Orange County’s high-end taqueria Descanso is heading north and opening a Los Angeles location this month.

The sprawling, 240-seat restaurant was set to open this week at 5773 Wilshire Blvd. with the goal of paying tribute to Mexican street vendors in an elevated setting where the chefs cook the meals in front of diners.

“We’re bringing the experience of a taco stand to a higher level here in Los Angeles,” said Sergio Lopez, the head chef.

Like the original location in Costa Mesa, which opened in 2018, the Los Angeles spot will offer the restaurant’s signature plancha dining, where chefs prepare multicourse meals on a grill in front of diners. It’s similar to the teppanyaki style of restaurants like Benihana, where the cooks put on a show as they prepare dinner. But at Descanso, it’s not about entertaining, aiming to show off the potential of street food.

“Our ingredients are fresh. We’re a scratch kitchen. Everything is made here daily and for us this is not about putting on a show and doing tricks but it’s more like a food class, an education. We talk to diners about the ingredients we’re using, why they belong in certain dishes. It’s an education,” Lopez said in Spanish.

It’s also an homage to Mexican street cooks who prepare meals in front of customers at stands and taco carts, Lopez added.

“Mexican food has no limits and it’s in the streets where you find unique flavors, and we’re bringing all of that experience to L.A.,” he said.

While Descanso was inspired by street food, a brick facade and archway entrance evoke a Mexican hacienda, while the interior features vibrant artwork showcasing Mexico’s cultural heritage, including bright murals and colors. The new spot has a central bar, a main dining room, two open-air patios and a private room for up to 10 people.

Highlights for the Los Angeles menu include the enchiladas de langosta, with butter-poached lobster in tortillas, and the taquitos de camarón, made with marinated shrimp, blue corn tortillas, shredded lettuce, morita aioli and mango-habanero salsa. One of the chef’s favorites is the sea bass tlapique, which is steamed in corn husks and made with nopales and huitlacoche. The latter is a delicacy sometimes called the Mexican truffle.

“It’s a traditional way it was done by natives who lived around Lake Xochimilco (in Mexico) as they cooked the fish they caught in the lake, and it’s delicious,” Lopez said.

Lopez also recommends the short rib estofado, which he calls a variation on birria. It’s braised with beer for about five hours and made with Guajillo and Serrano peppers. “Birria is often served at parties, weddings and quinceañeras. And this dish is a party full of flavors,” he said.

For information go to descansorestaurantla.com