Lost in the Sauce
Lentils and grilled chicken breast. Ground turkey and bean burritos. Chicken and vegetable stir fry. Leftovers. Shuffle, repeat. Forever.
Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate a reliable weekday meal. Between the full-time day jobs and after-school activities, finding the time and fortitude to make a nourishing home-cooked meal that all five of us will eat is a minor miracle. But day after day, week after week, dependability doesn’t inspire.
The solution? Spend an hour on Sunday and make a sauce. For me this last week, it was Guerrilla Tacos’ roasted red pepper, chile de árbol, and almond salsa. Smooth and smoky, spicy and rich, this salsa might draw inspiration from a Spanish romesco, but it tastes like Los Angeles.
I first encountered Guerrilla Tacos while listening to Jonathan Gold’s review of what was then a taco cart on KCRW’s Good Food. Chef Wes Avila made his way from Pico Rivera forklift driver to culinary school to outlaw taquero, bringing the kind of cooking usually reserved for white tablecloth restaurants to the streets, using the familiar and approachable taco as the canvas. I was a believer before ever trying a bite.
I pre-ordered the cookbook as soon as it came out. When the brick-and-mortar location in the Arts District opened, it quickly became the go-to for casual date nights and evenings out with the boys. Flavors became familiar and comforting but no less exciting or inspired.
The one thing I kept coming back to both in my kitchen and at the restaurant was the sweet potato taco. I couldn’t wrap my mind around how much flavor was packed into a taco that wasn’t carne asada, al pastor, or cochinita pibil. The smokiness, the sweetness - and it was vegetarian, no less. None of it works without the salsa.
Jonathan Gold died shortly after the restaurant opened in the summer of 2018. Then in January 2025, the Arts District location closed for good. The Los Angeles they both championed has retreated since they’ve been gone.
Back in my kitchen, my fingers burn slightly from deseeding the chile de árbol. I toast them in some oil, then add the almonds and garlic. Despite the hood vent being on high, I sneeze twice.
Jonathan Gold is gone. Guerrilla Tacos has closed. But the salsa is right here - electric orange from the Vitamix. As I spoon some onto my morning eggs, the city comes back for a minute.
