La Cruda Mariscos

🇲🇽 MÉXICO / HISTORICAL: A beloved Compton trailer has closed, but the parent restaurant in Riverside remains.

🇲🇽 MÉXICO
📍 6733 Indiana Avenue,
Riverside, Inland Empire
🅿️ Private parking lot
🥤 Beer and micheladas

EDITOR'S NOTE: This article was written about the restaurant's trailer in Compton, which is now closed.

📸 All photos by Jared Cohee
for Eat the World Los Angeles

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📆 Original Article 09 May 2022

Anyone that went through their teens and 20’s with access to Mexican mariscos will swear by the effectiveness of these seafood dishes the next morning to cure the worst hangover, or la cruda. Some might say that a Veracruz-style seafood soup is the best remedy, while others will go for the spiciest aguachile they can find.

This Compton-based trailer pulls up and opens its windows around 10:00 each morning, when a lot of bloodshot eyes might be opening and needing help. Their extensive menu is designed to cure all sorts of hangovers, and it is quite impressive to see all of the dishes that this tiny little trailer can whip up.

The highlights of the menu are definitely the fresh cócteles, made with real juices and lacking the intense (and sometimes cloying) flavors of hastily made cocktails. The campechana (above) is a star. Besides shrimp there are oysters and scallops down there and the whole thing is fresh and crisp, comes with a pile of tasty crispy tostadas, and a few packages of saltines.

Each piece of seafood is big and seemingly right out of the sea, making the cost of the large container seem like a steal. Squeeze in some more limes if that suits you and have a tostada vs. saltine faceoff. Hangovers will indeed subside, and those that come without drinking the night before will also feel a rush of energy and invigoration.

The truck also offers two styles of tacos capeados (above), beer-battered fish and shrimp, which usually show up with their house salsa macha. If you do not see the habanero, ask for it, and two different versions will come out, each extremely delicious and fabulously fiery. They might be the real reasons to order tacos here.

Capeado is a word that translates to “weathered” but in the case of fish and shrimp tacos refers to the batter used on each. Interestingly, tacos capeados usually have a much thinner batter than one that simply calls itself a taco de pescado, and is usually an upgrade in batter ingredients. The tacos here come covered in fresh lettuce, tomatoes, and a tasty salsa de chipotle. Everything inside the tortilla is very tasty, but unfortunately the tortilla itself is pretty limp and lifeless.

If this bothers you but you find yourself still in the mood for tacos, an order of tacos gobernadores (above) might be your move. In these is a gooey mix of big, snappy shrimp, a layer of cheese, and their salsa macha. Again ask for the habanero versions if that suits you, and open each one up to pour on another layer of spice and deliciousness.

The tortillas are grilled on the plancha before the ingredients are stuffed into them, and this slight crispness really helps liven them up so they do not take away from the enjoyment.

A wide variety of ceviches are also available in big portions or just on tostadas. A tostada de ceviche de pescado (above) actually comes with three and a good portion of ceviche that will be plenty to cover them all.

At certain times you might also see people using another hangover cure strategy with the trailer’s michelada cups (not shown). These can be purchased to add your own beer in at home or at their table if you bring it with you. However you want to cure your cruda, this is definitely the right spot to do it.

🇲🇽 🇲🇽 🇲🇽