core/paragraph

<p>Jared Cowan writes and podcasts about L.A. filming locations. He also works as a photographer and camera operator.</p>


jared_cowan_portrait

Jared Cowan

Screenshot via New Line Cinema

Revisiting ‘Mi Familia’ and the Main Filming Location In Boyle Heights 30 Years Later

<p>Sara Alvarez is a bilingual multimedia journalist and undergraduate studying Public Relations and Advertising at USC Annenberg. She is currently a Social Media Intern for L.A. TACO, and the Social Media Manager for Annenberg Media’s Latine news desk, Dímelo. Born and raised in the Bay Area, her coverage focuses on community reporting, news, and popular culture.</p>


Screenshot_2024-12-09_at_3.55.25_PM

Sara Alvarez

<div class="contents_d3ae0d">
<div id="message-content-1250858460501901333" class="markup_a7e664 messageContent_abea64">Valeria Macias is a student reporter at USC, where she double majors in Journalism and NGOs and social change. Through her work in publications like the LA Times, USC Annenberg Media, Boyle Heights Beat, ABC7, and many others, Macias has amplified the voices within her local communities. Most of her reporting focuses on the local Angelino community and shines a light on issues of gentrification, street vending, city government, and more.</div>
</div>
<div id="message-accessories-1250858460501901333" class="container__62863">
<div class="visualMediaItemContainer__582ad">
<div class="oneByOneGrid__36e03 oneByOneGridSingle__8c6ef">
<div class="mosaicItem__2e894 mosaicItemNoJustify_ef758c mosaicItemMediaMosaic_ac9e71 hideOverflow__5f669">
<div class="imageContent__0fe2a embedWrapper__47b23 itemContentContainer__77d7f mosaicItemContent__289da">
<div class="imageContainer__1b5e9">
<div class="imageWrapper__178ee imageZoom__9528e clickable__2869d lazyImgContainer_b0a5df"></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>


Screenshot 2024-06-13 at 12.32.17 PM

Valeria Macias

homeboys the musical

Culture

Barrio to Broadway: How ‘Homeboys, the Musical’ Turns Trauma Into Acapelas

Screenshot of Friday via New Line Cinema.

Screenshot

Film

Revisiting the Iconic Film Locations from ‘Friday,’ 30 Years Later

<div dir="ltr">
<div>
<p>Jesse Katz is the author of <i>The Rent Collectors: Exploitation, Murder, and Redemption in Immigrant LA</i>, which is a finalist for an <i>L.A. Times</i> book prize and a PEN America literary award. He spent 24 years on staff at the <i>Los Angeles Times</i> and <i>Los Angeles</i> magazine.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="yj6qo ajU"></div>


Jesse Katz – color author portrait

Jesse Katz

Miguel Angel Garcia next to the candle vigil in the alley. Screenshot via Die Like a Man.

Die Like a Man – Miguel Angel Garcia next to the candle vigil in the alley

What ‘Die Like a Man’ Gets Right that Other L.A. Hood Movies Don’t

In a scene from Police Academy 2, Bobcat Goldthwait, left of center, as the Scullians’ leader, Zed, standing around other actors portraying his gang. Screenshot via Warner Bros.

How the Old L.A. Zoo Was Turned Into Police Academy 2’s Punk Hideout, 40 Years Ago

<p>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.</p>


Hadshot2022

Hadley Tomicki

A blue Dodgers hat with pink flowers with smiley faces by Takashi Murakami.

01_MLBxMurakami-Pt3-7_59Fifty_Dodgers_Fitted_Blue

Sports

Tokyo Art Legend Takashi Murakami Is Making Dodgers Gear Now

logo_fixed_outline

image (9)

lede_post_card_default

lede_post_card_stacked

lede_post_card_featured_post

lede_post_card_featured_posts_hero

lede_post_card_featured_posts_sidebar

lede_post_card_highlighted_post

lede_post_card_horizontal_a

lede_post_card_horizontal_c

lede_post_card_related_post

lede_post_card_square

lede_article_featured_16x9

lede_article_featured_3x2

lede_article_featured_1x1

lede_article_featured_flexible

lede_article_content

lede_article_content_wide_width

lede_article_content_full_width

lede_byline_avatar_post_card

lede_byline_avatar_highlight

lede_profile_coral_avatar

lede_logo

lede_logo_banner

lede_logo_footer_banner

lede_logo_simple_header

lede_sponsorship_logo

lede_sponsorship_logo_river_card

lede_sponsorship_homepage_card_logo

lede_sponsorship_homepage_card

Explore

Footer - NEW

Legal Footer

Main - NEW

Mobile

Celebrating the Taco Lifestyle in Los Angeles, CA

la-taco-horizontal-1

L.A. TACO

Support L.A. TACO

support_snipe002 (1)

<p>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.</p>


GmU3Yd9R_400x400

Lexis-Olivier Ray

41 18 dtla

Protests

L.A. Police Cite ‘Anti-Homeless’ Law To Sweep Anti-ICE Camp Outside Federal Building

<p>A.k.a. Afroxander, an L.A.-born Jalisciense getting his Juan Rulfo on as the curly-haired link between music, art, history, sports in English y Español.</p>


Ivan Fernandez

Photo Jul 04 2025, 8 09 03 AM

LA Galaxy Bans Photographer After Accusing Him of Bringing Pro-Immigrant Banner

Juanes

Live Music

Juanes Reminds Us of the Power of Love and Unity at the Hollywood Bowl

<p>Memo Torres is a multi-media taco journalist, a third-generation landscaper, host of L.A. Taco&#8217;s new Plant and Gardening column, Yerbalife, host of Apple Maps&#8217; L.A. food guide on all iPhones, Director of Partnerships for the James Beard award-winning L.A. Taco, a finalist for the Ruben Salazar Award for Latino Journalists, a taco scout for numerous shows, can be seen on Netflix&#8217;s Taco Chronicles, Pressure Cooker, Mythical Kitchen, KCRW, and elsewhere.</p>


258798EB-FD6A-454B-87CC-A6B0659CE45E_1_105_c

Memo Torres

Screenshot 2025-07-18 at 9.44.08 pm

Featured

DAILY MEMO: A Federal Police Officer Gets Kicked in the Nuts and More

<p><span class="OYPEnA font-feature-liga-off font-feature-clig-off font-feature-calt-off text-decoration-none text-strikethrough-none">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.”</span></p>


Untitled design (3) copy

Janette Villafana

Pelusa sit in her enclosure just a few feet away from her brother Toby.

IMG_3568_VSCO

Neighborhoods

Pets Left Behind Due to L.A.’s ICE Raids Are Urgently In Need of New Homes

Italian beef sandwich with peppers, between a roll of white bread

Mr. Beef

Food

Weekend Eats: Where To Try The Italian Beef Sandwich That Inspired ‘The Bear’

Members get unlimited access to all of our stories, along with incredible perks like free tacos, invites to our awesome events, access to our mobile app, and much more!

Become a Member of L.A. TACO

LA_TACO_LOGO_SC_WHITE_Black_240

L.A. TACO STAFF

post

Subhumanoid LA TACO

<p>Mike Sonksen aka Mike the PoeT is a 3rd-generation Los Angeles native. Poet, professor, journalist, historian and tour-guide, his latest book &#8220;Letters to My City&#8221; was just published by Writ Large Press. He teaches at Woodbury University.</p>


Banksy “Barely Legal” Preview

Read More:

Stay in touch

More from L.A. TACO