Miguel Blanco says goodbye to his girlfriend, Elia Paredes, outside Antojitos Carmen after dining at the East Los Angeles eatery. Owned by Carmen and Salvador Ortega, the restaurant began as a street stand in the neighborhood. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)
Carmen Ortega with a dish called alambre, in the kitchen at Antojitos Carmen Restaurant, located at 2510 Cesar Chavez Ave. in East Los Angeles. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)
The torta milanesa at Antojitos Carmen is one of the restaurant’s best dishes. The overloaded sandwich isn’t filled with the limp breaded beef you encounter elsewhere, but a filet that’s fried until it fractures like crisp, herb-rubbed bacon. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)
Huaraches tinga is an oblong pane of fried masa daubed with beans and topped with chipotle-soaked shredded beef and more goodies. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)
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The hearty beverage atole de Nuez is made with milk, cornstarch, walnuts, cinnamon and sugar. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)
Customer Jesus Robles waits inside the intimate storefront restaurant on Cesar Chavez Avenue. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)
Alex Pardo enjoys a plate of taquitos and the street scene out on Cesar Chavez Avenue. (Gary Friedman / Los Angeles Times)
