Mercado (El), Los Angeles

The Mercadito Restaurant is a very special place! Lots of great food filled with true Mexican roots Live mariachi every night great fun for the family you have to experiance it for your self words truly cant discribe how special it really is!

Yeah it's filthy and dirty, just like lots of parts of Mexico! However, you will find the best Barbacoa Gordita on the planet at my favorite restaurant called El Fuente. (That place is pretty decent & clean). It's filled with a lot of drunken mariachi loving, spanish speaking people. I highly recommend it! Don't forget to try the churros in the basement store. You can also pick up pretty cheap priced guayabera and not have to pay them tourist trap prices, like you do at Olvera Street!

I would definitely recommend a visit to this unique place. You can find all kinds of candied fruits, churros, etc., seafood and mexican food, as well as stores selling hats, clothes, a supermarket... It has a laidback atmosphere and it is open late on the weekends so you can listen to mariachi music after the shops close. If you think Olvera Street is too touristy, then go here instead. It is a little outdated looking and crowded, but then again that kind of adds to the vibe... think more like chinatown (but latino), less like the mall.

El Mercado in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles represents anything but Mexico... It's dirty, filthy, infested with pests, rodent and other critters. I grew up in Boyle Heights and it's ashame there is a lack of quality business management. The majority of the products are manufactured and made in China. Give me a break.

The products at el mercado are all over priced. There restaurants have so much flyes is hard to walk in. I think that their prices are ridiculos and i dont understand why people shop here.

This place may not be grade A. . . but have you ever come to the conclusion that we all long for a little mexico? A mexico with no rules or regulations but rather heart and a homely value. . . well that's what I found this time I visited the city of Los Angeles. Now, after a long day of joining my grandfathers ashes to the sea our family and I decided to stop by and buy some of the famous equites, afterwards we decided to walk around and enjoy the music, the laughter and above all the commerce. Beyond all expectations, Beyond all words it filled me with great pleasure to find a place that doesn't worry about worrying. ~*Zayda_Star*~ age.16 -SJHS

El Mercado of Los Angeles is very filthy and unkept. For many years the place has been a haven for rodents, cockroaches and bad elements that is positive to the community and the customers. It is a public safety and health hazard that is very dangerous. Over 2 million dollars worth of illegal pharmaceuticals were found by the LA County Health Department and unqualified people were dispensing drugs to children and families. This is not reflective of the Mexican people and culture.

I recently went to El Mercadito because I was invited to tag along. I have been there before and at the age of 12 it was ok. But, this second time I went I really enjoyed experiencing and enjoying live cultural music plus the food. Yes, its not a high quality clean looking place but that is not what grabbed my attention. I love going there because it takes me back to my roots on eating and listening to Mexican music.

You go to El Mercado to experience Mexico in LA. Its worthwhile! It gets very crowded on Sundays. There is live music (mariachis) upstairs and its a nice place for the family to go.