Lola’s—like its sister, The Social List, across the street on 4th Street—is undergoing subtle changes that will become a larger story for the space. Following Chef Luis Navarro’s win at the inaugural Long Beach Grand Prix Fixe competition, it has lit a fire within him to approach his restaurants. Lola’s is not excluded.
New items include a chipotle-saturated tortilla soup that leans toward a stew more than a brothy bowl—perfect for the winter. There’s an Enqrique’s-inspired pork shank that eschews a traditional chile verde in favor of a pepĂan-like mole verde. And the space’s annual offerings of red and green enchiladas and pozole rojo are underway…
But the end of 2025 offers something particularly special: a cup of hot Oaxacan chocolate made with the mole paste of the late and great Oaxacan chef, Susana Trilling.
How Chef Susana Trilling’s mole paste—made by her own hands and shipped in tubs—got into the hands Lola’s
“Chef Susana is a friend,” Chef Luis said, noting their long relationship through various meetings both Stateside and in Mexico. One of those meetings, she was offended that Chef Luis was not buying her mole paste, but Chef Thomas Keller was. Chef Luis has featured her mole a handful of times—including the use of it twice during Long Beach Food Scene Week—but this offering is special.
“She sent me 30 pounds of the paste before she tragically passed,” Chef Luis said. “We are using the last of it to create true Oaxcan hot chocolate.”
Beautifully complex—the roller coaster of Chef Susana’s mole takes the lead role: from the beautifully black pasilla mixe to the earthy chilhuacle chile to the rare bi-color cacao beans she used—and naturally creamy—there is not one ounce of milk to be found in this chocolately concoction—it is a wonderful ode to the late chef.
And yes, you can booze it up with a shot of aged rum.
Why Chef Susana Trilling was such an important figure in Mexican cuisine—specifically Oaxacan food.
Susana Trilling’s story is one of cultural immersion, preservation, and passionate storytelling through food. Born in New York and raised in Mexico City, she eventually made Oaxaca her home, where she became one of the most influential interpreters of the region’s cuisine for an international audience. Her journey began as a television producer, but her fascination with Oaxacan ingredients, techniques, and traditions pulled her into the kitchen and onto the page.
In the 1990s, she founded Seasons of My Heart, a cooking school and culinary center located on a working ranch outside Oaxaca City. Through hands-on classes, regional tours, and deeply researched instruction, she offered travelers and aspiring cooks unprecedented access to the complexities of Oaxacan gastronomy—from the laborious craft of moles to the agricultural histories behind chiles, corn, and chocolate.
Chef Luis Navarro takes on the challenge of evolution
In this vein, it is wildly inspiring to see Chef Luis inspired by both Chef Susana and the local food scene itself. His newly minted pork shank—slathered in a wonderfully savory, earthy, and spicy mole verde that would make Chef Susana proud—is but one example of how he is trying to get Lola’s patrons to move beyond burritos and tacos. Or his stew-y tortilla soup, where hefty layers of chipotle and roasted tomatoes round out this Mexican-American classic in a new, more hearty way.
The blunt reality is that—particularly after nearly 20 years in the game and amidst the ungodly rapidity with which the Long Beach food scene has altered—it is hard to find inspiration. Chef Luis has always stuck to one thing—and has done so smartly: keep the business first and the culinary pride second. Feed your employees, your family, and yourself before your ego. It is the reason a space like Lola’s has lasted nearly two decades, while seemingly countless restaurants have shuttered.
Come 2026, expect big changes at Lola’s and The Social List. And, if you can, offer a little applause on the way toward each team. They deserve it.
Lola’s Mexican Cuisine has two locations: 2030 E. 4th Street on Retro Row and at 4140 Atlantic Ave. in Bixby Knolls.
Love this! And of course we are going before that Mole Paste runs out! Thank you Brian! ❤️🔥