Petty Cash Taqueria

The food was excellent and loved the DJ playing 80s pop! I had the Grilled Octopus and Organic Chicken Haberno Taco, both great and loved watching the tortillas being made fresh. Tasted my friend’s Machaha Quesadilla and it was on point. Drinks are on the pricy side but great time nonetheless.

yum yum! but very crowded. I had several tacos, the guacamole with sea urchin and that was heaven. i can’t wait to go there again.

I finally made it to Petty Cash after all these years because they are now open for lunch.
Petty Cash Taqueria is Chef Walter Manzke’s (of über-​popular Republique) other restaurant that some people might not know about.
Chef Walter’s Modern Mexican restaurant has Chef Fabian Gallardo taking the lead in the kitchen as the head chef. Chef Walter Manzke collaborated with Chef Guillermo «Oz» Campos Moreno of Tacos Kokopelli restaurants in Tijuana originally for their menu.
Chef Fabian Gallardo was born and raised in Leon, Mexico. He moved to New York City and studied at the French Culinary Institute and staged at L’Ecole and Café Boulud. He then became chef de cuisine at Vice Versa in New York and was there for 14 years before deciding to move to Los Angeles.
This is not your average taqueria. The Instagrammable cuisine that Chef Fabian is cooking is inventive, local, and seasonal. It’s very similar to the cooking I have tasted from the young chefs in Mexico that are getting a lot of attention these days by the media and world-​renowned chefs.
Fresh from my almost one-​week food adventure in Mexico City, I can imagine this restaurant being very popular there. There are many young chefs in Mexico inspired by Mexican street food as well and taking it to a higher level.
I happened to be in the area for lunch and decided to drop in since they are now open for lunch. On my mind were their grilled octopus tacos and their fresh tortillas. I’ve had this addicting «kraken» octopus taco before during my visits to Tacos Kokopelli in Tijuana, and also at Tacolandia over the years.
Some may not call Petty Cash Taqueria a «destination restaurant,» but after visiting today I can tell you in my opinion that Petty Cash Taqueria IS a destination restaurant for those that don’t want to drive all the way to Tijuana to eat this taco.
Along with the 2 grilled octopus tacos I had for lunch today, I also had the fish taco which I’ve also had already tasted before at Petty Cash when they were located in the Arts District. Definitely one of the top fish tacos in Los Angeles!
The service was really attentive and friendly. I think this is key to dining out and my level of satisfaction. The reason for me to return. If I lived in the neighborhood, I would imagine myself in at least twice month.
I loved the music they played as well which is curated by Chef Fabian himself. I enjoyed eating my tacos to the music of A Tribe Called Quest. Very similar to what you’ll hear at any of Chef Roy Choi’s restaurants or at Bestia.
Petty Cash Taqueria is now open for lunch from Wednesday through Sunday so if you work in the area, definitely check them out. It’s also definitely worth the drive too when you’re in the mood for upscale tacos at a chef-​driven Mexican restaurant. Along with tacos, I recommend tasting their cocktails and mezcal.
Highly recommended if you haven’t visited yet and worth a revisit for lunch. Go for chef-​driven, elevated take on Mexican street food in LA!
BTW Food & Wine Magazine ranked Petty Cash Taqueria «top tacos in the USA» if you’re aren’t convinced yet.
For a taste of the influential culinary scene of Baja and Mexico City, a visit to Petty Cash Taqueria is a must in LA!

The atmosphere was pretty lively, the décor was cool and our waitress was very friendly. We had the margaritas to drink which were very good, definitely not too sweet. Started with chips and guac — pretty good, but nothing special. The dorado tacquitos (under tacos on the menu) was the best value. The cauliflower nachos were by far the best item we tried. The tacos were a little pricey, but they definitely came stacked with meat + ingredients. Each tortilla was extremely soggy, so even though all the tacos tasted pretty good, eating them was not enjoyable.
There were only two of us and all our food came out within 5 minutes… we ordered 6 different things and our last two tacos were cold by the time we got to them.

Fancy Mexican Food/​Seafood with BOMBASS margaritas. High energy environment but totally different vibes day vs night, depending on what time you come. I enjoy coming here during the day because they have great lighting from the open sun roof windows whereas night vibes have a more date-​y vibe since its kind of dimly lit.
Bar seating or communal shared tables as well as some private tables but everything is pretty close together. Good 1 on 1 date spot or group hang. I like group hangs because you can share more food, obviously.
Recommendations:
BOMB​.COM — guacamole with sea urchins and chicarrones, not that their guac isn’t good enough already lets zazzz it up some mo
Cauliflower Nachos — didn’t even miss the meeeeats (comes in half size)
Gringa Style Quesadilla — also comes in half size
GRILLED OCTOPUS TACOS — my absolute favorite here! and they make their own tortilla! note — its a $ 6 taco but worth every bite. i think its also only available for dinner.
Parking — Street parking or Valet

If you are going to Petty Cash to try their pig ears nachos… They don’t serve it anymore.
The place is way less than average Mexican food, tiny portions, and super expensive. I wish I can undo this dining experience.

Dined on a Tuesday night and found the place to be buzzing with music and conversation. Reservations would be recommended even on a weekday. Staff were prompt even on a busy evening… as our table needed to be cleaned and to avoid delay the greeter hopped right in to take care of it so we could be seated. A great place for happy hour but not so much for a quiet sit down dinner.
Vegetarian selections were slim but AMAZING! Shared a plate of the cauliflower nachos that was bursting with flavor & texture. The crispy kale was a nice touch when paired with the light, crisp, and fresh tasting chips.
We sampled the dorados (potato taquitos); 3 per order @ $ 5. Even the condiments were delicious :) Great deal when considering the mushroom taco (not pictured) was the same price.
Drinks were creative, artistic and had an interesting spin on the standard cocktail with a Mexican twist. Recommend the «Hibiscus Better Have My Money».
Would definitely come back… but hope the chef considers adding a few more veggie options to the menu. Otherwise a major hit!

At Petty Cash Taqueria they do a swell job at plate presentation. The food that comes on your dish is vibrant and bursting with color, I’d say it absolutely has flare. Thing is, that’s about it. While the food isn’t nasty, it definitely isn’t the best Mexican I’ve had. To make matters worse, the prices are everything but petty. I’ll get to that on my closing statement, let me talk food and drinks first.
We started off with the taquitos dorados, seriously, some of the best I’ve had. They were crisp, crunchy, flaky, and everything that should describe a damn taquito. I mean they were probably the reason why I would return, aside from the «take a shot get a shot» (take a picture for your preferred social media outlet, tag them, and you get a shot) happy hour special they have. The grilled shrimp taco was nothing I can’t find elsewhere — better tasting and possibly even cheaper. At $ 6.50 a pop, trust, I will find it elsewhere. We also had Mary’s Organic Chicken Nachos, some of which I would consider passable. That’s the problem, they’re just passable. They come with a soft egg over them, since that is the latest infatuation with Mexican food. I would skip the egg and the organic all together, it’s just trying too hard. The silver lining? Those taquitos de papa…
The drinks were a little better, and another reason why I would return. I had a Rye, Felisha. Not only is the name on point, but rye and mezcal mixed together with cacao, chipotle, orange flower water, and charred chili de arbol is like the perfect solution to fix all your life’s problems. My girlfriend had another mezcal drink but I can’t recall what it was named. Her initial judgment was that it was too sweet, but it ultimately didn’t matter when she was feeling good after. So I say there is some strength in their cocktail program.
My suggestion is come for the drinks or the happy hour, along with a strategic plan to pick the best and most cost effective dishes to pair with your drinks. I mention this because petty cash is the last thing you’ll be spending. Maybe spending money on small things stays true to the name, but the costs will not be small. Then again, it is a restaurant on Beverly so I understand the pricing, but some items are ridiculously priced. The interior and exterior design are fun and trendy, if that’s any consolation. My take is; if you’re going to do Beverly, you might as well go with stylish. Petty Cash offers that.

My husband brought me here after he went with some friends the night before. Im always cautious of checking out «hip» Mexican restaurants because it’s usually a flavor disaster but this place was surprisingly good.
Positives– happy hour, amazing. Great drink and food specials (boozey Aguas frescas!!) The carnitas tacos — WOW! I don’t think I’ve had better carnitas anywhere outside of Mexico.
Negatives – outside of happy hour, if you want to eat to get full you’re going to spend some money. $ 6 for a tiny taco?! And everything else is tapas sized with full plate prices.
Overall this place was great. While the carnitas we had was amazing, everything else was just good but not spectacular.

Met a friend for happy hour /​dinner. First, the vibe is quite fun and the place definitely filled up as it got more into the evening on the Friday night we stopped in. The service was good, very on top of things and helpful with the menu. We both tried their Agua Fresca Con Booze — it’s a fun concept: a different agua fresca (fresh juice) each night, and then you pick the spirit you want them to add, so I added rum to mine and my friend added mescal and vodka and we both enjoyed them! fun to customize your cocktail!
We also got the crispy Brussels sprouts which were cooked perfectly, large-​ish portion, great for sharing, and a mix of both savory and spicy. We really enjoyed them.
During happy hour they offer 2 for 1 Taco of the Day. The taco was shrimp the day we were there, so we got them — they were good. not spectacular, but solidly good… a little greasy… at 2 for 1 they are a good deal. I think also got an Al Pastor — I think I liked that one a tad better.
We were somehow convinced to get the bunelos dessert — they fell flat. just kinda boring…
If I could give 3.5 stars that’s what I would actually want to give, but I’m going to have to rate on the lower side of that since I can only rate in whole stars…
I would actually go back, and maybe try a few other things to see if I were more impressed with the food. But it is definitely a great deal for happy hour!

I hate to leave a bad review but the place really disappointed! I love tacos and I really wanted to love this place but I didn’t.
— tacos are WAY overpriced and lack flavor or anything special.
— the food has no love, no flare, not enough seasoning and just really boring. :(
With love I would highly recommend the chef and owner of this establishment to re think then menu if they want to stay in business, as I can’t imagine anyone wanting to come back here when there are so many amazing places in LA to Mexican food.
Décor was nice though.

I stopped in today for lunch. Service is very quick and friendly. Guacamole is made from farm fresh avocados and is delicious! Dorados tacos, crispy rolled potatoes with tomatillo sauce and cotillia cheese were very tasty. I also loved the grilled ribeye carne asada taco with ref tied beans and guacamole! Tortillas are freshly made too.

So… the food and service continue to be very good.
As a business owner I pay for my employees’ health benefits, vacation and sick pay not only because it’s the right thing to do but I could NEVER ask my employees to pander towards our clients with a bill asking for an optional payment towards their health benefits costs. I never add a 3% Health Pay/​Cost to my invoices as Petty Cash does now. I don’t know when this has started on their bills but it says if you do not wish to pay this additional cost for our employees’ health please let your server know this. WHAT?! So instead of Petty Cash owning up that they are not paying enough towards their employees’ health costs, as a paying diner I have to be the bad guy. No thanks. I paid the 3% of course. NEVER going back here. I wonder what their employees have to pay vs. what Petty Cash contributes towards their health benefits’ costs. How embarrassing for this company.

Unilocal Challenge 2016 ⁸⁰⁄₁₁₆
Petty cash is one of those places you come just to hang out, have a drink or two and take in the scenery. Super trendy with a large bar and plenty of tables in different sizes. Some are low, some are high, some are park bench like, made for sharing. Super cool space overlooking Beverly Blvd.
It is not a place you come Hungry. Especially when street tacos are about $ 6.00 a piece. Menu is limited. Consisting of tacos, quesdillas, nachos, gourmet Brussels sprouts, ect. My carne asada and pork belly tacos were super tastey, but so tiny. One would have to order 3 – 4 tacos to get their fill. So, I was kind of disappointed in the value. 2 tacos, a $ 4 bottle of coke and 1 quesdilla was close to $ 30 with tip. An added 3% surcharge is applied to all bills to help cover costs of benefits for staff. First time I’ve ever seen this charge. So, we left hungry. I ended up looking for more food down the street.
Okay, I get it. People come here to drink. Not to eat. Their drink menu looked good. Mostly everyone was nursing down their potions and ordering more. If your into drinking you will dig this place. The place was poppin for sure!
Service was pretty good. Manager accommodated us and allowed us to occupy a large prime table right in front of the window for 3 hours. Originally he said we had it till 8:00, but extended it to 9:00. When 9:00 came, we stayed another 20 minutes.
Although the value of the food was not worth my dollar, service exceeded all expectations. My friends all had a great time and were nothing but smiles. They drank and ate. I guess me and the mister were the ones who needed more food.
Parking is inconvienent. It is street or Valet only. I believe they park your car in a lot across Beverly Blvd. I kept seeing them jaywalk to retrieve the cars. We parked in residential area a few blocks down, and moved our car after 2 hours on the same street.
So value is 3 stars
Service 4 Stars
Ganna round this one up only because I don’t drink and for the good service. If your just eating then 3 stars.
Honestly, service goes a long ways for me. The food was good, just not very filling.
I think you may like this place.
#880

Seriously good food! I would always drive past this place and finally got a chance to go last night with my work crew & it was divine! Their kale nachos are AMAZING, as are their brussel sprouts & shrimp tacos. Like, REALLY good shrimp tacos. Oh, and their house margarita is also great. Add an extra kick to it with «the good shit» (what they call it) and you’ll certainly be a happy camper.
Good customer service as well and nice ambiance. Look forward to going back.

Pretty good mexican food! I got to try some of their main dishes like the pork quesadillla that was very good. It’s a must to get the guac and chips, you can never go wrong with that. Please order the hamachi ceviche just so damn good!
Service is pretty good, and i love the scene of this place. Very laid back and it’s the type of place you want to come for happy hour and enjoy some drinks, good company, and food.

Ok so I will start off by saying this place is just not what you may think. The name of it may make you think you walk in, order tacos, then head out. Well, let me tell you, there is more than meets the eye for sure.
So came to meet a friend here for dinner and since he had been here before we went with his recommendations. The hamachi was amazing, a bit on the pricey ($ 19) side but worth every penny i must say. We even ordered a second plate. We also shared their pork quesadilla which was also tasty and their guacamole was very nice, it tasted fresh and the chips were crunchy.
Here is where my average rating comes into play, so yes the food was good, and the staff nice. We will be back for sure, however I was a little disappointed on one of the charges I had on my bill. Apparently there is a 3% «healthy staff» charge that gets added to the bill, no mind you, its a 3% that was not too big of a deal but I really dislike when restaurants like to surprise their client with these type charges. I have yet to figure out what that charge is for but I hope its the staff getting the charge in their pockets. I left a significant tip so that 3% can add up for each check they get. I will find out what they do with that charge and update my review if i feel its fair or unfair charge.

The space is open, lively, and I like the overall ambience.
The hostess is always friendly and accommodating.
As for the food, the highlight of the menu has to be the cauliflower nachos for me. The tacos are pretty good (standouts were the al pastor & octopus), but for 6 bucks a pop I was hoping for better than «pretty good». Pig ear nachos are not bad, but salty– didn’t really care for more than a few bites.
Of the few times I’ve visited, service was usually okay. No real complaints there. But maybe just avoid being seated at the bar because my last experience was subpar. Of the five tacos we ordered, one taco was dropped off individually every ¹⁰⁄₁₅ minutes. And let me just point out that these tacos are palm sized and can be finished within a few bites so it made for many awkward, hungry gaps throughout the dinner. Also, drinks took a while… and we were seated at the bar. On top of that, we never received one of the orders we made. I get that stuff like this happens and it’s really not a huge deal, but the unfriendliness and inattentiveness of the server made the entire experience a more negative one.
Anyways, that was just a one time experience so I’m not going to base their quality of service entirely on that. But the overall quality of the food is just average– which does not reflect on the price. Petty cash is not what you’ll be spending here.
I’d say check it out for happy hour if you must try it.

Started the meal with guacamole and chips. The chips came warm! I wish the guacamole had a hint of lime, but there was none! (They were out of uni too :(- boo)
Then came the Machaca Quesadilla! Meat was savory and the tortilla was so soft! You can taste the meet and peppers — I would highly recommend this!
The chicken taco was tasty! The taco was packed with so much meat — the meat to vegetable ratio was just perfect!
The fish taco was delicious! The fish was not oily, which I really appreciated. The taco was definitely not drenched in oil at all!
If I’m feeling adventurous, I will try the octopus taco next time!
The Dorados were very warm and with just the right amount of crunch. It comes with shredded cabbage and pickled radish on top. (You get 3 pieces).
The Agua Fresca was alright, there was a lot of ice so it watered down the drink a lot.
I’ll be back for more tacos and to try the different quesadillas.
*their interior is awesome here — industrial meets rustic

Wow, what an ironic name! Calling a place «petty cash» when they charge $ 6 per tiny street taco… Impressive! You have to have serious stones to tell that lie.
The tacos weren’t that bad. The carne asada and pork belly carnitas were well-​made but when you make street food with fancy ingredients, it never comes out quite right. Just be sure to skip the pig ear nachos — trust me, you don’t want a single layer of maybe 12 – 14 chips, drowning in a slurry of sour cream, with a half-​cooked (runny white… ewww) egg. Do the math — it’s like $ 1 per chip! The octopus taco was good but not good enough to endure the atrocious service.
We ordered everything together, but they served only one of our four cocktails, then the appetizer, followed by the remaining three drinks. The ice in the first drink was mostly melted and the appetizer finished by the time the other three drinks arrived.
Then, they served the tacos one at a time, first one side of the table, then the other so we had to watch each other eat or the taco would get cold. This went on for SIX rounds of tacos!!! I rarely give one-​start reviews just for service, but this one was a new low.