Skip to Content
Photo Essay

Over Two Hundred Classic Cars Pulled Up to the Venice Boardwalk for Dogtown Devils’ First-Ever ‘Venice Classic’ (Photos)

Photo by Gilberto Godoy

Waves crashing, faint Bob Marley tracks in the background, and a few hoopers is the occasional ambiance at 6 a.m. in Venice Beach. But on Saturday, August 27th, what stood out were a few hundred customs, lowriders, and classic cars parked past the handball courts.
With places like Venice's 'Freakshow' gone and restaurant dives like "Big Daddy's Pizza" changing everything but its name, getting a glimpse of true L.A. culture beyond the millions of tourists who flock to the boardwalk every year is becoming harder to experience. This makes an inaugural lowrider meetup like the one that happened last weekend all the more important to document.
Brought to us by "Dogtown Devils" Car Club, the Venice-based car club made history by making it the very first official car show on the boardwalk. There was breakdancing, candy paint, and bacon-wrapped hotdogs, but more importantly, a glimpse of an old-school Venice that many of us thought did not exist anymore. There were seven trophies awarded: Best Classic, Best Kustom, Best Lowrider, Best Truck, Best Muscle Car, Best Paint, and Best Chop.
All photos by Gilberto Godoy Jr. 

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from L.A. TACO

Weekend Eats: Invasion of The Five-Pound, One-Foot Burrito

Plus a modern Jamaican pop-up in West Adams, a Persian shawarma spot on wheels, and Thai crab omelettes at a family-run restaurant.

January 23, 2026

L.A.’s 7 Best Tacos Fusing Middle Eastern and Arabic Influences

Fueled by a deep love for Mexican and Middle Eastern cuisines or by their own family recipes, chefs in L.A. are remixing recipes to create tacos that are L.A. through and through.

January 22, 2026

Escondido Quietly Accepts $67,000 Contract with DHS to Use a Firing Range to Train 200 Special Agents

“This contract was approved administratively by the Escondido Police Department and has been in place since at least 2014,” Mayor White said in a statement to L.A. TACO.

January 22, 2026

L.A.’s 12 Best Old-School Italian Delis

From Chinatown to the Valley, L.A.'s home to sandwiches that will make you forget all your problems for however long it takes you to put it down.

January 21, 2026

SoCal Day Laborers Increasingly Targeted By Scams, Wage Theft, and Deportation Threats

"It's not just about always being on alert, but sometimes, if [employers] hire us, they threaten us with ICE so they don't have to pay us," a laborer named José says in Spanish.

January 20, 2026
See all posts