipes shared through his and his wife’s families. He said, “The mole poblano passed from my grandmother and then to my mother and then to me. On my wife’s side, the enchiladas michoacanas are a recipe from her mom.”
When asked what dishes he’d recommend to customers, Sanchez smiled and said, “Most of the time I tell people, ‘Everything!’ The most popular things we have are the mole poblano and enchiladas michoacanas.”
With a perfect, crunchy texture the complimentary tortilla chips were the best I’ve ever had. Make sure to have a cup of water handy, however, for the red sauce that comes with them.
Taqueria La Cazuela is a lot more than wonderful food, however. A beautiful and cheery garden borders the outdoor seating area, and Rivera herself maintains and cultivates it. Sanchez said, “The garden is something special for my wife. All the plants that you can see around here are here because she grew them. She loves the flowers, and, especially in the summertime, the garden is really nice because people like to be outside to escape the heat and enjoy it.” I loved the fun trinkets scattered throughout, like little rhinoceros and dove-shaped planters.
The taqueria also displays the work of local artist Pedro Rivas Lopez. Sanchez mentioned that Lopez also works with kids in the neighborhood to inspire them to create art. In summers past, Lopez held events in the taqueria’s garden where children created paintings to showcase in the restaurant.
Sanchez said, “If kids have their own art or paintings, Lopez brings them, and he’ll put it on the wall, and families can come and see the art. In the summer, he did some events in the garden. Kids from nearby schools came and they created art and then afterwards we showed them to the community.”
Sanchez reflected on how much the business has changed since opening. He said, “When we started this business, this corner was really, really bad because there was so much crime and people didn’t want to come here because of it. We didn’t sell anything the first week. But now, it’s something that we can share with the community; the crime went down, and now all people can walk around the restaurant and feel safe. The police department are our customers, too. They always tell us we made a difference on this corner.”
Sanchez explained that nowadays people come from as far as Mountain View to get their tasty tacos.
From the mouth-watering food to the comforting ambience and kind staff, this is definitely not a place to miss.
