I figured we might as well stop by the mother ship.<\/p>\n
The line wasn\u2019t too long on a Tuesday afternoon \u2014 mostly Dodgers fans loading up before the game. I explained to Bola\u00f1os that the best time to see King Taco in its full glory is on weekend nights, when the line never seems to end and things get so busy that they set up a lonchera in the parking lot.<\/p>\n
I went with an al pastor quesadilla; Bola\u00f1os scarfed down two carne asada and two al pastor tacos. We began to talk about his time in L.A.<\/p>\n
What I wasn\u2019t expecting was a lesson in how great we got it here\u2026 from him.<\/p>\n
Bola\u00f1os is the proud Tejano son of two immigrants from the Mexican state of Guanajuato, but the 24-year-old admitted to being fascinated with Los Angeles for years, citing two 90s-era cinematic classics, \u201cMi Familia\u201d and \u201cBlood In Blood Out,\u201d he saw while at the University of Texas at Arlington.<\/p>\n
L.A. \u201cwas always this mecca of what it means to be Mexican American,\u201d Bola\u00f1os said. \u201cBut being here, it does feel like being a foreigner… It\u2019s still Mexican. But it\u2019s not what I grew up with.\u201d<\/p>\n
Unapologetically Chicano<\/p>\n
He said what has been most interesting is the lack of code switching among Mexican Americans. Back home, \u201cI start getting a certain accent when I talk to older white people. It\u2019s a big thing \u2014 the \u2018Yes ma\u2019ams,\u2019 the \u2018No ma\u2019ams,\u2019 the \u2018Bless your hearts.\u2019 Versus here, people are unapologetically Mexican. Unapologetically Chicano.\u201d<\/p>\n
King Taco\u2019s crackling PA system kept announcing orders. \u201cI feel like people don\u2019t realize how special that is.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOr little programs,\u201d he continued, referring to after-school activities and other programs we saw around the east side.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wouldn\u2019t have that in Dallas?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019d say, \u2018That\u2019s the communist California for you,\u2019\u201d Bola\u00f1os replied with a sad laugh. \u201cI think people here take for granted how much la lucha [the Mexican American civil rights movement] helped them. Back home, we\u2019re very much still in la lucha.\u201d<\/p>\n
He took a sip from his large horchata.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd so it\u2019s hard sometimes when I hear Mexican Americans in California complain about how hard things are. And I\u2019m like, \u2018Brother, come to the South.\u2019 Do you even know about Mississippi Mexicans? Do you even know about the Mexicans in Arkansas?\u201d<\/p>\n
The Mexican American dream<\/p>\n
I asked what\u2019s the King Taco of Dallas. He mentioned Taquer\u00eda El Paisano \u2014 \u201cit\u2019s best at 4 a.m….te echas como cinco o seis [you eat like five or six]\u201d \u2014 along with Chilangos Tacos and Cesar\u2019s Tacos.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut nothing at this level,\u201d Bola\u00f1os added. A plaque dedicated to King Taco founder Raul O. Mart\u00ednez stood nearby. He pointed at the napkins before us with the chain\u2019s curvy logo. \u201cI\u2019ve never seen a taqueria with a taco app. I think that\u2019s the Mexican American dream.\u201d<\/p>\n
I countered that some people \u2014 not me \u2014 think King Taco passed its peak long ago. Bola\u00f1os looked at me as if I had suggested we eat at Taco Bell.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t realize how special, how lucky you guys have it. King Taco is such a unicorn.\u201d<\/p>\n
Out of the mouth of babes, indeed. Hear that, L.A.? Love your landmarks. Otherwise, they\u2019ll end up like Taix.<\/p>\n
Today\u2019s top stories Former California gubernatorial candidate Rep. Eric Swalwell speaks to the audience during a town hall meeting in Sacramento on April 7.<\/p>\n (Rich Pedroncelli \/ Associated Press)<\/p>\n How Rep. Swalwell cultivated power in SacramentoExplosive allegations that Swalwell sexually assaulted a former staffer and acted inappropriately with other women prompted his exit from the governor\u2019s race and resignation from Congress.Democratic leaders and the groups who backed him \u2014 including labor unions and interest groups \u2014 now face scrutiny over whether they missed red flags or ignored warnings <\/a>about his rumored behavior.Mayor Bass\u2019 new plan for addressing climate changeBass\u2019 Climate Action Plan <\/a>calls for doubling local solar power in Los Angeles by 2030 and reducing the use of fossil fuels in buildings and city buses.The city is also working toward a goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2045.A marine heatwave is simmering the Pacific OceanAn extreme marine heat wave<\/a> in the Pacific Ocean off California is breaking daily temperature records, with scientists warning the deep, persistent system could affect coastal weather and ecosystems for months.The warming ocean could produce a humid, stormy summer with reduced fog, increased hurricane risk and tropical conditions that stress public health and can increase wildfire.What else is going onCommentary and opinionsThis morning\u2019s must readAnother must readFor your downtime (Los Angeles Times photo illustration; photographs by Danielle Dorsey)<\/p>\n Going outStaying inA question for you: Are you planning on leaving California for another state? If so, tell us why.<\/p>\n Debra says, \u201cI thought I wanted to retire in a cooler state so my husband and I moved to Washington state in 2016. We tried \u2014 we lived there for 6 years. I hated it \u2014 the weather, the people, the roads, the drivers, everything. I guess I am a Cali girl at heart \u2014 we moved back to California in 2022. Despite the financial hardship the move entailed, we are much happier here.\u201d<\/p>\n Email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com<\/a>, and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.<\/p>\n And finally … your photo of the day John Ayala embraces resident Lori C. Murphy during his final shift in Mount Washington after 42 years delivering mail in the neighborhood.<\/p>\n (Ronaldo Bola\u00f1os \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Today\u2019s great photo is from Times photographer Ronaldo Bola\u00f1os in the Mount Washington neighborhood where USPS postal carrier John Ayala carried out his final shift. He retired after 42 years, and hundreds showed up to his farewell party.<\/a> <\/p>\n Have a great day, from the Essential California team<\/p>\n Jim Rainey, staff reporter How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com<\/a>. Check our top stories<\/a>, topics<\/a> and the latest articles<\/a> on latimes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"L.A. Times photography fellow Ronaldo Bola\u00f1os is still learning the city, so that\u2019s why the Dallas native asked…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":272623,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[7,9,8,2299,1085,891,2300,2297,340,2303,63,2302,1086,1459,2301,2298,74,225,315,688],"class_list":{"0":"post-272622","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-california","8":"tag-california","9":"tag-california-headlines","10":"tag-california-news","11":"tag-civic-revolt","12":"tag-covid","13":"tag-covid-19","14":"tag-days","15":"tag-essential-california","16":"tag-israel","17":"tag-l-a","18":"tag-los-angeles-times","19":"tag-may","20":"tag-pandemic","21":"tag-part","22":"tag-president-biden","23":"tag-red-county","24":"tag-san-diego","25":"tag-state","26":"tag-time","27":"tag-years"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=272622"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272622\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/272623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=272622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=272622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=272622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Former](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1776433628_15_.jpeg\")
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Hugo Mart\u00edn, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters<\/p>\n