La Birria Pearl Kai Opens Today (4/8)!

La Birria opens its newest location at Pearl Kai today!  

They opened up the first La Birria food truck back in Oct. 2020 with a simple concept in mind — to take one menu item — birria tacos, and excel at it.

They have since expanded to 2 brick-and-mortars, as well as franchises.

You’ll find all the usual faves at the new spot — Birria Queso Tacos, Hell Fire Tacos, and Birria Ramen.

Birria Queso Tacos

Birria Ramen

If you dare risk your tongue, buy a Mexican Roulette pack of 12 tacos, one of which is a Hell Fire Taco (I've only ever made it through 2 bites).

Mexican Roulette (11 Birria Questo + 1 Hidden Hell Fire)

Agua Fresca • Horchata • Cold Brew Horchata • Strawberry Horchata

Congrats to the La Birria Team!

La Birria - Pearl Kai

98-199 Kamehameha Hwy

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Aloha Mamacita - Honolulu

On our quest to find our favorite place to get birria tacos, we decided to give Aloha Mamacita a try. Aloha Mamacita started out as a food truck in Ewa Beach, then they opened their first brick and mortar restaurant in Waipahu, followed by their second location in town near Costco Iwilei.  It's a little tricky to find if you're not familar with the building they're located in. Just head to Nimitz Center (where Eagle Cafe and Siam Garden Cafe is, facing Nimitz Highway), and you'll find them on the mauka side of the Center (you can take the back road off of Alakawa Street by turning by Best Buy). 

We were really impressed with the size of these birria tacos. They're larger and heftier than the ones from another food truck we've tried. I like how they load on the meat, cheese and onions. The consommé has some spiciness to it, so if you're like me and do not like spicy foods, be prepared to have a tall glass of water nearby! A plate of 3 birria tacos with consommé is currently priced at $15.

And since I was enjoying these delicious tacos at home, I cooked up a batch of Sun Noodles ramen to enjoy with the leftover consommé.  

 

To see their full menu or to place an order online, visit their website.

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ALOHA MAMACITA - NIMITZ
1130 North Nimitz Highway
(808) 650-0029

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La Birria Taco Truck

Since we were in the neighborhood, we made a quick stop at La Birria's taco truck in the Pearlridge parking lot for lunch on a Saturday afternoon. We arrived a few minutes after 11 am and there were already a couple of people ahead of us putting in their orders. Good thing we got here early, as there were a lot more people coming to get their tacos by the time we left.

What makes La Birria's tacos and saimin so amazing is the cooking process for their meats - marinated for 24 hours, then cooked low and slow for an additional 12 hours. 

I love how La Birria's menu is simple, with just three items on the menu - Birria Tacos (currently 3 for $12), Hell Fire Tacos (2 for $12), and Birria Saimin ($12). All tacos come with consommé. You can also add a side of saimin noodles to your taco order for $5, instead of buying a regular order of Birria Saimin. But we went for the full order of Birria Saimin and did not regret it one bit since it same with a generous portion of their slow cooked meat. 

La Birria is located in the Pearlridge parking lot on the Kamehameha Highway side of Pearlridge. There are a handful of food trucks in this area - look for the yellow one! Open daily 11 am - 5 pm. 

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Aloha Mamacita in Waipahu

Aloha Mamacita started as a food truck and in April opened a brick and mortar location in Waipahu next to City Nails. They serve up their famous Birria tacos as well as Birria crunch wraps, baos and more.  

3 Birria Tacos with consomme

This was the first time my kids were trying the Birria tacos and they absolutely loved it.  The tacos are generously filled with meat and cheese so just two tacos each were enough for us in one sitting.  We were so full, but we were already looking forward to eating our leftovers. 

Filled with lots of meat and cheese!

Aloha Mamacita Honolulu and Las Vegas locations are coming soon, but in the meantime go get your Aloha Mamacita birria fix in Waipahu.  Follow their IG @aloha.mamacita for more info and their $2 street taco Tuesdays!

Aloha Mamacita

94-801 Farrington Hwy

Waipahu, HI 96797

 

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Sistah and La Birria at Beer Lab HI Kitchen Pearlridge

I have wanted to try Sistah and La Birria for some time now, but those long lines at their food trucks scared me!  Good thing I have a friend that is a genius because she suggested we meet up at Beer Lab HI Pearlridge on a Tuesday when Sistah and La Birria split the kitchen for the day. 

Seating at Beer Lab is first come first serve and you order your drinks from the bar.  They offer 10 beers on tap and can fill growlers and crowlers for beer to-go.  I had the Pineapple Cruzer from Paradise Ciders which is a cider brewed with Hawaiian Gold pineapple and my friend, Malia, had the Ice Shave, an ale with strawberry, orange, and li hing mui.  It was a nice way to end the work day.

Malia is a huge fan of Sistah's Chicken Katsu so we started with that and the Mexican Carne Asada fries.  The chicken katsu was exceptionally crispy and served with either katsu sauce or a white mushroom gravy.  We opted for the gravy and it was so delicious!  I can see why it is her all time favorite katsu!  The Sistahs style carne asada fries with streak is topped with cheddar, Mexican cheese and fresh homemade pico de gallo. The huge serving of yummy fries is perfect for sharing.

Chicken Katsu

Mexican Carne Asada Fries

As anticipated, the menu for La Birria goes online at 5pm on Tuesdays.  Food orders are placed online and picked up at the take out counter.  We started with the Birria saimin and followed that up with the Birria tacos: birria queso for Malia and Hell Fire for me.  It was my first time trying birria saimin and tacos.  The saimin comes with flavorful birria beef, cilantro, and onions. You receive the consomme in a separate container that you pour over the saimin.  It is delicious and perfect for the recent cold weather.  I was getting super full, but I just had to try the spicy Hell Fire tacos.  Malia warned me to have my drink ready, but I thought, it'll be fine, I like spicy!  After the first bite, I thought, wow, this is amazing!  Then I took a second and third bite and the heat started kicking in and I ran to the bar in desperation of water as I had finished my beer. True story. That taco was awesome.

Birria Saimin

Birria Queso Tacos

Hell Fire Tacos with homemade pickled jalepenos.

Birria Quesadilla

The concept at Beer Lab HI is to feature a rotating array of independent local chefs creating new and exciting dishes to pair with their changing beer menu. Currently in addition to Sistah and La Birria, Flyin' Ahi is also scheduled for kitchen duty.  Check out the calendar here for the rotating kitchen schedule. 

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Birria Tacos and Birria Ramen at Barrio Cafe

I've been a fan of Barrio Cafe ever since they opened in Wahiawa just over three years ago.  They have fabulous Mexican food, even for breakfast!

I've been eyeing their Instagram for a while - especially the Birria Tacos, which have been quite trendy not only on Oahu, but throughout the nation as well.  You have to pre-order them (currently only sold on Tuesdays and Wednesdays), so when I finally had a chance to pre-order, I ordered a 20-pack of Birria Queza Tacos, along with Birria Ramen, Guacamole, and Salsa.

Birria Tacos

Consome

The tacos are filled with braised beef and cheese (you can order the tacos without cheese) and you dip them in the accompanying consomé.  

SO GOOD!  The tacos by themselves are flavorful, and dipping it into the consomé just added extra layors of flavor.

You can also order Birria Ramen to dip the tacos in (made with the same bone marrow broth as the consomé).

Birria Ramen

I ordered sides of salsa and guacamole (they both come with a small bag of chips) to round out the taco feast.  

Salsa

Guacamole

Follow Barrio Cafe on Instagram to find out when pre-orders are open!  

Barrio Cafe
672 Kilani Ave
Wahiawa, HI 96786
(808) 622-3003

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