A taqueria capital. Awards on one side, taco truck loyalty on the other.
The full ranking
A taqueria capital. Awards on one side, taco truck loyalty on the other.
Mariscos Jalisco (Boyle Heights)
The Michelin-listed taco truck that made the tacos dorados de camarón a Los Angeles icon: a shrimp taco assembled, then plunged whole into bubbling oil and fried until gold. The Poseidon tostada, a four-inch tower of ceviche, octopus, and aguachile, runs a close second.
Holbox (South Los Angeles)
Chef Gilbert Cetina's Michelin-starred counter inside Mercado La Paloma brings Yucatecan coastal cooking to South LA through electrifyingly fresh aguachiles, ceviches, and tacos on heirloom corn tortillas. Ranked fifth on the 2023 LA Times 101 Best list.
Carnitas El Momo (Boyle Heights)
LA's most celebrated carnitas, simmered for hours in a copper pot of pure lard with a secret spice blend that includes a trace of Coca-Cola syrup. The taco mixta combines pork belly, skin, and shoulder in three cuts at once.
Chichen Itza (South Los Angeles)
A family-run Yucatecan kitchen inside Mercado La Paloma, known for cochinita pibil slow-roasted in banana leaves, panuchos stuffed with black beans, and octopus tacos. One of the rare places in LA where Southeast Mexican cuisine is given its full due.
Leo's Taco Truck (multiple locations)
A family fleet of 15 trucks from Oaxaca, spread across greater Los Angeles, known most for their spit-roasted al pastor and carnitas burritos. The flagship on La Brea operates until 2 a.m. on weekdays and 3 a.m. on weekends.
Tacos Los Cholos (Huntington Park)
The two-story Huntington Park outpost of an Orange County legend, where smoke from the mesquite charcoal grill hits you before you reach the door. The ribeye, tenderized in lime until it turns buttery, costs $7 a taco.
Los Cinco Puntos (Boyle Heights)
A Boyle Heights institution at the intersection of César Chávez, Lorena, and Indiana, family-run since 1967 and famous for its grilled carne asada and house-made flour tortillas. A pilgrimage stop on East LA's old-school taco trail.
Asadero Chikali (Inglewood)
A Mexicali-born kitchen that carries the Baja tradition of hand-rolled flour tortillas stuffed with guisados and mesquite-grilled carne asada. The chicharrón braised in salsa verde and the chile con carne with butter-soft potato are the standouts.
Simon (Echo Park)
An Echo Park modern-Mexican restaurant from Liz Johnson with a tight, ingredient-driven menu and a calm dining room that lets the food do the talking. Tacos sit alongside elevated seasonal small plates.
Tacos Los Guichos (South Los Angeles)
A taco cart parked at a tire shop off the 110 freeway, serving what many critics call the finest al pastor in the city: charred at the edges, juicy at the center, shaved from a trompo and served with salsa verde. Eater LA named it the single best dish in South LA.
Ranked across 5 sources: The Infatuation · 25 Best Tacos in LA, Ranked 2025; Time Out Los Angeles · 32 Best Tacos 2025; Eater LA · The 38 Best Tacos in LA (unordered map) 2026; Yelp · Ranked by Rating (June 2026); Google Reviews · Ranked by Rating (June 2026). Full scoring is on the Methodology tab above.
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