Signal Hill Cemetery ~ 1151 Willow St. ~ Long Beach ~ CA &#8220;Though silent, he speaks.&#8221;

Signal Hill Cemetery ~ Long Beach

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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.

Hadley Tomicki

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

An Illustration of Fox Theater in Westwood with its tall tower and marquee

L.A. TACO Neighborhood Guides: Westwood

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.

Marina Watanabe

Rows of burned cars in the aftermath of the Eaton Fire that destroyed much of Altadena in January, 2025. Photo by Maks Ksenjak for L.A. TACO.

Books

We Don’t Need to Imagine Octavia Butler’s Post-Apocalyptic L.A. It’s Already Here.

Héctor Zaldívar is the head of a print magazine and art/music publication titled Dead Relatives. Completely written and designed by Zaldívar, every month subscribers are mailed in-depth stories on different subcultures from graffiti in Latin America to hardcore punk to lowrider culture and back.

Héctor Zaldívar

Mary Lyons (Leech Lake Ojibwe) Great-Grandmother, Ojibwe Elder, spiritual advisor, storyteller and wisdom keeper.

History

Native Community Bands Together In San Pedro, Fighting Trump’s ‘Columbus Day’ Reinstatement

Kamren Curiel is a fourth-generation Chicana born in East L.A. and raised in South San Gabriel. She&#8217;s written for the L.A.Times, Latina, LAist, KCET, Huffington Post, and was the L.A. Editor for Remezcla.com.

Kamren Curiel

Los Angeles

A ‘Concrete Eyesore’ Replaces Native Trees: Landowner Builds Tax-Break Garden on Protected El Sereno Hillside

Abraham Marquez is a freelance writer from Inglewood and a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ). He is a 2021 USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism Fellow. He writes about social movements, sports, politics, and immigration. Instagram: @abemarquez02

Abraham Marquez

Trump’s Immigration Policy Falls in Line with Racist U.S. History Towards Immigrants

L.A. TACO STAFF

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

Laura is a desmadrosa, a product of East Los, an educator, and a hood establishment connoisseur.

Laura Tejeda

Food

The 34 Best ‘Hood Burgers In Los Angeles

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Jared Cowan is a photographer who also writes and podcasts extensively about L.A. filming locations. He is the co-founder of My Valley Pass, through which he leads film tours of the San Fernando Valley and Pasadena. Jared is also the co-editor of the recent book &#8220;World Film Locations: Los Angeles Volume 2&#8221; and the editor of the upcoming &#8220;World Film Locations: Philadelphia.&#8221;

Jared Cowan

Film

The L.A. Locations Behind 10 Infamous Movie Death Scenes

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

ICE Re-Detains Plaintiff Out On Bond in Landmark Case Challenging L.A. ICE Raids, Sends Him Back To Adelanto

Will Barboza is a writer from Los Angeles who specializes in covering fan communities and nerd culture. His articles have appeared in VICE, Playboy, IGN, and other online outlets where geek-centric stories are told.

Will Barboza

Sports

Four Shops Turning the San Fernando Valley Into America’s Trading Card Capital

Taco Madness

Semi-Final Round of TACO MADNESS Voting Is Now Open! Meet the ‘Final Cuatro’

Controversial Israeli Chef Expands Miznon Across L.A.

L.A. Taco Guides

Five L.A. Menus to Stretch Your Recession-Era Dollar

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