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L.A. TACO

Acton

Adams-Normandie

Agoura Hills

Agua Dulce

Alhambra

Alondra Park

Altadena

Angeles Crest

Arcadia

Arleta

Arlington Heights

Artesia

Athens

Atwater Village

Avalon

Avocado Heights

Azusa

Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw

Baldwin Park

Bel-Air

Bell

Bell Gardens

Bellflower

Beverly Crest

Beverly Grove

Beverly Hills

Beverlywood

Boyle Heights

Bradbury

Brentwood

Broadway-Manchester

Burbank

Calabasas

Canoga Park

Carson

Carthay

Castaic

Castaic Canyons

Central-Alameda

Century City

Neighborhoods

Dee De La Cruz was born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County, but she has lived all over Southern California. When she&#8217;s not writing words, she&#8217;s the host of the podcast &#8220;Viewz with Dee De La Cruz.

Dee De La Cruz

Personal Essay

Am I a Gentefier or Gentrifier? A Millenial Latinx Experience of Apartment Hunting in Los Angeles

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.

Mike Sonksen

L.A. Taco Guides

The 2021 L.A. TACO Book Guide: 34 Books to Read, Gift, and Get Inspired By

Eddie Lin is an OG L.A. food writer who encourages everyone to eat chicken feet at least once. He has appeared on many shows, but his favorite appearance is when he and his girlfriend ate Chinese Viagra soup made of boa constrictor. Yum and POW!

Eddie Lin

Food

Medan Kitchen in the S.G.V. Is the Spot for Potently Delicious Home-Style Indonesian Food, Started By a 75-Year-Old ‘Auntie’

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

People

Meet El Monte’s Pressure-Washing Hero Who Volunteers His Services to Street Vendors and Gets Rid of L.A.’s Greasy Streets

Francisco Avilés Pino is a Mexican writer and producer based in Los Angeles, whose work spans journalism, film, and fine art, exploring how power, identity, and culture shape immigrant and Latino/a life in America. Their work has appeared in the Museum of Contemporary Art-LA, HarperCollins, NPR, Vogue, The Nation, and The Intercept.

Francisco Aviles Pino

Music

For L.A.’s Latinx Punks, Rude Boys, and Metalheads, Moshing Is Ceremony and a Form of Healing

A Fishcake and Pancake Specialist From Korea’s Famous Gwangjang Market Just Opened Its First U.S. Location in the San Gabriel Valley

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

Featured

A Tortillería in East L.A. Is Giving Away Scholarships to Their Workers—and Their Kids—Who Want to Go to College

Nikolai Garcia is Assistant Editor for Dryland, a literary arts journal that was born in South Central Los Angeles. His first poetry chapbook, Nuclear Shadows of Palm Trees, was published by DSTL Arts.

Nikolai Garcia

Poetry

‘Under the Lights of a Taco Truck,’ A Poem to Celebrate Jonathan Gold’s 61st Birthday

Melissa Mora Hidalgo was born in Montebello and grew up in the L.A./O.C. borderlands of East Whittier and La Habra. She holds a Ph. D. in Literature from UC San Diego and is the author of Mozlandia: Morrissey Fans in the Borderlands (Headpress UK, 2016).

Melissa Mora Hidalgo

The L.A. TACO Guide to Hiking East of East: Four Firme Nature Trails from Whittier Narrows to Puente Hills

Multimedia journalist covering everything under the sun. 562 born and raised. News editor for Talon Marks.

Daniel Suarez

Why Cardenas Market Is the Best Pit Stop When Road Tripping Through the Inland Empire

San Gabriel