Martinez Metals Portable Welding ~ 323 265-4121 ~ 5281 Washington Blvd. &#038; Strong ~ City of Commerce

Martinez Metals ~ Commerce

caption

credit

creditUrl

originalHeight

originalWidth

srcset

height

width

core/image

core/paragraph

core/more

Julianne Le is a recent grad from UCLA where she majored in English and minored in Asian American Studies. Maybe it&#8217;s because she isn&#8217;t jaded yet, but she is super eager to peek into the overlooked corners of L.A. and write about them. Le is the former editor-in-chief of UCLA&#8217;s Pacific Ties Newsmagazine and was a finalist for the Associated Collegiate Press&#8217; &#8220;Podcast of the Year&#8221; award in 2024.

Julianne Le

a young woman in a Team USA Bathing suit, swim cap, and goggles rises from a pool

Sports

Four Past and Future L.A. Olympic Champions on How the Games Have Changed For 2028

A French Dip sandwich made with king oyster mushrooms

Food

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

L.A. TACO STAFF

Featured

Headlines: The Airliner, Century-Old Lincoln Heights Bar, Will Close Next Month

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

L.A. Street Vendors Deal with Mental Health Crisis As They Continue to Be Harassed, Robbed, and Killed

Rudy Espinoza is the Executive Director of Inclusive Action for the City, a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution that is dedicated to building strong local economies in low-income neighborhoods of Los Angeles. Under his leadership, Inclusive Action has helped pass important laws to support street vendors, has deployed over $2,500,000 in low-interest micro-loans and grants to under-served entrepreneurs, and co-created a unique, commercial real estate initiative that preserves small businesses in gentrifying neighborhoods.

Rudy Espinoza

Opinion

‘Pop-Up’ Businesses and Influencers: It’s Time to Stand With Low-Income Street Vendors and Support SB 972

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

Politics

L.A. County Drops Anti-Taco Stand K-Rails to Deter Taqueros From Setting Up

Explore

Footer - NEW

Legal Footer

Main - NEW

Mobile

Become a subscriber today to get unlimited access

Thanks for reading!

This is member's only content.

Members get unlimited access to all of our stories, along with incredible perks like free tacos, invites to our events, access to our mobile app, and much more!

Become a Member of L.A. TACO

Free registration

Please register for L.A. TACO to Vote 

Register to continue

L.A. TACO

Memo Torres is the Director of Engagement and multimedia journalist for the James Beard award-winning L.A. Taco. He is also the host of the Daily Memo and writes for Apple Maps’ ‘Where Memo Torres Eats in L.A.’ You can see him on Netflix&#8217;s Taco Chronicles and Pressure Cooker.  You can hear him on KCRW’s ‘Good Food’ occasionally. He was a finalist for the Ruben Salazar Award for Latino journalists and a former third-generation landscaper.

Memo Torres

Izzy Ramirez is a Los Angeles-based staff reporter with L.A. TACO, documenting immigration enforcement and state power as it unfolds on the ground. Their work centers real-time alerts and long-term public archiving throughout the Southern California region.

Izzy Ramirez

Erwin Recinos is a seasoned visual artist with an eye for capturing life as a working commuter aboard public transportation in and around Los Angeles. For 20 years now, Recinos has been documenting the urban landscape, street culture, and Hispanic communities of Los Angeles utilizing his daily routine and the city of Los Angeles as an inspiration. Recinos also works with popular food and event websites such as LATACO.com and Eater LA to capture the cuisine and culture that is so important to the city of Los Angeles and across Southern California.

Erwin Recinos

DAILY MEMO

Daily Memo: California Is Installing ICE AI Surveillance Tools As Trump Goes After Your Civil and Constitutional Rights

a collage of seven business professionals

News

Why Did Anaheim City Council Vote to Install Nearly $1M-Worth of License Plate Surveillance?

Taco Madness

Final Round of TACO MADNESS Voting Is Now Open! Meet the Last Two Taquerías Left

Daily Memo: ICE Unveils Plan To Detain Children In “Toxic” Louisiana Military Site

Michelle Zacarias is a Los Angeles-based journalist and two-time cancer survivor. As a 2023-25 UC Berkeley California Local News Fellow, she covered politics, immigration, civic engagement, and health inequity. Michelle is the host of The Latino Newsletter Podcast, where she brings bold, necessary conversations to life through the Latino perspective. Michelle&#8217;s reporting has been featured in the Los Angeles Times (De Los), Prism, Truthout, Teen Vogue, CALÓ News, City Bureau, LA Public Press, and more. In 2025, Michelle was awarded First Place at the LA Press Club SoCal Journalism Awards for “Race and Society” reporting.

Michelle Zacarias

Fátima Rodriguez-Ortiz sits outside in front of some green plants.

USC Graduate Student at Center of Arturo Flores Sexual Assault Scandal Speaks Out

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.

a woman sits outside wearing a black long sleeve outfit

Lauren Bethke

a domme wears a mask and holds a spray gun

Diners, Dommes, and Dives: The 13 Best Restaurants in L.A., According to Dominatrixes

Colin Browne is a critic and journalist whose work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, New York Magazine, and Hollywood Mirror.

Colin Browne

post

Commerce

Sam Ribakoff is a multimedia journalist and documentary filmmaker from Long Beach, CA.