Orange County hip-hop group Imperial Stars, which claims to be on a mission to help homeless children, were arrested after causing a massive traffic jam on the 101 yesterday morning. They took a giant bus and blocked the middle of the 101 in Hollywood and started performing their song &#8220;Traffic Jam&#8221; in front of thousands…

There Is Such Thing as Bad Publicity

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<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

A brisket at Tacali Taco. topped with salsa mexicana and guacamole in a piece of tinfoil, which sits in a paper tray

Food

Weekend Eats: There’s a New Texas Breakfast Taco In Town

Featured

The Eight Best Sex Shops In Los Angeles

L.A. TACO STAFF

L.A. Taco Guides

The 24 Best Tamales, From East L.A. to Long Beach

<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

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

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<p>A.k.a. Afroxander; 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

Sports

From the Kitchen to the Octagon: One L.A. Chef’s Journey Into the World of Mixed Martial Arts

<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>
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<div>IG: <a id="m_-8957504711371111195plusReplyChip-0" class="gmail_plusreply"></a>@ivan_ehlers</div>


Ivan Ehlers

Comix

Sunday Taquitos #24: One Pissed Pope (Plus Bonus Taquito!)

<p>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.</p>


Julianne Le

a book cover depicting Los Angeles' cityscape

Books

You Think L.A. Smog is Bad Now? Let’s Set the Record Straight

<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

Daily Memo: ICE Arrests Plaintiff of Federal Lawsuit Challenging ICE Raids

Cannabis flower products are lined up inside a glass case at Green Qween on Sunday, June 30, 2024. Every cannabis product in the store is open to public view, giving guests a sense of transparency that illegal cannabis dispensaries don't tend to offer.

Weed

The 4/20 Guide to Underground Parties and Events in L.A.

Taco Madness

Fourth Round of TACO MADNESS Voting Is Now Open! Meet the ‘Sabrocho!’

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Hollywood

<p>Lexis-Olivier Ray is an award-winning staff investigative reporter for L.A. TACO known for holding powerful people in Los Angeles accountable and his reporting on Los Angeles culture. As well as an artist and filmmaker. In 2022, the Society of Professional Journalists&#8217; Los Angeles chapter named Ray one of their &#8220;distinguished journalists.&#8221; In 2023, Ray won a second place Anthem Award in their Health Innovation category for a texting service geared towards the unhoused community and service providers that he launched in 2021 with L.A. TACO and Subtext. Ray was a 2020 USC Center For Health Journalism (CHJ) Data Fellow. As well as a 2022 CHJ Impact Fellow. As a freelancer, Ray has contributed to the L.A. Times, Men&#8217;s Health Magazine, KCET and SFGATE.</p>
