LA's Mexican and Central American Street Food Vendors Go Into Hiding as ICE Raids Continue

On Father's Day, June 15, Tacos de Cabrito y Machito El Lagunero, a street food operation serving traditional spit-roasted kid from Mexico's Comarca Lagunera region, was forced to close despite plans to celebrate its third anniversary. The streets of Muscoy were empty due to ongoing, unprecedented mass deportation raids enacted by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), centered in Los Angeles, a sanctuary city, and surrounding communities that are likewise a protected jurisdiction in the sanctuary state of California.
Muscoy is a semi-rural community located about 60 miles east of Downtown Los Angeles with 88 percent Latino residents, according to the 2022 census. Many of the homes offer ample space, some featuring small farms and horse stables. The roadsides, lots, and private residences host a variety of Mexican food specialists in a sleepy rancho that looks like it was carved out a Mexican countryside, but instead in San Bernardino County.
ICE's immigration sweep operation in Southern California, which began on June 6, included a $134 million price tag to fund a federalized California National Guard that Trump ordered into Los Angeles on June 7, despite strong objection from Gov. Gavin Newsom, as well as the deployment of 700 California-based Marines, who Trump ordered into Los Angeles to quell mounting protests. The Los Angeles Times reports that, as of June 11, an estimated 330 people have been arrested and detained as a result of these sweeps. A report by the Bay Area Council Economic Institute estimates that mass deportations could impact the state's GDP by $278 billion. In the balance is the fate of Los Angeles street food vendors still reeling from the impacts of a global pandemic and the Los Angeles wildfires in January 2025.
Due to the raids, Tacos de Cabrito y Machito El Lagunero's owners Francisco Salinas and Vanessa Sánchez tell Eater the business had a lower-than-expected turnout on Sunday, June 8, so they decided to close on Father's Day until things cooled down. 'We see them [ICE] here every day, and people are afraid to go outside,' says Salinas. That same day, another Muscoy vendor, Juan Flores of Ceviche Hot Spot, known locally for ceviche-topped michelada cups and aguachiles of shrimp, was allegedly detained and deported. 'Last Monday, they grabbed him coming out of his house, and he was deported to Tijuana that same day,' says Salinas, who received a message from Flores on WhatsApp asking for support for his family who remain in California.
Across social media, videos show families separated and neighbors screaming and crying as ICE officers arrest undocumented immigrants throughout Los Angeles. These scenes have filled the Latino community with terror, helplessness, and despair. Over Father's Day weekend, the streets and avenues flanking the 110 Freeway in South Central that are typically vibrant with brightly wrapped food trucks and hanging lights strewn above sizzling planchas have been emptied out. Tacos Los Güichos, Eater LA's pick for best al pastor spot and a mainstay on Slauson Avenue since 1974, has vanished. This part of the city simply doesn't look the same without its street food vendors.
With raids targeting swap meets, taco trucks, food stands, and Home Depot parking lots, the enforcement is seemingly targeting Latino majority communities. Instagram user Arnie Abramyan, @arnieabramyan, posted a video on June 11 of an abandoned taco stand on Foothill Boulevard in Tujunga, across the street from the In-N-Out Burger. In the video, Abramyan alleges that ICE had raided the stand and that its workers had been detained. Eater has not been able to independently confirm his account. The video shows a deserted stand; a fully loaded trompo; and condiments like salsa, chopped cilantro, and onions left uncovered in plastic containers.
On June 12, Jason's Tacos owner, Jason Devora, posted on his food truck's Instagram that his workers had been taken by ICE, leaving his truck unmanned. L.A. Taco reported that customers were also allegedly detained as collateral arrests, arrests of otherwise law-abiding immigrants with varying degrees of legal status, which has emerged as a common tactic as part of President Donald Trump's mass deportation of up to 3,000 people per day that has specifically targeted Democratic-run cities. 'I'm sure they are racially profiling us; look at the neighborhoods they are going to and [ask] why aren't they in Beverly Hills and those places?' says Rocio Ortega, the daughter of founder Raul Ortega of Boyle Heights seafood truck Mariscos Jalisco.
Michelin Bib Gourmand Mariscos Jaliscos, celebrated for its crispy taco de camarón bathed in a tangy tomato salsa, has made adjustments to protect its staff and customers. 'We are doing the best we can with limited staff because we've asked some of them to stay home,' says owner Raul Ortega, 'The dining room is closed, too, because ICE can just go wherever they please without asking.' Restaurants can designate private spaces to keep ICE from detaining employees, nevertheless, opening the dining room at Mariscos Jalisco compromises the safety of customers who may be undocumented.
The Mariscos Jalisco truck in Downtown LA's Fashion District that Rocio Ortega and one other cook operate remains closed for the time being. Ortega arrived at the truck around 10 a.m. on June 6 and saw a crowd gathering around FBI agents. Ambiance Apparel, where the ICE raids began in Los Angeles, is right around the corner from the truck. 'I didn't know what was going on so I started to record video, and then the employee working with me saw a group of people with Police HSI on their [bulletproof] vests,' says Rocio. Mariscos Jalisco now operates its Boyle Heights and Mid-City trucks with a skeleton crew, while the brick-and-mortar location in Pomona opens or closes depending on if they have enough staff to work a particular shift, which has not been a certain process. 'For now we are just taking it day by day to see which locations we can open, but it's exhausting running our business without [enough] staff,' says Rocio.
Many vendors have opted to close to keep workers and customers safe. On Instagram, Los Sabrosos Al Horno owner David Delfin wrote that the stand would close until further notice. Delfin specializes in whole suckling roasted in a caja china that is carved up for Acaponeta-style tacos de lechón, spiced by salsa of yellow mustard and chiles guëros. Popular birria vendor Birria El Jaliciense posted on June 13 that they would be closing until further notice, thanking their customers for their understanding and reminding them to take care. 'We are doing private events, and served tacos last Saturday, but other than that there's no point in setting up, because there are no customers. Everyone is staying home,' says Delfín. Preparing a whole suckling pig is costly, and Delfín counts on selling out in order to make the operation worth his time.
All of the enforcement activity has resulted in a significant economic and emotional toll on taqueros, their employees, and customers. 'I'm sad, I'm scared, and it's just been a rollercoaster seeing all these videos of kidnappings; it's breaking my heart,' says Rocio. And with no end in sight to the ICE raids, there is no telling how long this will impact the terrified Latino community.
'I have enough money to maybe last three or four months, and that's it,' says Salinas. 'Then we will have to see what happens. Muscoy was a safe place for us. But now, with all this, maybe it's not worth it to be in America anymore.' See More:

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