L.A.’s Eastside community has witnessed the closure of three cherished local restaurants due to fires in the past month. Mexes Cafe, Don Chamorron, and Birria Los Socios, each a cornerstone of their neighborhoods’ vibrant culinary scenes, have been forced to shutter their doors. As the community comes to terms with these losses, everyone is left wondering what caused these fires and how to prevent such devastation from happening again.
After fires burned their hard work to the ground, these businesses have launched Gofundme pages, urging their neighbors to support them during these trying times.
Birria Los Socios has been a Boyle Heights staple since 2017, with its origins in a food truck.
In 2020, the success of the truck enabled owner Jose Pacheco to open a brick-and-mortar location at 3544 East 3rd Place. In addition to the Boyle Heights location, Los Socios’ food trucks also serve the neighborhoods of Cypress Park and West Covina, further cementing their place in the hearts of Angelenos.
However, all this hard work by Pacheco and his team was dissolved on June 5th, as flames tore through the Eastside eatery near 3rd and Indiana streets shortly after 3 a.m., leaving the community in shock and mourning the loss of a local favorite.