L.A. TACO is embarking on its biggest mission yet: to create a taco and food guide for every single neighborhood in Los Angeles! Along the way, we will also be releasing brief histories of each neighborhood to understand L.A.’s past and present a little more, all the while celebrating how each and every square inch helps make our fine city the best in the world. Today we’re taking a look at Downey with L.A. In a Minute's Evan Lovett!
Downey
Downey: 7 Facts You Need To Know
Downey is home to the first Taco Bell, L.A.'s oldest McDonald's, and the largest Cuban population west of the Mississippi. It also helped put people on the moon.
By L.A. In a Minute
Stay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from L.A. TACO
The Best Signs That Turned Tired Legs into Smiles at the 41st L.A. Marathon
Despite those who found street closures a nuisance, the overall consensus was that this city shows up for its people. In a time when community is most needed, supporters showed up with a level of commitment L.A. could use more of these days.
March 9, 2026
Iranian National Dies in Mississippi, Marking 17th ICE-Related Death Since December 31
Fifty-nine-year-old Pejman Karshenas Najafabadi is currently the 11th person to have died while in ICE custody this year that we know of, and the 17th ICE-related death since the killing of Keith Porter on December 31, 2025.
March 9, 2026
Trump’s ‘Deportation Judges’ Take Over Has Begun: Half of L.A. Immigrants Now Miss Court and Get Deported Sight Unseen
The Trump administration fired a quarter of the nation's immigration judges and the Pentagon authorized 600 military lawyers to replace them. They’re recruiting for "deportation judges" on social media. Fewer than 3 in 100 of the people asking for asylum get to stay.
March 9, 2026
The World Cup is Still Happening This Summer, But It May Not Look As Planned
There’s a lot of confusion about what has and hasn’t happened with the World Cup in the past month. L.A. Taco separates the fact from fiction.
March 8, 2026
Daily Memo: They Met in ICE Detention. Despite a Language Barrier, These Women’s Bond Helped Them Survive
They found a way to spend the nights talking, developing a friendship that got them both through their ordeal. Tania says she saw Masuma as a motherly, grandmotherly figure who took care of her, and Masuma says she wouldn’t have survived without Tania.
March 6, 2026
