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
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More from L.A. TACO
Mayor Karen Bass Flies Back From Ghana As L.A. Faces Historic Wild Fires
“L.A. County and all 29 fire departments in our county are not prepared for this kind of widespread disaster,” said the L.A. County Fire Chief Marrone. The County was prepared to respond to one or two brush fires, but not four. “There are not enough firefighters to address four separate fires of this magnitude," he said.
January 8, 2025
You Can Now Buy Fresh Huitlacoche, Mexico’s Prized Corn Fungal Delicacy, In The U.S.
The ominous grey-blue mushrooms that grow on corn are a delicacy in Mexico, but up until this truffle dealer from CDMX started to import it herself a couple of years ago, you could only find it processed by being pickled in jars or cans in L.A.
January 7, 2025
The Closing of Guerrilla Tacos Marks the End of An Era For Modern Mexican Food In L.A.
Guerrilla Tacos was one of the city's first sit-down taquerías that offered a farmers market-led approach to tacos with a full cocktail menu. It was also one of the "big three" modern Mexican restaurants along with Taco Maria and Broken Spanish that changed tacos forever in the city and beyond.
January 6, 2025
Yuca’s Founder Socorro Herrera Dies at 89
L.A.'s cochinita pibil matriarch and the first ever TACO MADNESS champion—back in 2009—Socorro "Mama Yuca's" Herrera has passed away. She was a taquera powerhouse who was born in Merida and changed L.A.'s Taco Life forever when she opened Yuca's at a former 8 x 10 square feet shoeshine stand in Los Feliz in 1976. In 2005, against all odds, she won a James Beard Award.
This Weekend: Nigerian Goat Pies, Five Generations of Shumai, and Gambas Al Ajíllo With Basque Cider
Plus, Malay-style wings, a collaboration pizza-topped with Philippe The Original's French-dipped beef and hot mustard, and more in this week's roundup.
January 3, 2025
