El Parian - Oxnard

So, I really am clueless as to when Taqueria Mi Tierra in Oxnard is open for business. As I was walking in through their open door, a lady mopping the floor inside told me they were closed for the day (?????) and it was like, 11:45. Well, I didn't ask what their hours of operation were, but some time down the road I’m sure I'll catch them when they're actually open, I think.

Somebody help me out here, If you know when these dudes are open for business, please let me know because I am dying to try some of their tacos.

Anyway- after that, I walked a few feet up the street to El Parian to see what was going on in there.

When I walked in, the answer was not much; the place was pretty dead for it being the middle of lunch time. Is this a bad sign? Could be.

So I'm at the counter ordering my tacos when the very sweet elderly lady who was taking orders and doing the cooking too, informed me that they only have three fillings for the tacos: carne asada, pollo and lengua..........huh? Now those are damn limited options but truth be told, El Parian is more of a sit down type place serving dishes based on regional favorites and not really doing many antojitos like "street" style tacos. That was my impression anyhow as I scanned the menu.

Since I wasn't interested in the pollo whatsoever, I went with 2 carne asada and one lengua.

I took my order to go, and placed the plate on the hood of my car and just had my lunch there.

Lengua: Yeah, I'm not a fan of lengua by any stretch but this taco was quite good. The texture of cow tongue has always been whats so unattractive about this type of meat (to me) but in this case, the texture was chewy yet had a decently moist and tender accent. Also, the flavor and seasoning were excellent and the salsa roja that was on top was tasty and mildly spicy which paired well with the meat. Totally surprised that I enjoyed this taco as much as I did.

Carne asada: this taco was was even more of a surprise, why? Because in my opinion, this might be the best asada I've had since starting this blog. Yup, I had to go to that extreme again.  But it was really good; perfect texture, flavor, tenderness, cut, seasoning/marinade and some great char to go with the fresh taste. I don't know how else to elaborate on its complete dominance any further other than to say that this preparation and execution is exactly the way I love it. The salsa roja was again, a great counter point to the flavorful meat.

Other than that, the tortillas were oiled and piping hot, even a little crispy. Delicious.

Okay, so this is tough- on one hand the tacos I ate were great, but on the other, the options were so limited that I'm not sure I would come back for more tacos. hmmmm, its a reach, but based solely on what I had today......... viva los tacos! 4/5 stars.

El Parian

155 East 7th Street

Oxnard, Ca 93030