CDMX fling

Lucia’s (Hackney Wick)

RESTAURANTS • FOUND Table

London’s appetite for proper Mexican is finally being met, particularly at Lucia’s in Hackney Wick, which has served up the essential experience of a great Mexico City taco joint since opening last year.

It’s walk-ins only. It ain’t posh. It’s tight, with only 20-odd covers between counter seats and small outside tables. You can see (and smell) everything being cooked, especially the sizzling fat burning off the charcoal grill. They serve mezcal cocktails and Mexican beers, which go better with your tacos than any other alcohol. All details are on point, from diced onion, coriander and salsa to pliable but resilient tortillas.

Beef barbacoa is rich, saucy and deep with a subtle sweetness that speaks to proper caramelisation. Lamb rump is pink but smoky, charred to perfection on the outside, and served with all the accoutrements to build your own taco. Cochinita pibil, another classic, delivers everything it should, the generously loaded tacos juicy but not wet, smoky but not overpowering, piquant but not too spicy. Beef marrow is on the less traditional side but a hit nonetheless, and the DIY approach, with onion, lime, coriander, tomato salsa, and pliable but resilient tortillas, recalls its St. John bone marrow-on-toast equivalent.

Grab a pal or a date, pick a night when you can afford to wait around a few minutes for a seat (the queue tends to move fast), and get into some of London’s best tacos. –David Bard

→ Lucia’s (Hackney Wick) • 43 Whitepost Ln • Mon-Tue 5-10p, Wed-Fri 5-11p, Sat 12-11p, Sun 12-6p.