Nostalgia Gorditas

🇲🇽 MÉXICO (COAHUILA)
📍 5835 Bellflower Blvd., Lakewood, The Harbor

🅿️ Ample parking in plaza

EDITOR'S NOTE: The first visit written about here took place at Sara's Market in East Los Angeles while the vendor was a sidewalk stand. Nostalgia Gorditas now has a permanent location in Lakewood that opened 14 January 2023, and that address is reflected above. See bottom of article for pictures of new location, taken from a 17 January 2023 visit.

At the beginning of the pandemic, there was an intense warranted fear for the food industry. Most of the passionate people who make foods for their communities were not the type that had months (and years!) of savings to hold out until things got to normal, and a future of only McDonalds and Chipotle was suddenly easy to envision. While many restaurants and chefs were unfortunately pushed from their passions, the ingenuity of many more grew in the same space and especially in Los Angeles a new crop of ideas was formed.

Like many others who were forced to stay home and still needed to make money, the family that began Nostalgia Gorditas saw a desire for certain products and decided to take the leap into informal cooking. Enough encouragement from the catering engagements of friends eventually led to pop-up events and a more public face. And suddenly the flour-based gorditas beloved in Torreón, Cuahuila were available to the city of Los Angeles.

This of course is what the nostalgia here is for, another food from back home that was not easy to find. While you will find the more common corn-based gorditas in Coahuila as well, stands serving guisados to fill both are everywhere in the mornings, the best selling out before noon. As the new business grows, they have adapted a schedule more friendly for afternoons and Californians, and events like this recent one in front of Sara's Market in City Terrace was open from 14:00-18:00.

On any given day when you can find these gorditas being griddled on the sidewalk, there seems to be four options available, some of which rotate. On this day, papas rojas, tinga de pollo, and frijoles con queso joined perennial favorite chicharrón verde. Orders are executed fast as all the guisados are cooked ahead of time and stuffed into the gorditas before a quick warming up on the grill.

All gorditas are $4.

If you make the same selection one day as the basket above, eat the tinga (above, 2nd from bottom) first as it is by far the juiciest and will seep into the fluffy, chewy wrapper fastest. Like most guisados, these do not necessarily need salsas, but they do provide a red and green which are both delicious. The bean and cheese (above, bottom) version is probably the best to experiment with the smoky red and earthy green salsas, a gooey gordita that will satisfy both vegetarians and meat eaters alike.

If you look back through the Instagram feed of these chefs, you will see chicharrón verde (below) at the top of the menu at almost every event. After eating this delicious guisado, it is apparent why as it is the shining star of the operation. They use cubes of fatty pork belly rather than the fried pork rinds you would normally see, but it is so wonderful you will not be missing anything.

During a short chat after ordering, this was the only one recommended to take just a bit of the green salsa on it, and this checked out. The big chunks of pork belly are perfectly cooked and live in a thick wonderful sauce. You will dream about this gordita for days.

Check out Nostalgia Gorditas on Instagram to keep up with their next events and find when they will be headed close to you. Or better yet, get your next event catered by the team and introduce your friends and family to gorditas de harina estilo Torreón, Cuahuila!

[UPDATE 17 JANUARY 2023: Photos from new location]

New Lakewood location opened 14 January 2023

All gordita varieties now $4.49

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