It's a jam-packed, event-filled Tuesday night in LA. There's Knotty Pinewood Derby racing at Bigfoot Lodge; The Moth crowns a new GrandSLAM storytelling champion; L.A. Taco commences its Taco Madness tournament; and songwriter Carole Bayer Sager talks about her music career—and her new artistic endeavor of painting. Read on for all the details. more ›

KCRW's "Good Food" recently took a food-centric tour of Boyle Heights, and put together this video from the eating adventure. Arriving on Metro, producer Gillian Ferguson and Noah Allison of GoodFoodPreservation.com explored the area on foot, stopping to eat some delicious dishes. more ›

For Taco Tuesday observers, you probably already have this one in the bag, but October 4th happens to be National Taco Day. That's a pretty easy one to cover in Los Angeles, since we're home to some of the country's best taco shops and stands, not to mention a whole fiesta of Mexican restaurants that serve up tacos. more ›

The tacos served up at the seasonal weekly hilltop farmers' market at Hollywood's Yamashiro have attracted a fanatical following, and now its time for those tasty bites--and the chef behind them--to step out on their own. Komida, the off-shoot storefront project of Yamashiro Executive Chef Brock Kleweno, is opening as-planned October 6th. more ›

Angelenos are loco for tacos! Pitting taco joint against taco joint in an NCAA March Madness bracket-style vote-off, LA TACO's annual Taco Madness let its insanity loose, and last week found Mexicali Taco Company the victor out of a field that began with 32 contenders. more ›

This is a bittersweet installation of our Know Your Farmers' Market series, because not all our local weekly markets can operate year-round, and because of the weather, this one is about to close down for the chiller months. There are only two weeks left of this fabulously fun and unique market run by LA City Farm that launched earlier this year, but there are plenty of reasons to go check it out. more ›

At last weekend's epic four-day Taste of Beverly Hills event there seemed to be something indulgent around every corner. Some of the city's top chefs were manning tables set up in two large tents, offering up sample tastes of the best of their menus. more ›

***Change of Venue***Book Soup presents a Q&A and book signing with Tim Kring, author of Shift and creator of Heroes tonight at 7 pm at the Renberg Theater. at Book Soup. The Q&A will be conducted by Damon Lindelof, co-creator and executive producer of Lost. Kring’s new book is the first in the Gate of Orpheus Trilogy, a “supernatural espionage thriller set at the collision of ‘60s counterculture and conspiracy. The book tells the story of Chandler Forrestal, a man who is dragged into a CIA mind-control experiment. After being given a massive dose of LSD, Chandler develops a frightening array of mental powers.” Admission is by advance ticketing only. Ticket price of $35 includes admission to book talk, an autographed copy of the book and ability to pose for a photo with Tim Kring. more ›

Last Friday evening the three courtyards of Union Station exploded with a bounty of exciting tastes, both familiar and exotic. As usual, we sought out Chef John Rivera Sedlar first. He had gone wild with his tortillas florales, taking them to the bring of intensity by pressing capers and olives into the tortillas and slathering them with a cumin yogurt dressing. Are we to expect a Middle Eastern and Latin fusion restaurant next? more ›

El Taurino Tacos is located on a corner of a 3-way stop where Hoover, Olympic and South Park View Streets converge. Its bright lights beckon, promising good eats 24 hours a day. Painted above the door is the promise: A NICE PLACE TO EAT. This is drunk food at its finest. more ›

It took us a while to get to the Komodo truck, from the first time we got wind of them joining the ranks of the mobile meal possibilities last December to a recent quick stop for a lunchtime bite. more ›

With Toast, Milk, Breadbar Joan's, A.O.C., Ortolan, The Little Door (plus The Little Door Next Door) and more, West Third Street has always been a nice restaurant row. Now two eateries a poised to open, adding tacos and burgers to the mix, notes Tasha Nita Adams at Mondette, a lifestyle blog about the area. more ›

Yuca’s on Hillhurst is an institution. This shack-in-a-parking-lot serves award-winning Mexican fare praised by crowds of both the working class and upper crust. Their entire, wonderful menu is very cheap, making Yuca's a perfect Recession Obsession. more ›

On a stretch of Pico where you’re likely to find spicy Caribbean food, or the caloric effort that is Oki-Dog, one might not expect tacos. That's why Sky’s Gourmet Tacos is a great fit. They serve up what they call: "Mexican food with a splash of soul". more ›

Diners: Watch your mouth! This food truck's name can sometimes get tangled, and make you say something naughty. LA FuXion (fusion, people, fusion) is one of the many Twittering food trucks who are putting their spin on four-wheeled street eats. more ›

The taco is as friendly a Recession Obsession dish as can be consumed. At best they're warm, flavor-dense, transcendent, and $0.50 to $3 each. At worst -- I don't need to tell you. We've all been sold a few ghastly tacos. FYI, you can throw them out before they taint your lips. more ›

The writers at Forbes, who reference Los Angeles as a "sea-side city," have deemed that the best kind of street food offered here are fish tacos. Forget burritos, Portland nabs that. Forget the eclectic assortment of non-traditional street food like Kogi BBQ, the Green Truck, Sprinkles, etc. Seattle wins that category. And forget all the reindeer sausage that lines L.A. streets--Anchorage Alaska wins that. Here's what Forbes has to say: "This sea-side city’s most ubiquitous street food is a fairly recent creation. Fish tacos—fried fish wrapped in corn tortillas and topped with a variety of creamy sauces—were introduced to Los Angeles in the 1980s. Since then their popularity has spanned all classes of dining establishments, from high-end to fusion, though arguably the best ones to be had are still off the street." They recommend taco trucks on Olympic Boulevard east of Downtown L.A. and, of course, The Best Fish Taco in Ensenada in Los Feliz. What do you think? Comment below... more ›

Not even 24 hours after a post on LAist about Baja Fresh's suspiciously sounding Kogi BBQ-like menu spread through Twitter, the Orange County based company has changed their word usage and released the following statement by Chuck Rink, president of Fresh Enterprises, which owns Baja Fresh: more ›

In what appears to be inspiration from the street (or a complete rip off) Baja Fresh is bringing new Kogi Korean BBQ menu items to its new concept test location in Irvine. Not only can you get alcohol and cilantro lime rice at the fast casual restaurant, you can get Korean BBQ inspired tacos and burritos that just happened to be partially named Kogi like the famous Kogi BBQ. more ›

A Baja Fresh with margaritas, korean tacos, new salsas and step by step ordering like you do a Chipotle? That's what the Cypress-based company is testing in Irvine, according to Nancy Luna, the Fast Food Maven of Orange County. She also notes that one of the franchises in Huntington Beach recently received an alcohol permit, which might be one of the 13 locations that gets the liquor upgrade, according to the chain. The Kogi Korean tacos won't be from the famous truck, but definitely seems inspired by them. According to a blog dedicated to Orange County Mexican food, Baja will let you choose a meat--spicy chicken ($6.59) or Korean BBQ steak ($6.99)--for two dishes: The Baja Korean Taco Platters ($6.59) are two tacos with corn tortillas garnished with Kimchi slaw and sesame salsa Roja, served with cilantro lime rice, black beans, chips and salsa. Their Korean BBQ Burrito will consist of sesame salsa Roja, served with cilantro lime rice and kimchi slaw. more ›

Driving around Anaheim after an Angels game or a concert at The Grove of Anaheim can feel like you are driving around a ghost town -- wide, empty streets with nothing but Taco Bell signs as evidence of life. But there is a haven for your beer-soaked belly. Cruise on down Katella to the strip mall lights of Taqueria Mexico. They are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In fact, one patron says that during a six month period during the 80s they didn't even have a front door. more ›

The Official Recession has enveloped us for sixteen official months. It’s still no reason we can’t enjoy life. This is LA -- we have a ton of inexpensive options! A Recession Obsession is truly fantastic, regardless of whether times are good or you've recently been downsized. We last obsessed over Phillippe's old school french dip sandwiches, and some ramen on the West Side. Today, we obsess... more ›

It's not unemployment, it's funemployment, right? Sure! But try telling that to the newly created legions of recession victims who spend their days trolling the internet for job leads and nervously rechecking their bank account balance. When you're out of work and trying to save money, it's hard to get out and have fun -- gym memberships, drinks with friends, movies, and restaurant dinners all have to go. But even the brokest asses still need sustenance -- mental and physical. What can you do in this city with a handful of Georges and some pocket change? more ›

One way to get people chatting about your new restaurant is to bring in the bloggers, which is just what Downtown's CASA did recently. The eatery served signature cocktails and a sampling of their menu, which was inspired by an old family recipe book, to an eager crowd of self-proclaimed foodies. We mingled with the owners and watched Chef Kris Morningstar in action--alas we learned a few days later Morningstar is moving on soon, as planned, to embark on another food adventure. He's got a project set for Hollywood, and we will keep our eyes--and tastebuds--on alert. more ›

If Kogi BBQ wasn't popular enough with hundreds of people lining up where Twitter tells them to go, now the only Pulitzer Prize winning food critic and journalist has penned his thoughts on the Korean taco truck that LAist covered last month. "The frequent tweets make you feel connected to Kogi, as if you were friends with the owners instead of just another hungry mouth, even if your only contact with them has been a quick fist bump when you picked up your tacos," Jonathan Gold explains. Last night, it was reported that Kogi BBQ was once again so crowded, some gave the extremely long line one look and found a sit down restaurant nearby instead. more ›

Now don't get us wrong, here at LAist we are bacon people. In fact, we are official Facebook fans of bacon, and it doesn't get any more real than that. We have eaten bacon in ice cream, covered in chocolate, and illegally wrapped around hot dogs. But some things simply don't go with bacon and one of them is tacos. more ›

For a couple weeks, Malo has been serving up $1 tacos on Monday nights with mostly vegan choices including Eggplant & Potato, Grilled & Marinated Vegetable and Soy-Rizo (make sure to ask that the sour cream and cheese condiments are left off). A vegetarian Potato & Chipotle taco (has cheese mixed in) and Grilled Chicken soft taco is also available for the same price. For an extra 50-cents, you're looking at meaty taco truck favorites: carne asada, al pastor and carnitas. But if you're a seafood lover, the Grilled Fish and Lobster tacos are available, albeit not at the near Monday deal ($3 and $5, respectively). Malo, as much as people loved to hate it in its early days, has quickly become a Silver Lake mainstay, especially with their own mixologist on staff creating an excellent cocktail list. more ›

After a judge in late August threw out the County's ordinance regarding taco truck parking, the LA County district attorney's office announced Friday that they would not seek an appeal. The ordinance, which Superior Court Judge Dennis Aichroth said was "too ambiguous to be enforceable," forced taco trucks to move every hour or face a $1000 fine or jail time. more ›

Loteria Grill at the Original Farmers Market has long been one of the city's most popular Mexican outposts (we reviewed it back in April just for kicks), so it's nice to see chef Jimmy Shaw take up residence in an attractive space on Hollywood Boulevard. The new restaurant's menu is more extensive than the original's, but there are still plenty of your old favorites to choose from. LAist's editor Zach Behrens has given the place thumbs up for vegetarian options, but meat eaters will enjoy a long list of pork, chicken, and beef entrees as well. more ›