Small Bites

Pollo Asado

A meal prepared fresh inside the Cheeks parking lot doesn't sound appetizing off the bat, but the fumes coming from Pollo Asado are enough to lure both fans and newbies, day in, day out, to this bitchin' chicken shack. Staunch fans line up during peak hours, and owner and cook Ludovico Arizmendi tends to them personally, referring to them with different levels of familiarity: paisano (compatriot) for the first-timers, primo (cousin) for the return customers and pariente (relative), which is reserved for the top-tier clientele. Regardless of your nickname, you'll sure want to get familiar with the fall-off-the-bone goodness that is Ludo's pollo—be it in rolled taquito ($6 for six), torta ($6) or sincronizada ($8) form. Those really in the know go whole hog (or, in this case, full bird) and choose the whole chicken dinner ($20), a paradise of char-grilled poultry parts served in a Styrofoam container that's paired with rice, beans and a half-dozen corn tortillas. Forget the Colonel and his 11 herbs and spices. On a good day, Arizmendi pulls rank and seasons his with a whopping 14-plus. Someone pin this overachiever's apron with a five-star general insignia, stat.

-Enrique Limón

2800 Cerrillos Road,
316-4085
Open Tuesday-Sunday, 10 am-6 pm