San Diego, CA (The Joy of Food) — For every street taco joint or fish taco truck in San Diego’s many South Bay neighborhoods, there will be at least one birrieria to soak up the alcohol.
Birria — a Mexican dish of shredded goat or beef, stewed in a broth warmed by chili peppers and adobo spices — has been around for hundreds of years. It may not be the first food you think of at breakfast time, but it can be as palliative as it is delicious, particularly on a queasy stomach.
If you are not able to enjoy it south of the border, then the tradition is alive and well at Birrieria Don Rafa, a hot pink storefront in the heart of west Chula Vista next to the city’s main shopping center and not far from the H Street trolley stop. The small, low-ceilinged room is smaller than you might imagine, with the open kitchen on one side and a few artistically lined booths and tables on the other. This is a family place, so there will be children screaming and running around unattended.
As soon as you sit down, fixings of cilantro, onion, lemon, and salsa are provided table-side whether you ask for them or not. The salsa is outstanding, more fiery than most. It adds a nice kick to anything on the menu.
There are more things than birria served here, but it would be hard to tell by looking around you. Just like at every other birria joint, the birria comes served in plates so overflowing that you have to wonder how your server makes it to your table without spilling it all over the place. You can also opt to have the birria in taco, enchilada, or quesadilla form.
The birria de chivo (goat) is good and strong, tasting mostly of goat with a hint of gaminess to it, but not so much where it will offend if you are not a fan of that sort of thing. The birria de res (beef) is similarly awesome, soft and stewy without the earthy hit at the end. As a taco, some frijoles de la olla (Mexican beans) are mixed in. As a quesadilla, the birria is melded together with beans and cheese in a crisped-up corn or flour tortilla. Together, it is a symphony and you won’t know where one note ends and another begins.
The consomé has thinned over time, obviously stretched with water and less potent than it used to be. Still, it is tasty and the highlight of any meal here. This mighty liquid comes from simmering fat and bones for hours, breaking down their collagen and releasing gelatin to create a super velvety, smooth soup. You can knock any leftover juice back like it’s a shot of whiskey, and your entire face will feel like it’s coated with greasy goodness for hours afterward.
I felt bad for the place when, a few years ago, Tacos El Gordo planted its newest flag right next door, but they seem to be holding their own. On weekends, the hangover-friendly restaurant opens at 8:30 a.m. Arrive early to avoid a long wait.
Written by Joy
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Wow. That golden quesadilla looks right up my alley.
I think you’d like this place as well as Fernandez a little further south. Only birria de res there but man if that’s not the golden birria at the end of a magical rainbow, I don’t know what is.
Fernandez is indeed the “gold” standard for Birria de Res. Too bad Birrieria’s la Guadalajara closed; they made some good Birria de Chivo.
Yes! I remember that place – it was right around the corner from the South Chula Vista Library. Whenever the main Chula Vista branch didn’t have a book that I needed, I’d trek over to the other branch and have an excuse to visit the awesome restaurants in the area.
I need to visit again: https://www.hungryones.com/2019/06/birrieria-don-rafa/
Indeed, and Fernandez too if you have not been!
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