The taco lifestyle crosses all boundaries and includes anyone who wants to be a part of it&#8211; emerging art stars born in South Carolina are no exception. Graphic designer Shepard Fairey, who made his name on the streets of LA, is a resident and promoter of our city even when he&#8217;s attending art premieres in…

My Favorite Taco ~ Shepard Fairey

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<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

Food

Your Favorite Jumbo’s Clown Room Dancer’s Favorite Meal

<p>Nya Manneh is a 22-year-old Master&#8217;s student from Minnesota studying at the University of Southern California. She is passionate about writing stories that highlight underrepresented voices and meeting new people from all walks of life.</p>


Nya Manneh

A woman poses in front of the Hollywood sign, but is blurry

Film

With Film Production Down, Is the Sun Setting on the Hollywood Dream?

<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

A family member of street vendor organizer Emma De Paz holds up a poster with his grandmother's photo. The words "Come back soon" and "We Miss You" are written across the poster.

Street Vending

Unbroken Spirit: How a Detained Street Vendor Is Now Aiding Detainees From ICE Facility

<p>Lynn Q. Yu is a food and culture writer based out of Los Angeles. You can find her on social media @lynnqyu.</p>


Lynn Q. Yu

Hollywood

Nine Noodle Dishes From Nine Different Regions In Asia  to Try in L.A.

L.A. TACO STAFF

L.A. Taco Guides

The Ultimate Guide to All the Day of the Dead Events in Los Angeles ~ 2024

<p>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).</p>


Javier Cabral

Taco Members Only

Four Places to Eat and Drink Your Way Through Mexican Independence Weekend In L.A. (and Long Beach)

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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 #28: Get Out, LOSER!

<p>A.k.a. Afroxander; Editor-At-Large (formerly Weekend Editor) at L.A. Taco and a lecturer at San Diego State University. He has covered arts, culture, history, politics, and sports with an emphasis on Latin America and its U.S. diaspora for over two decades.</p>


Ivan Fernandez

What You Need To Know About ICE At The FIFA World Cup

<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

<h3 class="iw gFxsud"><span class="qu yKyxu" role="gridcell" data-hovercard-id="karinawsoriano@gmail.com" data-hovercard-hover-trigger-disabled="true"><span class="gD" data-hovercard-id="karinawsoriano@gmail.com" data-hovercard-owner-id="13">Karina Soriano </span></span></h3>


Karina Soriano

L.A TACO’s 2026 Guide To Free Summer Concerts in L.A.

A Ninja Turtles themed bar with neon signs showing a Ninja Turtle and a sign that says "Taking in pies and bad guys since 1984!"

A Ninja Turtles-Themed Pizzeria with a Serious New York Slice

<div>Chelsea Vega is a writer, content creator, and commentator exploring Latino identity and culture. Her perspective is shaped in part by her career as a sports marketer, where she led campaigns designed to connect with Latino audiences and saw firsthand how Latino identity is often misunderstood and marketed by corporations. Through her reporting, she examines the intersections of race, history, and modern Latino life, exploring conversations many people avoid but millions are already having.</div>


Chelsea Vega

When Pedro Arrests Juan: Why Latinos Join Border Patrol and ICE 

<p class="p1">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.</p>


Memo Torres

<p>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.</p>


Izzy Ramirez

<p>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.</p>


Erwin Recinos

A woman known as Ms. Rachel holds a child, who puts their head on her shoulder while holding a toy truck

DAILY MEMO

Daily Memo: Ms. Rachel Visits D.C. With 545 Letters From Children Currently Being Detained By I.C.E.

<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>
