I met a NY friend who moved to California when I visited recently. We met halfway at Ola Mexican Kitchen in Long Beach and sat outside with the Pacific Ocean as a backdrop.

She recommended the Skinny Margarita ($12) made with Sauza Blue fresh lime juice, agave and a splash of club soda. We sipped a couple of those while catching up and nibbling warm tortilla chips dipped in their fresh salsa.

For dinner, we each had tacos (two $14, three $17) in their soft handmade tortillas. My favorite was filled with a thick strip of lightly battered and fried rockfish topped with cotija cheese, chile-lime aioli and tequila citrus slaw.  That same aioli came with the pan-seared blackened shrimp plus guacamole, all sprinkled with and pomegranate arils. The veggie one contained asparagus, shitake mushrooms, corn and avocado in a guajillo pepper sauce. All were tasty as was our side of Abuela’s (grandma’s) black beans and rice $6. The food tasted even better than it looked.

I do recommend if you’re in the area.

Ola Mexican Kitchen
2nd & PCH
6420 E Pacific Coast Hwy. Suite 230
Long Beach, CA
562-430-0055
https://olamexicankitchen.com/locations/long-beach/