No cabe duda que cae más pronto un hablador que un cojo. Even though one of my main New Year resolutions was to eat healthy and cut back on junk food, I had been doing a good job by eating relatively healthy… that is, until my system began craving some trans fat and a much needed fix of antojitos mexicanos. Thus I began my search for the perfect diet-breaker. After going a long while with no bread and flavorful rich food, I ran to the nearest “Tacos Don Chente” and ordered a pambazo. Sin embargo, much to my disappointment, no era lo que yo esperaba y fue así que me di a la tarea de encontrar el pambazo perfecto. Finding a decent joint that specializes in tortas would be a rather difficult task in any other place, but when you have the magical land of East L.A. so near, it takes some research and a little bit of luck to come across your destination. Después de todo, preguntando se llega a Roma.
Drive-thru
Even though driving nowadays is more of a drag, de vez en cuando a todos nos pega la loquera por manejar sin rumbo. Ya sea que estés en busca de un nuevo restaurante or you’re just THAT bored, there’s never a dull moment while cruising Atlantic Blvd.- it’s literally a melting pot, from Monterey Park all the way to East L.A. and beyond.
I literally stumbled upon a true hole-in-the-wall torta jem in Monterey Park called “Cook’s Tortas”. The name itself was not enough to drag me in, after all, you can’t help but expect Americanized food from a joint that specializes in tortas but whose name is as American as can be.
What attracted me in was the scent of freshly baked bread.
Now that’s something you hardly ever see- Mexican food joints that bake their own bolillos right there and then, so that was enough for me to give it a shot.
The place itself is what you would expect from a hole-in-the-wall: pleasant and warm with an inviting atmosphere. Its décor is quite reminiscent of a college cafeteria, emphasis on college- not high school. It’s pretty simplistic and chill, and adding to “Cook’s Tortas” charm is their floor-to-ceiling chalk board menu.
Tortas Galore
At “Cook’s Tortas” you’ll find a wide selection of tortas. Aside from “classics” you’ll find some new fusions that borrow not only Mexican and American ingredients and flavors, but you’ll also find South American- inspired tortas.
For starters, eating at “Cook’s” is rather affordable. You can pretty much have a really good and filling meal for less than 10 bucks- drink and dessert included.
You can get the “meal” which consists of your torta of choice and a small side order.
As usual, I ventured into this culinary adventure with my partner in crime, which always maximizes the amount of items I get to try- after all, sharing is caring.
We ordered a pambazo, a torta ahogada and a torta California, along with a side of red fries and potato salad.
So good it can’t be bad
Para empezar, el pambazo estaba como para chuparse los dedos, and that was just by looking at it and feeding off of its aroma. The first bite was orgasmic, the pambazos at “Cook’s Tortas” are sure to give you a culinary boner even if you’re more frigid than an Alaskan Penguin on top of an iceberg.
Their pambazos come with the basics: el guisado típico de chorizo con papas, lechuga y crema; however their flavor comes as close as it can be to an original pambazo from Chilangolandia.
On the other hand, la torta ahogada dejó mucho que desear. While it had a good taste, if you’ve had a real torta ahogada before, sabes que la torta lleva ese nombre porque está literalmente ahogada en salsa, which is generally spicy as hell.
Las tortas ahogadas en “Cook’s Tortas” están ahogadas, pero en carne- not that it’s a bad thing, but the salsa is so mild that if it weren’t for the mess it’s prone to make, you wouldn’t even notice it.
La torta California turned out to be like a chicken sandwich- grilled chicken, avocado, tomato, cream, salsa, and lettuce.
There’s always room for dessert
You can wash down all their delicacies with their popular agua de pepino y limón- it’s fresh, refreshing and extremely addictive. You might want to order some extra agua fresca to go.
Just like their bolillos, the cookies at “Cook’s Tortas” are freshly baked; their Mexican chocolate cookies are simply ba-na-nas.
“Cook’s Tortas” definitely delivers some outstanding tortas. Not bad, not bad at all.
Cook’s Tortas
1944 S. Atlantic Blvd.
Monterey Park, CA 91754
323.278.3536
