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L.A. TACO

Janette Villafana is an award-winning bilingual multimedia journalist. Her heart lies in community-based reporting, and her work is highly centered on showcasing and uplifting community voices, with a significant focus on the Latino community. She developed her beat at L.A. TACO, covering street vending communities in Los Angeles. Past work has been featured on NBC, LAist, Latino Rebels, and more. She is currently featured at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in Washington in an exhibit titled “¡De última hora! Latinas Report Breaking News.”

Janette Villafana

Los Angeles

Un Abogado Explica: Cómo y Cuando Aplicar Para Un Permiso de Vendedor Ambulante en California (SB 972)

Professional punk and Editor-In-Chief for James Beard Award-winning L.A. TACO. Associate Producer for JBA-winning Las Crónicas Del Taco. Former restaurant scout for Jonathan Gold. Co-author of &#8220;Oaxaca: Home Cooking From the Heart of Mexico (2019, Abrams) and &#8220;Asada: The Art of Mexican-Style Grilling&#8221; (2023, Abrams).

Javier Cabral

Street Vending

Ask An Attorney: How Soon Can Street Food Vendors in California Apply for Permits Now That SB 972 Passed?

L.A. TACO STAFF

News

Headlines: Mexico City Watchdog Warns Restaurants To Steer Clear of Mario Batali; Teen Suspect Arrested In PnB Rock Slaying

One of L.A. TACO&#8217;s co-founders, Hadley Tomicki is a writer and editor on food, travel, and culture whose work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, New York Magazine, UrbanDaddy, High Times, and many other places.

Hadley Tomicki

California Has Highest Fines for Traffic and Parking Violations in Country

Headlines: Street Vendor Advocate Gets a Haircut to Show Support; A Doctor Claims DEA is Making Up ‘Rainbow Fentanyl’

Lexis-Olivier Ray is an award-winning staff investigative reporter for L.A. TACO known for holding powerful people in Los Angeles accountable and his reporting on Los Angeles culture. As well as an artist and filmmaker. In 2022, the Society of Professional Journalists&#8217; Los Angeles chapter named Ray one of their &#8220;distinguished journalists.&#8221; In 2023, Ray won a second place Anthem Award in their Health Innovation category for a texting service geared towards the unhoused community and service providers that he launched in 2021 with L.A. TACO and Subtext. Ray was a 2020 USC Center For Health Journalism (CHJ) Data Fellow. As well as a 2022 CHJ Impact Fellow. As a freelancer, Ray has contributed to the L.A. Times, Men&#8217;s Health Magazine, KCET and SFGATE.

Lexis-Olivier Ray

Obituary

L.A. Rapper Kee Riches Killed In Compton Over The Weekend

Palos Verdes Fault Line Could Create Quake ’45 Times’ Stronger Than ’94 Northridge

Headlines: California Passes New Laws Against Catalytic Converter Thieves; Lawyers Recommend $8 Million Settlement for Andres Guardado

BREAKING: SB 972, Which Will Finally Help Street Vendors Get Local Health Permits, Signed Into Law By Newsom

Live Music

From Barcelona to L.A., the First-Ever Primavera Sound Music Festival Was Cracking

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