Best Tacos in Town
BlackHills Food Guide

La Risa’s is a new comer to Sturgis, but it offers something you couldn’t find in town; authentic Mexican food. But Lisa Cress, the owner, brings much more than that. Born and raised in Southern California, she brings a love to her food, and it shows.

So what’s different about the tacos? First, we are looking at homemade Mexican food. This is the stuff families grow up on. It’s something that has developed over years, and now Lisa is bringing it here. And we can’t stress just how much that brings to a dish. It’s not something mass produced. It’s homemade cuisine.

It’s also fresh and local products that are being used. That is a great connection to the area. For us, that always scores good points. Another connection to the area is that Lisa has been serving people food in the area for a decade. Before opening up La Risa’s, she was working at the Side Hack, where she was a manager for 5 years. For most people in Sturgis, she’s probably served them a hamburger or a beer. She’s someone you can trust to put out a quality dish.

What really stands out though is the actual flavor. Lisa is not afraid to season her food, and that means there is no bland meat. She is able to get the meat to shine, while also transforming it so it takes on those notes that we associate with Mexican food. But what may be most impressive is that she doesn’t overly complicate the tacos.

Tacos are a street food. We believe that they should thus reflect that. A great taco should be simple and delicious. La Risa nailed that. What we have is simply a fried tortilla, with meat, a Mexican cheese, tomatoes and lettuce. It can be topped with fresh pico de gallo for a little bit more of a kick.

What we like about this is that it allows the hero of the dish, the meat, to really shine through. You get the full flavor of the meat in each bite, and it’s not being overpowered, it’s not getting lost. You get nice tender pieces of your choice of meat, that are well seasoned, but not overly so. You get the hints of flavor you expect; a little cumin, some chili, some salt, flavors that combine well and accent the meat.

The rest adds a harmony to the dish. The cheese adds a bit of salt to the dish, which really helps the other flavors shine. The pico de gallo adds a touch of heat, but also some citrus to the dish that helps bring out more flavor in the rest of the dish, while also leaving more of a clean taste, Topped with lettuce, you get a nice crunch to the dish, while helping balance the dish as a whole.

It could end at that, but she bumps it up a few notches. Coupled with her homemade salsa, rice and beans, it’s a dinner to die for. Her salsa is some of the best we’ve had. If she sold it by the pitcher, we may just be tempted to drink it. It’s fresh, has just enough heat to it, and really bursts with flavor. And now, while we said taco don’t need to be elevated, somehow Lisa has elevated her beans and rice to another level. That’s where the homemade factor comes into play.

Now, if you want something besides a taco, La Risa also has other options that deliver great flavor. Her burritos are some of the best we’ve tasted. And there always seems to be some new dish of the day that takes the flavors that La Risa has developed so finely, and creates something new and delicious that helps mix it up a bit.

If you’re looking for authentic Mexican food, La Risa is the place to go. They have the best tacos in the town, if not the Black Hills, and rest of her dishes would given any Mexican restaurant a run for their money.