Birria LES

"This combined effort of Iqbal “Iggy” Ahmed, Emon Ullah, and Raymundo Garcia resulted in one of the first birrieria to serve halal meat. Why not goat? “It’s way too expensive,” Ahmed told me one evening. The birria tacos here are pleasantly soupy, heaped with lots of onion and cilantro, and consomé is available on the side. This place also marks birria’s advent on the Lower East Side." - Robert Sietsema

"Birria LES was a key part of a new wave of halal restaurants that have appeared over the last few years, geared to younger observant diners who didn’t want to restrict themselves to traditionally available cuisines like Middle Eastern and Pakistani. Hence, a halal restaurant highlighting Mexico’s birria, the now ubiquitous beef braised with red chiles" - Caroline Shin, Robert Sietsema

"Some things lose their allure when they’re no longer a secret. Other things only get better, like Birria Taco, a walk-in only Mexican-inspired spot in Kensal Rise. What started as a IYKYK takeaway-only pop-up in a hotel basement in 2020, grew into a popular residency in . And it's now taken its final form as a permanent restaurant that we hope will stick around. In all its reincarnations, Birria Taco hasn’t lost the consistent, excellent quality of tacos. A runway to the till splits the lively, spacious, corridor-like room in two, both sides occupied by hungry people who have made the trip across the city to satisfy a birria taco craving. QR codes are scanned and patience is impossible to exercise when tables nearby dip fragrant lamb-filled tacos in shallow bowls of consommé, unintentionally taunting, as you wait eagerly for your order to appear. Multiple hands reach in simultaneously to grab a chunky, birria beef-topped chip, and the loud hum of voices of people whose life updates are so juicy it could replace the consommé, fills the room.  Birria tacos, birria-loaded fries, and birria ramen—everything at this warm, laid-back spot revolves around the adobo-marinated meat stew. And what a stew it is. Angus beef is cooked until it’s so tender it almost dissolves in your mouth, leaving behind the rich meaty flavour and a desire to get another round in immediately. When ordering tacos, we always end up in the upper range of 'a lot' to 'probably too much'. " - Rianne Shlebak

"This fast-casual place on Rivington pretty much only does birria (the exception of cups of very mayo-y, off the cob elote). But both their tacos and mulitas are solid options, and are the vessels for very shreddy stewed beef that’s slightly spicy. Order the taco with cheese if you’re looking for more of a quesabirria situation (which cost the same as the regular tacos, $4 a pop), but any option you get comes with a helping of birria that we would give our significant others when we are feeling particularly loving and grateful for their existence - a.k.a a lot." - Hannah Albertine, Nikko Duren, Carlo Mantuano

"This fast-casual place on Rivington pretty much only does birria (the exception of cups of very mayo-y, off the cob elote). But both their tacos and mulitas are solid options, and are the vessels for very shreddy stewed beef that’s slightly spicy. Order the taco with cheese if you’re looking for more of a quesabirria situation (which cost the same as the regular tacos, $4 a pop), but any option you get comes with a helping of birria that we would give our significant others when we are feeling particularly loving and grateful for their existence - a.k.a a lot. photo credit: Alex Staniloff" - Carlo Mantuano