Many chefs have an entrepreneurial spirit the which leads them to open a restaurant of their own. If the concept succeeds, the entrepreneurial spirit remains strong, and frequently, a chef will launch another restaurant. After all, if they have name recognition, they already have a built-in following. One such chef is Neal Fraser. He recently opened El Granjero in the original Farmer’s Market.
Fraser understands the importance of branding and created the Fritzi brand for his casual fare. He began with Fritzi with rotisserie chicken as their specialty, which later became Fritzi Coop known for their fried chicken. El Granjero operates under his Fritzi brand.
According to Forbes, a bad location can set an owner up for failure before the grand opening occurs. Fraser selected an ideal venue for El Granjero, steps away from the parking lot and immediately adjacent to The Grove LA. Visibility is vital for a restaurant, and there is a lot of foot traffic in that area.
Despite having reservations well in advance, we were seated in the corner with an intense glare and heat from the sun. Fortunately, the manager gave us new seats in the shaded section. The tables are small and are ideal for ordering individual orders. With that limitation, we could not order a bunch of plates to share.
Esquites is a Mexican street corn salad; think of it as an off-the-cob elote. The corn exhibited a pleasantly charred flavor mixed with chipotle aioli, cheese, cilantro, and scallions. Unlike elote, the dish is served cold but is bursting with flavor.
We ordered shrimp tacos and potato tacos. The tacos are pan-fried dorado style, which results in a crispy taco. My wife added chicken to her tacos and commented that there was quite a bit of chicken in her tacos. Since the taco isn’t spicy, the supplied salsa is a nice flavor boost.
The shrimp lacked grill marks which led me to believe that they were boiled. While they were plump and moist, they lacked the additional flavor achieved from grilling. The addition of grated cheese, capers, diced Castelvetrano olives, and tomatoes nicely enhanced their taste.
If you don’t enjoy eating with your hands, the selection of “Los Tazones” or bowls is for you. Many of the tacos are available in a Los Tazones format. The Keto Bowl is the unique addition served with a choice of carnitas, braised beef or tomatillo chicken cauliflower rice, griddled cheese, cabbage slaw, marinated kale, and crema.
Since it is called a cantina, the libations are one of the big draws. They have a choice of “cocktails on tap,” one of them being a Paloma. Their specialty cocktails use premium brands such as Don Julio and Casa Amigos. Wine and beer are also available.
El Granjero Cantina (inside the Original Farmers Market) 6333 W 3rd St, Los Angeles, CA 90036
cantinala.com