El Nopal Mexican Restaurant

Everything I’ve had has been delicious. They have interesting liquados like chocolate and arroz con leche. The flan is excellent. Chile rellenos are excellent.

I didn’t like the service and the food is okay. I was there tonight it really wasn’t worth it. I got charge for chilaquiles that I couldn’t eat because it was really spicy and we ask the server before we order he didn’t mention anything about been really spicy. I was really disappointed over all experience I’m not going back anytime soon I wouldn’t recommend to anybody.

Ah-​maaaazing!!! We had taquitos for appetizers, and tacos de Barbacoa and «tlayuda el nopal,» which is in the photo, and the flan for dessert. Everything was so good, the perfect amount of seasoning with very authentic flavors.
They were packed but the food came fast. Very friendly staff, we’ll be back!

Really good food! This is real authentic Mexican food. Try the mole enchiladas or dos gringas. Very casual comfy place to enjoy food with drinks!

This place has amazing food! I can’t believe I only paid $ 12.95 for two enchiladas topped with avo, rice and beans, and a huge slab of cecina (pork). It was so much food I had to take half of it home (TWO MEALS!!). Free chips and salsa. Craft beer on tap (I had the local Santa Monica XPA). Good service. Happy Hour 3 – 6. Only one star docked because it’s not a super nice location or upscale set up. BUT THAT DOESNT FREAKING MATTER PEOPLE. They also give the best haircuts next door at Rio’s. I’m bout to get my hair did. Thank you Nopal!

Best Mexican food in LA. I’ll drive from WEHO just for my fix.
Mole enchiladas are the best. Chips are awesome.

We discovered this place all late even though we are always in the neighborhood be used of family.
The food is fresh and delicious. The place is clean and well kept. The servers are always friendly and willing to serve. We have started to come here quiet often and the service is always excellent.
It’s a small place and we have been lucky enough to come when it’s not too busy which is always good.

Hey prick, I can afford your tacos… Maybe try and fulfill the order in a reasonable time. Goodbye.

Greeted by the hostess/​waitress Andrea and knew we were in for a good lunch. She was great. We had an appointment in the area and decided to stop in for lunch. I had the yummy Enchiladas Mexicanas and my husband had The «Beginner» Tlayuda which being a traditional dish of El Nopal was delicious and could easily been shared. We washed it down with strawberry lemonades. I had one to go… so good. We will be back!

El Nopal is really fantastic.
I’ve been going to the adjacent barbershop, Rios, for a while now, and for some reason I have always passed by El Nopal without much of a thought. For some reason, I thought it was just an overpriced taqueria, but this past weekend I was feeling superrr hungry and knew I had to eat something decent.
The day was really nice and sunny (although blustery and chilly from the winds), so I asked if I could sit outside. This particular neighborhood in Palms is ridiculously peaceful even with the busy street on the side; there’s a little «give a book, take a book» box nearby, a trading card game shop closeby, and just an air of Los Angeles weekend living. It’s really great.
I was struck by how good the service is here. The waitress was very sweet and the helping hands who brought out food and refilled water were always so responsive and helpful even though I was outside (where, presumably, it’s more difficult to keep track of patrons).
While this is a Mexican restaurant, they do specialize in Oaxacan entries – tamales and mole are plentiful and par for the course, and I know for sure I have to try them in future visits. Since the day was an absolutely frigid 65 degrees (you know you’ve been in LA too long when…), I opted to go for the caldo de res, or basically Mexican beef soup.
I’ve really never had anything like the caldo de res before, and the experience was kind of amazing. The light broth was just mystically comfort-​inducing, and the cabbage and carrots and corn and spinach inside made for a masterful medley. The ingredients all felt distinctly fresh and sharp; the accompanying onions, cilantro, and chopped jalapenos gave the soup an even sharper bite. Plus, the red rice and steaming tortillas made for an even more fun experience, as I got to play around with different flavor and texture profiles. Lastly, the beef was cooked pretty well, but I guess I’m not the biggest fan of that particular cut – next time I go for a soup, I might opt for the caldo de pollo (chicken). I also would like to note that having a lime with the soup would have been great, and in retrospect, I probably should have asked.
Overall, the food was just wonderful and absolutely new to me, and the service was more than worth it. With prices probably a bit higher than your standard Mexican fare, El Nopal is certainly a higher cut than your average taco truck (which are flipping amazing). If you don’t mind that, though, and want some quality eats with some serious authenticity, I wouldn’t overlook El Nopal in the slightest.

OMG — they are so nice here and also offer DELICIOUS food. I called to order pick-​up while at a car dealership negotiating, and so didn’t have easy access to their menu. Just said: never been here, give me the three best things! AND BOY DID THEY EVER. Delicious shrimp and cheese tacos, some amazing chicken mole — and we were eating it cold (because our friend had picked it up for us on time but we were stuck at the dealership)!
So decided to head back a few days later to dine in and taste the delciousness hot. No luck. This is why only 4 stars and not 5. It was literally impossible to find parking within a mile radius on a Wednesday night because of all the apartment buildings in the area. Booo… So we’ll stay take-​out customers.

Yummy! Super fresh food with a super friendly server. Décor and tables inside are a little drab, but it’s overshadowed by how awesome the food is.
Ordered the Tlayuda el nopal on recommendation from the server and we were not disappointed. It comes out as a huge pizza almost with a hard shell underneath to support the mound of cheese, meat, tomatoes, and avocado. Meat was well seasoned and very tender.
Also ordered the pinche ensalada which had fresh shrimp on a bed of fresh mango, avocado and jicama. A great refreshing salad for a hot humid day!
Both dishes were huge and between the two of us we didn’t finish them.
I can’t wait to come back and try something new!

Come here for the chips and salsa! The chips are definitely made there and the salsa is fresh and spicy.
We came for a light lunch and some drinks. Unfortunately they don’t serve alcohol on their patio outside but that’s ok we will know that for next time.
I had the small salad which had papaya and other delicious stuff in it with a great dressing. My husband got some kind of shrimp ceviche dish which he said was great.
They seem to have a great HH which we will definitely have to check out. There is free parking at the IMAN center which is around the corner.
Service was excellent.
FYI: they also cater food and that is how I discovered them. If you are looking for a good catering place, check this place out!!!

Such a great mom and pop mexican restaurant. We found this on Unilocal and been here a couple of times and have enjoyed it every time. The staff is super friendly and it’s never really packed there at all.
I’ve had the pozole omggg so good! They don’t have a lot of restaurants in the Westside that have that and I was so happy that we found this place for that. I’ve also gotten the camarones al mojo de ajo — so yummy!
They don’t have parking here so you have to look around the following street.

This restaurant has been bookmarked on my Unilocal page for soooo long and I am SO happy I finally came here. I live about 3 blocks away, so I walked, but there is parking around the corner available for customers (call before you go to make sure). This place has some of the best Mexican/​Oaxacan food! This is going to be dangerous for my health :)
Let me start off with the specials. Each day they have a new special, for example, I went on a Tuesday which means… Taco Tuesday! So the tacos were basically half off. Also, we came during happy hour (3−6pm and 8:30pm-close) so they had discounts on other food items and beers. Looks like I will be here every day of the week around 8:30pm haha!
The food. Oh. My. GOODNESS. The definition of «YUM». First of all, they give HUGE portions, which you will probably read in other reviews and it’s true. I saw someone order a burrito here and it was massive. I’m getting that next time for sure! They have free chips and salsa, and the chips were so good. They were really thick and crunchy. The tacos here were really hearty. I loved the chicken tacos. The rice and beans were a bonus, too! My boyfriend was craving a michelada, which is why we came here, and he said it was really, really delicious.
As I said before, I will probably be here every day of the week. The people that work here are very attentive and nice, too. You can also order for delivery on Grub Hub if you’re lazy! Love u El Nopal.

¿Como puede ser que no tenga echa una reseña de Nopal? Mi restaurante Oaxaqueño favorito de Los Angeles. Aunque ya hace un años que no viva allí no puedo dejar de recomendar este pequeño paraíso de comida mexicana. No hay manera de fallar, todos los platos que tienen estan deliciosos, y servidos con la mayor simpatía. Además de que el dueño es fan de fútbol y siempre puedes comentar el último partido con él.

The 5 star rating is not just for their amazing Oaxacan/​Mexican food, but its their customer service.
Ivan (owner/​catering manager) always bends over backwards and accommodates last minute catering lunch orders for our company. The prices are reasonable, portions are large, and food is made to order and that’s why it tastes so fresh.
Some of my favorites:
Chilaquiles
Shrimp Cocktail
Enchiladas de Mole
Salsa and Guacamole (AMAZING)
Caldo de Pollo
Burrito el Nopal
Arroz con Leche
Flan

Great Mexican food spot in palms. They have a whole section of the menu reserved for different types of moles. Yes please! I’m always inclined to get mole negro but I decided to go with their house speciality mole that was a yellow mole with olives. It was delicious. The chicken was moist and mostly white meat which I like. Would have liked some sort of veggie on the plate but I would still order it again. The place itself isn’t very nice, so don’t expect anything great for a first date or anything. It’s better for a mid week quick meal, especially since they have daily specials. The fajitas are also great.
One more thing, the portions are huge. I got two meals out of mine. You could easily split one entrée with chips and salsa.

I don’t have a whole lot of points of comparison when it comes to Oaxacan food, since I’ve only had it once eons ago. Nevertheless, El Nopal is one of my go-to’s whenever I have a hankering for Mexican grub. I’ve had their barbacoa de chivo, mole coloradito, and dos gringas oaxaquenas (shrimp). Their goat and shrimp dishes are scrumptious and you can tell that the ingredients are fresh. The mole had the right amount of sweetness and savory characteristics — it’s the perfect example of comfort food. And the menudo — love, love, love this on a chilly L.A. day. It’s a big bowl, so definitely share it with someone.
The service is always friendly. Just note that they close at 10:15 pm and not 10:30 pm.

Ivan has done a great job with this restaurant. The food is good and now they are expanding their menu. This place has really gotten their act together and is now one of my favorite Mexican /​Oaxacan restaurants. I love most of their dishes, tacos and selection of beers. I usually go with the tacos or fajitas.
FYI they have parking at the IMAN Center which is about ½ block away on Motor.
It must be Tuesday. Taco time.
Chicken with Red Mole is very good.

We were looking to have a drink somewhere local. I contemplated irish times but then decided I didn’t want beer — too heavy. So we decided on margaritas instead. We sat outside.
Unfortunately they don’t have too many alcohol options. We each had a margarita (the only one on the menu @ $ 6). They were tasty and did the job. They weren’t very strong though and they were quite sweet.
They also serve your typical chips and salsa, both homemade. The chips were yummy but if you’re gluten free, beware! They are made from flour tortillas instead of corn tortillas. I’d go back for drinks again.

Amazing Mexican food! The chile relleno burrito is friggin’ awesome!