{"id":179940,"date":"2025-08-27T14:35:14","date_gmt":"2025-08-27T14:35:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/179940\/"},"modified":"2025-08-27T14:35:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-27T14:35:14","slug":"the-tiny-coastal-mexican-state-of-colima-has-standout-seafood-and-two-la-food-trucks-to-try","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/179940\/","title":{"rendered":"The tiny coastal Mexican state of Colima has standout seafood \u2014 and two LA food trucks to try"},"content":{"rendered":"

Keep up with LAist.<\/p>\n

If you’re enjoying this article, you’ll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less. <\/p>\n

When I moved from Mexico to L.A. a year ago, people would often ask me what region I was from. When I said Colima, there was usually a short, awkward moment as people tried to place it \u2014 and failed.<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s a tiny state,\u201d I’d say, \u201cin between Michoac\u00e1n and Jalisco on the west coast.\u201d Ah. They’d enthusiastically nod. They got it.<\/p>\n

Colima may be small, but it punches above its weight. It\u2019s got the largest seaport in Mexico, the port of Manzanillo, and volcanoes, which boast both fire and snow. <\/p>\n

One of its cities, Tecom\u00e1n, is known as the “lime capital of the world” with its own key lime (Colima green diamond). The region also produces Sal de Cuyutl\u00e1n, a crunchy, coarse hand harvested sea salt. <\/p>\n

All that adds up to incredibly fresh seafood and distinctive flavors. As I settled into L.A., I realized I missed it. Could I find the taste of Colima in the city? <\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Intern Mariana Cardenas, at Tejuinos Colima, happy to drink her tejuino.<\/p>\n

(<\/p>\n

Karen Mariana Cardenas Ceballos<\/p>\n

\/<\/p>\n

LAist<\/p>\n

)<\/p>\n

I finally tracked it down in the guise of two food trucks: one on Alameda Street and one in Boyle Heights..<\/p>\n

Tejuinos Colima<\/p>\n

I found out about Juan Casillas\u2019 food truck from my mother back in Colima. He\u2019s from Manzanillo like us. He’s had his food truck for 23 years, on Alameda Street<\/a>, near the exit of the Jordan High School parking lot. <\/p>\n

When I tasted his tejuino for the first time a few months ago, I felt I\u2019d been transported to the vibrant streets of Santiago\u2019s market where I usually got it back home. <\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Casillas preparing tejuino as done in the streets of Colima.<\/p>\n

(<\/p>\n

Karen Mariana Cardenas Ceballos<\/p>\n

\/<\/p>\n

LAist<\/p>\n

)<\/p>\n

Tejuino is a traditional drink made of corn dough (masa), piloncillo (cone-shaped brown sugar), the region’s Sal de Cuyutl\u00e1n sea salt, and limes. It\u2019s the perfect refreshing summer drink, with just the right mix of sweet and sour, and a thick, nourishing texture.<\/p>\n

Colima’s famous sea salt<\/p>\n

(<\/p>\n

Karen Mariana Cardenas Ceballos.<\/p>\n

\/<\/p>\n

LAist <\/p>\n

)<\/p>\n

You can get tejuino in other states, like neighboring Jalisco, but there it\u2019s fermented, so it\u2019s alcoholic. In Colima, it\u2019s not.<\/p>\n

In 2002, after Casillas had tried, and failed, to find a Colima tejuino in L.A. \u2014 “all the tejuino stands were from Jalisco,\u201d he says \u2014 he saw an opening to introduce it to the city. He started his stand with $50, a pot and a cooler full of ice.<\/p>\n

Since then, people who hail from all over Mexico and even different U.S. states come to get his tejuino, telling him they can\u2019t find another one like his. \u201cI try tejuino in other places to know with whom I am competing,\u201d Casillas said, with a laugh, affirming that yes, his tejuino is better than all the others.<\/p>\n

He says the recent ICE raids have affected his business, because people are afraid to go outside. But he’s noticing that his frequent customers send their kids to get the drinks, and he also offers delivery on Uber Eats.<\/p>\n

Location:<\/b> 8211 S. Alameda St., Los Angeles
Hours:<\/b> Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed Tuesdays.\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Mariscos El Colima<\/p>\n

As a coastal port, Colima is known for its quality seafood. That\u2019s the focus of Mariscos El Colima, a food truck in Boyle Heights off Olympic Boulevard <\/a>between Orme Ave and Calumos Street. <\/p>\n

A half dozen of blood clams from Mariscos El Colima.<\/p>\n

(<\/p>\n

Karen Mariana Cardenas Ceballos<\/p>\n

\/<\/p>\n

LAist<\/p>\n

)<\/p>\n

Prepared queen clam.<\/p>\n

(<\/p>\n

Karen Mariana Cardenas Ceballos<\/p>\n

\/<\/p>\n

LAist <\/p>\n

)<\/p>\n

When I went there for the first time, I was surprised by the breadth of the fresh seafood they offered. 80% of their products are Mexican, which are driven up fresh from Mexico weekly. Even though I\u2019d grown up on the coast, there were some varieties I didn\u2019t know even existed, like axe callus, a scallop, and different types of clams such as chocolate clam, pismo clam and queen clam.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Oyster shots from Mariscos El Colima.<\/p>\n

(<\/p>\n

Karen Mariana Cardenas Ceballos<\/p>\n

\/<\/p>\n

LAist<\/p>\n

)<\/p>\n

Siblings Mercedes Diaz and Raul Diaz started the business four years ago. Mercedes had been a waitress for 20 years at a Mexican restaurant in L.A., and Raul had worked as a plumber.<\/p>\n

Their mother had been an entrepreneur in Mexico and pushed them to be their own bosses. They figured since they were from the coast, “we knew how to make seafood,\u201d and that since Colima was little known and underrated, they could offer something different. <\/p>\n

They’re known for innovating and experimenting with different ingredients, like their oyster shots which include oysters, shrimp and their specially-made sauce. <\/p>\n

One of their most popular items is the \u201clevanta muertos\u201d cocktail, considered a cure for a hangover, which contains blood clam, shrimp, octopus, abalone, axe callus and the sauce.<\/p>\n

Ernesto de la Cruz, a customer waiting for food at the truck, said he goes there because “it’s not easy to find the freshness, authentic flavor and variety of seafood in L.A.” Meanwhile, Mercedes says, other customers drive in from Bakersfield, Fontana and even San Diego.<\/p>\n

That kind of loyalty is what the Diaz siblings are hoping for \u2014 <\/b>interacting and building a relationship with their customers is a priority. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe want a well known customer, not a one day customer,\u201d Mercedes said.<\/p>\n

Location:<\/b> 2828 E. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles
Hours:<\/b> 9 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. Wednesday to Monday.\n <\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Keep up with LAist. If you’re enjoying this article, you’ll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":179941,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5123],"tags":[1582,276,101690,2961,224,5337,43634,20958,101691,12323,101692],"class_list":{"0":"post-179940","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-california","10":"tag-colima","11":"tag-la","12":"tag-los-angeles","13":"tag-losangeles","14":"tag-mexican-cuisine","15":"tag-seafood","16":"tag-street-food","17":"tag-street-vendors","18":"tag-tejuino"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115101232337688319","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179940","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=179940"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179940\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/179941"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=179940"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=179940"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=179940"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}