Looking for lunch on a Thursday, I saw a new sign on what used to be Curry-licious, for Birreria Landeros. Going in, I recognized the tables and bar, but the wall art and vibe was very different. I was the only person there, so the young man asked me if I wanted some music or would prefer silence – it didn’t matter to me and, soon, Latin music was filling the air.

I don’t know if you can read the sign (in the picture above), but the pictures (drawn by one of the family) are of Bob’s Bierria – her take on the cast of Bob’s Burgers. I was drawn in by the birria signage – I’ve become a fan of the wet tacos that started appearing around Atlanta restaurants in 2020. Traditionally, birria is a stew from the Mexican state of Jalisco, made of goat and spices, stewed in a pot. Around here, birria is typically beef, served in taco shells, along with a consomme for dipping.

Looking at the menu, I had decided on the birria de borrego – the lamb birria. In talking with the young man, whose name I failed to get, he told me that this (and the quesabirria – a quesadilla / taco hybrid) were their most popular dishes. His grandfather had cooked and served the birria de borrego in their home state of Aguascalientes (“it’s the size of Delaware”), in the 1950s, where he had three stores that only served this dish. And sold out every day!

He said that his mother had the idea to use these family recipes, which had been passed down through the generations, to start this restaurant. They’ve been open about three month. After I ordered, he asked if I wanted only the meat, or wanted a little fat thrown in. Why not? That’s what gives many meats elements of their flavor.

This meal comes in two size (chico and grande) and I chose the grande. It arrived on the series of plates above – the birria, warm corn tortillas, onion, cilantro and lime. Then came the hot stuff…

Top left – chile de aciete , then roasted chile de arbol and pico de gallo (with ground serrano chiles). There was also a yellow bottle with something in it, that he warned me was the hottest. If it was hotter than the roasted chile de arbol, I was staying away from it.

The meat was tender, full of flavor and juicy, and not just from the broth. I made as many tacos as I had tortillas (six or seven), lining the bottom of the tortilla with the chile de aciete, then piling on the lamb and finishing each with some lime juice, before rolling them into little envelopes, to be eaten. This was a fabulous meal – I’ll be going back for the quesbirria. Coincidentally, when I got home that evening, there was link to this article in Atlanta magazine. I imagine that next time I go, it will not be so empty…