Yuca&#8217;s is a Los Feliz institution, a James Beard award winner, and perhaps the archetypal Los Angeles taco shack. It opened almost exactly 33 years ago by Jaime and Socorro Herrera and has been a beloved part of Los Angeles ever since. Today is just another day for Yuca&#8217;s. They&#8217;ll serve hundreds of hungry people…

Congratulations to Yuca’s! ~  Taco Madness 2009

caption

credit

creditUrl

lightboxSrc

originalHeight

originalWidth

srcset

height

width

core/image

core/paragraph

<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>


Hadley Tomicki

From "Thoughts &amp; Prayers," an image that shows a back view of Belger's unique self-made camera, made from forged aircraft aluminum, copper, titanium, F-16 aircraft parts, bullets, bullet shells, brass from a 105mm Howitzer shell the was fired from an AC-130 aircraft over Afghanistan during the first minutes of the Afghan war, machine gun sight (0n top), American flag from Glen Spencer’s America First militia compound, and dirt from Columbine High School and the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, North Carolina. The cross on the back of the camera, in the middle of the American flag that is surrounded by the bullets, is made of dirt from the Emanuel AME Church. Photo of the back of the camera was shot during a Thoughts &amp; Prayers photo shoot at the world biggest machine gun shoot in Kingman Arizona. The three men holding the tank ammunition in front of the tank are all civilians and own the fully functional tank.

He Built a Camera From Firearms To Photograph U.S. Gun Owners For ‘Thoughts & Prayers’ At La Luz de Jesus Gallery

How Photographer Alanna Airitam Got In With Black Outlaw Motorcycle Clubs For Her Show ‘Black Diamonds’ at La Luz De Jesus Gallery

<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>


Janette Villafana

Food

13 Dog-Friendly Places in L.A. To Eat, Drink, and Play with Your Loyal Pup

Churros shaped like the LA Dodgers' LA logo at La Cha Cha Cha

Taco Members Only

What To Eat This Weekend in L.A.: Iberico Pork Fajitas, Coca Cola Fries, LA Churros, and Cabeza Strombolis From Sonoratown and Mozza

A French Dip sandwich made with king oyster mushrooms

What to Eat This Weekend In L.A.: Puerto Rican Plantain Sandwiches, King Oyster Mushroom French Dips, Baja Abalone Fritto Misto, and Lamb Mandi In Westwood

What To Eat This Weekend: Villa’s Tacos Opens in DTLA, Kimchi Burritos in Lomita, and A Fruit Beer for Farm Workers in Pico Rivera

Explore

Footer - NEW

Legal Footer

Main - NEW

Mobile

Neighborhoods

Top Guides

Become a subscriber today to get unlimited access

Thanks for reading!

L.A. TACO is paid for by readers, not billionaires. 8,000 Angelenos keep this newsroom independent. Memberships start at $5.95/month.

This one's for members.

No advertiser paid for this. We depend on members to write these investigations, please join.

This investigation took months.

Support This Work

We're paid for by readers, not billionaires. 8,000 Angelenos keep this newsroom independent, and members read everything. Memberships start at $5.95/month.

Keep reading L.A. TACO.

Free registration

Please register for L.A. TACO to Vote 

Register to continue

We are truly independent local media.

Free to Read, just share your email 

Every place on this list was visited by someone on our staff. Create a free account to read all of it. No payment, no catch.

The rest of this guide is free. We just need an email.

We take our food reporting very seriously, and answer to readers, not advertisers.

The rest of this article is free. We just need an email.

The rest of this report is free. We just need an email.

We're indepdenent local news, help us write these stories by sharing your email (it's free)

All we ask is your email

Read this opinion piece for free, just share your email

All we ask is an email...

Create a free account and keep reading. No payment, no catch. We're reader-funded, and this is how we get to know who we're writing for.

Read this one on us.

Celebrating the Taco Lifestyle in Los Angeles, CA

L.A. TACO

Support L.A. TACO

<div>Ivan Ehlers is an Ecuadorian-American cartoonist and writer. He is a regular contributor to <i>The New Yorker</i>, <i>MAD Magazine</i> and the <i>Los Angeles Times</i>.</div>
<div></div>
<div>IG: <a id="m_-8957504711371111195plusReplyChip-0" class="gmail_plusreply"></a>@ivan_ehlers</div>


Ivan Ehlers

Sunday Taquitos #35: The A.I. Bubble Bursts

<p>Marina Watanabe is director of video and a reporter at L.A. TACO based in Koreatown. Previously, she worked as a video reporter for 404 by Los Angeles Times and a video producer at Condé Nast publications Teen Vogue, Glamour, and Them.</p>


Marina Watanabe

a drawing of a burrito in the style of AI art

Why Are So Many Restaurants Using A.I. for Menus Now?

<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Blending her time in the kitchen as a line cook with her passion for storytelling, Lauren Bethke writes about community, inclusivity and the city she loves the most—Los Angeles.</span></p>


a woman sits outside wearing a black long sleeve outfit

Lauren Bethke

<p><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif">Emilio Valdez is a street-level photographer with a special interest in documenting the ever-changing neighborhoods of Central and East Los Angeles</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif">. His work focuses on bringing the past and present discrimination of marginalized people of color to light.</span></p>


Emilio Valdez

<p>Karina Soriano is a Los Angeles-based journalist who covers the crossroads of music, food, art, and social issues. She spotlights the everyday people who really keep L.A. moving. Usually, while stuck in traffic, looking for a good place to eat.</p>


Karina Soriano

L.A. Taco Guides

Our 12 Favorite Menudos in L.A., Mapped

<p>Juan Izguerra is L.A. TACO&#8217;s community coordinator and was born and raised in Pomona, California. As an L.A. resident, Juan enjoys exploring the small, hidden places of the SGV, Inland Empire, and wherever his stomach takes him.</p>


Juan Izguerra

a man in a cap holding a microphone in a recording studio

Music

These Are Some of the Wildest Behind-the-Scenes Stories From Stones Throw Records

L.A. TACO STAFF

Politics

A Completely Interactive Guide To L.A. Voter Guides

a truck with signage regarding abortion pills parks next to an outdoor art fixture, many tall lamp posts at LACMA

These Activists Drive Around the Country to Let You Know It’s Still Legal to Mail-Order Abortion Pills In All 50 States

<p>Former editor of L.A. Taco. I still live in Los Angeles but mainly just hang out at parks and stare off into the distance.</p>


Erich Redson

post

Los Feliz

<div>
<div dir="auto">
<p dir="ltr">Jake Hook is a local food historian in Los Angeles. They run the Diner Preservation Society, dedicated to highlighting the city&#8217;s traditional food culture. Follow him on Instagram at @<a href="https://www.instagram.com/dinertheory/">DinerTheory</a>.</p>
</div>
<div class="yj6qo ajU"></div>
</div>
<div></div>


Jake Hook

Chicken-fried steak and eggs at Saugus Cafe. Photo by Jake Hook for L.A. TACO.

Congratulations to Yuca’s! ~ Taco Madness 2009

Tagged:

Stay in touch

More Stories