Until last year, comida Chiapaneca was just about the only regional variation of Mexican food you couldn’t find in a dedicated restaurant in Los Angeles County.
That all changed last year when La Cocina de Los Reyes opened in La Puente, offering hauntingly aromatic soups and tamales flavored with chipilín herb, and refreshing, cacao-based aguas frescas that you can only find in Chiapas.
They are L.A.'s first restaurant dedicated strictly to the food of Chiapas, Mexico.
“You need to embrace Chiapas. Let’s show people how diverse Mexico is.”
That was the advice Esmerelda Hernandez gave her father, Francisco Reyes, when he thought of opening up his restaurant. Today, 29-year-old Esmerelda manages the socials and marketing for La Cocina de Los Reyes, in addition to her full-time job.