The Brief

This story was originally published by Boyle Heights Beat on July 24, 2025.

By midday on a recent Monday, only a few customers had trickled into La Chispa de Oro, a once-busy Mexican eatery on Cesar Chavez Avenue in Boyle Heights.

Behind the counter, owner Melchor Moreno monitored the money in his till, counting the few hundred dollars in sales — about half a typical weekday.

He glanced at his staff, counting with his fingers how much he’d owe in wages that day. The math didn’t add up.

“It doesn’t help that there’s no foot traffic, too…. The streets are empty. It’s kind of scary,” Moreno said.

Since immigration raids began sweeping through Los Angeles neighborhoods, Eastside restaurants have been scraping by, as even longtime customers are keeping themselves and their dollars at home out of fear of potential immigration enforcement. While the full economic toll is still uncertain, many business owners already feel the squeeze.

Moreno has cut staff hours. He’s stepped in to wash dishes. With fewer customers, his staff goes home with fewer tips.

“They’ve noticed it. The waitresses are taking less money home every day,” he said. “I don’t know how much longer we can keep doing this.”

Moreno, who is still paying off electricity bill debt accumulated during the COVID-19 pandemic, estimates his restaurant has lost more than $7,000 since the raids began on June 6. To stay afloat, he’s now closing Tuesdays through the summer until fear stemming from the ICE raids fades, he hopes.

La Chispa de Oro sits along the popular Cesar Chavez Avenue corridor.

(

Andrew Lopez

/

Boyle Heights Beat

)

Survey shows deep losses at Boyle Heights restaurants

La Chispa’s slowdown isn’t isolated. This month, Boyle Heights Beat surveyed more than a dozen local restaurants to understand how immigration enforcement is affecting them. The results paint a grim picture: several restaurants reported losing 50% or more of their customers or revenue over the last several weeks. One business owner said he lost more than $10,000 in revenue. Another estimates losses of around $15,000.

Already struggling with inflation, some business owners are working for free and others are cutting back employee hours to save on labor costs.

At Casa Fina on 1st Street, the conversation has already started about potentially laying off staff or closing down entirely. Several owners said they hadn’t fully recovered from the economic strain of the COVID-19 pandemic when the raids dealt the latest blow.

One local taqueria owner said workers who are undocumented are having to choose between earning a paycheck and risking encountering ICE agents.

Though several restaurants have no plans in place in the event agents show up, others, like Milpa Kitchen, have posted signs barring ICE from entering private property. Neighbors of Casa Fina have offered to keep a watchful eye on the block in case federal agents arrive at the popular eatery.

Leaders take notice — but support lags behind

Local elected leaders are taking note and pledging to offer support. In June, Mayor Karen Bass and Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez walked the abnormally quiet business corridor along 1st Street to speak with restaurant owners about their concerns.

Bass described the fear and economic impact as a “body blow” to the neighborhood. In another video posted on social media Wednesday, she said her office is “doubling down on support” for small businesses, although it remains unclear what that entails. Boyle Heights Beat reached out to the Mayor’s office for clarification, but did not hear back in time for publication.

Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, who represents Boyle Heights in District 14, helped facilitate the opening of the City’s Small Business Administration’s Business Recovery Center at 1780 E. 1st Street. There, small businesses and nonprofit organizations affected by the raids can access information and resources about loan programs available to those experiencing financial hardship, a CD 14 spokesperson said.

At the county level, Supervisor Hilda Solis initiated an economic impact report to assess the effects of the ICE raids on small businesses and moved to develop a fundraising plan and cash-aid fund to impacted families.

Still, Miriam Rodriguez, president of the Boyle Heights Chamber of Commerce, says small businesses need direct financial assistance like grants.

“Just like there was financial assistance during the pandemic or during the fires, there should be a similar financial assistance program for small businesses during these times that don’t have a lot of [red tape] like a long application process.”

While Rodriguez has seen fewer reports of ICE agents around the Eastside since a federal judge granted a temporary halt to roving immigration enforcement, she says fear still lingers. And so does financial strain.

“I know the city is feeling the burdens of the city budget, but I think financial support is crucial because if they don’t do it now, there’s a high probability that a lot of businesses will close,” Rodriguez said.

Calling for community support

A sign in support of immigrants is displayed at La Chispa de Oro in Boyle Heights.

(

Andrew Lopez

/

Boyle Heights Beat

)

Rodriguez believes the solution doesn’t just lie in government action. To her, leaders working in tandem with residents supporting neighborhood restaurants may be key to persevering through this economic crisis.

At a recent Boyle Heights “Know Your Rights” workshop hosted by the Boyle Heights Chamber of Commerce, Council District 14, and the Independent Hospitality Coalition, business owners, managers and employees gathered to receive guidance on how to navigate potential encounters with ICE agents at work.

After the workshop’s presentation, one business owner said he had eliminated uniform requirements at his tortilleria and was even offering Lyft and Uber rides to his employees to protect them on their commutes to and from work.

“There is a lot of uncertainty about federal immigration policies, instilling fear in immigrant communities, whether or not they have legal status, and, in some cases, it is having a chilling effect on restaurants’ team members and guest traffic,” said Jot Condie, the president and CEO of the California Restaurant Association.

Condie called immigrants the lifeblood of the industry and emphasized the powerful role they play in the economy. “We would not be the 4th largest economy in the world without them.”

Rodriguez echoes the sentiment, noting that community resilience has defined Boyle Heights.

“We are a community that will always stand up for each other… I think Boyle Heights is unique in the sense that people step where it’s mostly needed.” Rodriguez said.

“Where possible, we should be reclaiming our streets, reclaiming our space, and supporting these family-owned businesses. Many have been here for such a long time, and it would be very unfortunate to see their doors close,” Rodriguez said.

Adapting to survive, but not everyone can

While some restaurants have cut hours, others fear that doing so could be worse.

At The Big Burrito on Wabash Avenue, an employee said they can’t further reduce their slow business for fear of potentially turning away hungry customers.

Un Solo Sol is a vegan restaurant located on 1st Street in Boyle Heights.

(

Andrew Lopez

/

Boyle Heights Beat

)

Around Mariachi Plaza, where parking is notoriously limited, Carlos Ortez, owner of Un Solo Sol, called the financial situation devastating.

Ortez estimates losing half of his business since the raids began. While his restaurant has been a 15-year fixture in the neighborhood, he said it hasn’t turned a profit since before the pandemic. Now the raids have forced him to cut back operations to just a few days a week – and if things don’t improve soon, he fears he may have to close.

“The possibility of me closing is high. Of course, I’m not going to give up that easily,” Ortez said. “The community has been my secure source of revenue for my business. But the community has experienced this exact same thing; it hasn’t gotten better. It’s been decreasing and decreasing in income and sustainability. It’s become something we can’t hide.”

Boyle Heights Beat interns Angelo Lopez and Luis Cano contributed to this story. 

The Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory may run the second-longest study of  individually identifiable mammals in the world, but they’re not afraid of trying something new.

The lab is launching a bracket-style competition, Fat Marmot Week, for people all over the world to vote for their favorite chunky ground squirrel.

The UCLA researchers who work there have faced a loss of federal funding in recent years, so they’re now pursuing creative fundraising efforts, including a (G-rated) OnlyFans account for marmot content called OnlyMarms and a meme coin created by supporters of the project.

Where the idea came from

Dan Blumstein, a UCLA ecology and evolutionary biology professor who came up with OnlyMarms, said he’s wanted to do a Fat Marmot Week ever since the success of Fat Bear Week, in which the public votes on grizzly bears bulking up for the winter in Alaska. But it took two of his graduate researchers, Katie Adler and Emily Renkey, along with another volunteer who helps with logistics, to see it to fruition.

“ Science isn't just writing the papers, it's also the communication side of things,” said Adler, who’s also the lab’s field team leader.

Like bears, marmots prepare for the winter by fattening up, with some more than doubling in weight from about 5.5 pounds to as much as 13. But unlike bears, marmots are true hibernators. For months, their body temperature drops very low, and they breathe and have a heartbeat about once a minute. (Blumstein described a hibernating marmot as “sort of a fuzzy stone.”)

These two specimens are called Dawn and Dan's Hat.

(

Courtesy Dan Blumstein/UCLA

)

 Adler, who's on her third year of marmot field observations, said the individual marmots are consistent enough that she can "see what they're doing a little bit and then know exactly who it is."

“I think it’s fun to think of this from an outside perspective – why do we like marmots and how can we share that with other people?” Renkey said.

About the marmots

The marmots are all given names to help tell them apart based on markings the researchers dye on their fur.

Their names range from Dawn, who is reportedly a “a very special boy who enjoys the taste of rocks,” to a “proud mama” named 1 and a “girl boss” with no mate named Open Kite.

“Our parties are quite boring to other people because all we do is talk about the marmots,” Blumstein said. “It's a soap opera.”

Funding troubles

Faced with federal funding cuts, Blumstein realized he had to get creative, starting with the OnlyMarms account.

But he said he wasn’t expecting the “extraordinary” response – the $OnlyMarms meme coin has made more than $100,000 in transaction fees, though it’s still short of the $225,000 to $300,000 they need to fundraise to bring in more graduate student research.

Blumstein said while all funding is welcome, including the OnlyMarms subscriptions, it’s much easier for them to accept direct donations for tax purposes. The money will go to support researchers like Renkey and Adler’s contributions to the nearly 65 years of marmot research at the lab.

The tournament

Eight competitors will face off — five females and three males. There’ll also be a “true” winner announced at the end based on the lab’s measurements on which marmot gained the most weight this spring and summer.

The first round of voting will be Monday, Aug. 24, followed by the semifinals on Wednesday, Aug. 26, and the final showdown on Friday, Aug. 28. Voting runs from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PDT.

“Everyone should vote. It's very exciting,” Renkey said. “They're huge this summer.”

The younger bald eagle that Shadow has been seen hanging out with around Big Bear’s famous nest lately has a new name.

The bird, which is believed to be a female, is banded as KD1. Friends of Big Bear Valley, the nonprofit that runs the popular YouTube livestream, has dubbed her Kaydee.

The organization generally doesn’t name visiting eagles, but Kaydee is sticking around so far and could become a new online star after Shadow’s long-time mate Jackie died last week.

So, who is this new eagle in the nest?

One expert told LAist that Kaydee is more than 4 years old and was probably wandering much further than Big Bear before it was spotted on camera.

“This is kind of the banders dream, right? You put bands on a bird so that you can possibly get … a one-off observation of where it is at some point in its life, and we're getting way, way more than that,” said Jenna Carpenter, a field biologist and environmental specialist with the Orange County Water District.

“In this instance, we're getting 24/7 views and people are so tuned into it that they're keeping really good track of where KD1 is, and it's really awesome.”

Meet Kaydee

Kaydee was first recorded on the livestream cameras in the Big Bear habitat on Aug. 6 — a few days before Jackie died — according to Friends of Big Bear Valley.

The nonprofit said the eagle started to perch by Shadow in several trees, which it has continued to do in the weeks since. The group recently referred to Kaydee as Shadow’s “shadow.”

Kaydee is from the Prado Basin area, where its parents Ricky and Lucy nest nearby. Carpenter said Ricky and Lucy have raised around a dozen eaglets since 2021, when they first started setting up shop in the area.

The eagle wears two bracelet-like bands on its legs, including a lavender-colored one, which can be used to track Kaydee in different areas.

“If someone sees [the color band] with a scope or binoculars or a zoom camera, it can be reported and put into a research database, which adds to the opportunity to progress conservation for raptors and eagles,” Carpenter said.

You can learn more about reporting a bird with a federal band or color marker here.

Will Kaydee stick with Shadow?

Kaydee is what's known as a subadult eagle, a stage in which Carpenter said raptors are still trying to figure out what they want to do and where they want to be.

“Big Bear’s a nice habitat, obviously they've been visiting this nest, you know, there's some interest there whatever it may be,” she said. “So it's possible that they stick around and find a mate, whether that be Shadow or another adult eagle.”

But it’s also possible Kaydee moves onto another habitat after the off-season. Whatever happens, Carpenter said us humans get to go along for the ride through the livestream, which she described as a privilege.

“We get this chance to witness something that we would not normally get to witness, because we know exactly who this bird is and we happen to have cameras in the area,” she said. “It might be everything and it might be nothing, and either way, I think that's really exciting that we get to have a little peek into this world.”

The Esquivel family opened their first taqueria at Playas de Tijuana 15 years ago, with a focus on individually crafted tacos, each with its own pairing of salsa.

Since then, Taqueria Tijuanero — formerly Tijuanazo — has become an increasingly popular SoCal taco chain.

Owner Aria Esquivel sat down with AirTalk Friday host Austin Cross to talk about how it all started from a humble Tijuana brick-and-mortar and how they stay true to their distinct North Mexican menu.

The art of the taco

Esquivel’s father and mastermind behind Taqueria Tijuanero, Antonio Esquivel, began working in kitchens when he was 16 years old, working his way up from dishwasher to cook at French restaurants in Beverly Hills.

“What he really loved about the taco and the art of the taco in Tijuana is how these ingredients mesh so well together,” Esquivel said.

That’s when the family opened up their own restaurant in Playas de Tijuana in 2011.

Mexico's taco diversity

Because of Mexico’s diverse landscape of crops, history and even weather patterns, taco styles can actually vary quite a bit depending on where you are in the country.

“ The tacos in Mexico City are different," Esquivel said. "The tacos in Sonora are different. The Tijuana tacos are different."

Fresh al pastor

(

(Courtesy Taqueria Tijuanero

)

Al pastor taco

(

Courtesy Taqueria Tijuanero

)

Bill Esparza, the James Beard Award-winning food writer who's spent the last two decades chronicling L.A.'s taco scene, helped curate Taqueando After Dark, a new food festival that will feature eight L.A. taco vendors, including Taqueria Tijuanero.

“When I see theirs, I see what I see in Mexico,” Esparza said of Taqueria Tijuanero’s tacos, adding, “It’s a taco that really has a lot of intentionality behind it.”

How to experience Taqueando After Dark festival

Taqueando After Dark takes over Level 8 for two nights, Aug. 27 and 28. (Courtesy of Level 8)

(

Courtesy Taqueando After Dark

)

Read more: LA taqueros meet Baja’s best for two-night DTLA taco festival

New location coming:

• The family is in the process of opening its third SoCal location in Echo Park.

How to visit:

• Address: 355 S Atlantic Blvd., East Los Angeles
• Hours: Closed on Mondays | Tuesday-Sunday, open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
• Costs: Tacos are $3.95 each