Spot Check! Welcome to L.A. TACO’s column where we bring you the latest and most exciting things to eat and drink around all of Los Angeles.  Tacos Culiacán is now open in Paramount under Tomateros-inspired signage for Sinaloan-style asada al carbon in tacos “machos” entailing that same charcoal-grilled asada on flour tortillas with Anaheim chile and cheese. The business also sells quesadillas, mulitas, and vampiros with asada or its own birria de res. The owner says they may add lengua to the menu in “the near future.” 9040 Rosecrans Blvd. Paramount, CA 90706 Photo via Yeogiyo. Yeogiyo ..read more

TACO MADNESS, Presented by Bud Light, is L.A.’s first and biggest taco festival. All of L.A.’s heaviest hitting taquerías will be in one place for one day only! The 21 + event is happening from 6 to 11:59 PM on Saturday, May 6, at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes in downtown Los Angeles. Ticket sales proceeds will support L.A. TACO’s award-winning street-level journalism. Get your ticket here.  Fact: If L.A.’s taco life were a mosh pit, Elvia Huerta and Alex Garcia, the duo behind Evil Cooks, would be the taqueros you would be slamming to. Since selling their first taco in 2018, the couple ha ..read more

Welcome to Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, home to L.A.’s High Desert, famous Poppy Field Reserve, Edwards Air Force Base, and the lesser known “Musical Road.” Besides a consistent battery of heat waves and extreme cold, the city has so much to offer its visitors.  For starters, its growing community of taqueros is not to be missed.  After the housing market’s surge in the early 2000s, many Angelenos found themselves establishing roots in the desert, far away from the generations-old Mexican restaurants they grew up with. Decades later, Lancaster’s very own taco scene has blossome ..read more

Colibri’s Ricardo Zarate with a dish of charred snap peas, aji amarillo labneh, and spicy garlic Chef Ricardo Zarate is opening a new Italian-Peruvian-inspired location of his Colibri Pop-Up with Love & Salt/Olivetta chef Michael Fiorelli this Tuesday, April 11 in West Hollywood. The concept will explore a style of cuisine that has been developing in Peru since large migrations of Italians began appearing in the South American country back in the late 1700s. Menu items may include yellowtail tiradito with dragonfruit, coconut and olive oils, tallarines rojos with a handmade tagliatelle, to ..read more

Unless you live in the neighborhood or someone told you about it, you probably would never know of the home-cooked sazón waiting for you inside Uruapan Taco. The taquería has absolutely no online presence and even if you managed to spot the taquería while driving down El Segundo Boulevard in Compton, its outside walls scarred by layers of graffiti and buffing paint, hide the truth about what’s inside this tagged-up community gem: some of the best burritos in L.A. Hear us out. Inside, a long display case holds all the enticing stews. Those from southern Zacatecas would quickly draw a compariso ..read more

Hamburguetza, a Oaxaca-accented Wagyu smashburgers concept, is now open within Pablito’s World in Chinatown. Options include the Cochinita Pibil Burger, the Chile Relleno Burger, Western Mole burger, birria grilled cheese, and a Peruvian burger with huancaina sauce and fried plantains. Fried green beans, Inka cola, beer-battered onion rings, fresh-cut G Fries with chorizo sauce, nacho cheese, and pickled onions. All the Wagyu beef patties are smashed using a tortilla press. 686 N. Spring St. Los Angeles, CA 90012 Bar Nuda, L.A.’s first “sin alcohol” bar experience featuring functional, alcoh ..read more

Los Angeles has always been known for its diverse and vibrant food culture, but a recent survey has risen the “who has the best pizza debate” to a whole new level. According to the study released today by the Federal Organization of Litmus Surveys, Los Angeles has been declared the best city for pizza in the United States.  The survey, conducted annually, gathers intel from Yelp, Google, and Reddit about the best pizzerias across the country and then surveys them for factors such as the quality of the ingredients, customer service, and the overall pizza experience. Los Angeles emerged on ..read more

My praise for Sinaloa Express’ tamales is complimenting on a level usually reserved for my mother’s tamales. She only makes them Christmas and select special occasions. She never buys them because, like the legion of Mexican moms before and after her, she says, “Why buy something she can make so much better, with mine and my sisters’ begrudging help, when you can make it at home?” I had not found the restaurant, carreta, or señora to rival her corn-husk-wrapped pockets of masa love and, for my own safety, refrained from questioning that it was possible. Now, I can genuinely say I’ve found a l ..read more

L.A. TACO is embarking on its biggest mission yet: to create a reliable taco and food guide for every neighborhood in Los Angeles! Along the way, we will also be releasing brief histories of each neighborhood to understand L.A. a little more and why each and every neighborhood makes our fine city unique. Check out the rest of our history and food guides on our neighborhood page.  When you think of tacos, the first place you think of going definitely is not going to be found off the 14 freeway, but there are great spots in L.A.’s north-facing desert in the Antelope Valley. After scou ..read more

Spot Check! Welcome to L.A. TACO’s latest column, where we bring you the latest and most exciting openings, pop-ups, finds, and food events around all of Los Angeles this week. Because the newer the spots, the downer the food… Loreto’s pescado zarandeado, photo: Jakob Layman Loreto – Barra de Peninsula is now open in Frogtown/Elysian Valley from the owners of Downtown’s LA Cha Cha Cha. Inspired by the coastlines running along Mexico’s Sea of Cortez, the concept spans Baja, Sonora, and Sinaloa and imports all of its seafood from Baja (except Maine lobster). Executive chef Francisco “Paco” Mora ..read more