The best food trucks in Los Angeles

One of the long-standing heroes of the old-school taco trucks, Mariscos Jalisco has earned a deservedly loyal and devoted following. Their signature tacos dorado de camaron live up to the hype, with flavorful and fresh shrimp folded into a corn tortilla that’s then fried to a golden brown and topped with thick slices of avocado and a vibrant and complex salsa roja. You’ll also want to save room for their legendary tostadas, like the Poseidon, which is topped with shrimp ceviche, octopus and a fiery red aguachile of shrimp. Food truck or no, these guys make some of the best tacos in the city, vastly outpacing most of L.A.’s brick-and-mortars.

This fleet of seven cash-only taco trucks across L.A. serves some of the best al pastor tacos in the city. No matter how many we’ve tried, we always come back to Leo’s, where a gargantuan piece of marinated al pastor slowly rotates on a spit, topped with a shaved, juicy hunk of pineapple. Although Leo’s draws its largest crowds on weekend nights from the going out set, this isn’t just your average drunchie. Operating like a well-oiled machine, the staff at each location deftly serves each customer’s tacos, calling out numbers in both Spanish and English. Whether eaten in open air or taken home, the thin slices of al pastor, topped with a bit of pineapple, are a beautiful sight to behold—and consume. 

This Black-owned South L.A. staple now has a regular residency at the Natural History Museum as Dulanville, a joint food truck between Dulan's Soul Food and Kim Prince's now-closed Hotville Chicken. Head here for mouthwatering soul food plates and Nashville's famous hot fried chicken—you won't regret it.

For old-school mariscos fans, there’s nothing more satisfying than a simple mixed seafood coctel served with a couple tostadas. If you’d prefer to experience a newer, zanier side of Mexican seafood, head to this Arts District lunchtime seafood truck, where new-school creations like octopus con papas ($6), smoked marlin tacos dorados with Oaxaca cheese ($2.50) and some seriously great shrimp aguachile ($7.50) await. While you’ll find the classics here, we’d rather steer you towards the new-school stuff, like the Peruvian-inspired ceviche blanco and the excellent aguachile rojo. Be sure to check ahead on Instagram before going to see if Mar-Es is open—the truck closes for catering gigs from time to time and occasionally decamps to Alhambra.

The grandaddy of the modern food truck bonanza since 2008, Roy Choi's Kogi empire still rules the streets with a delectable mashup of Korean and Mexican flavors. The signature short rib taco delivers big with double-caramelized Korean BBQ depth that’s balanced with a bright spike of salsa roja, a chile-soy slaw, cilantro and onions on two grilled-and-charred house tortillas. The now-classic kimchi quesadilla is still a winner, but the blackjack quesadilla with spicy pork, caramelized onions and salsa verde is also a solid choice. And if you’re looking to skip the meat, you can always swap in tofu as a filling. There are four trucks roving around (known as Roja, Verde, Rosita and Naranja), but the most dependable Kogi location is Palms; to be sure, check ahead online for the day's schedule.

Teddy’s Red may have made birria popular citywide, but this cash-only taco truck in Boyle Heights and Mid-City showcases a cleaner-tasting, less greasy side of the ubiquitous stew originally from the Mexican state of Jalisco. Available in both goat and beef varieties, taquero Yasmany Mendoza serves fall-off-the-bone tender birria tacos with a rich, salty consommé. While both are delicious, we prefer the mildly funky-tasting goat, which perfectly complements the vinegary adobo sauce. For even more flavor, order the deep-fried quesatacos, which come with melted soft white cheese. Beyond birria, Tacos Y Birria La Unica also serves a few cuts of tender beef offal: cabeza (head), lengua (tongue) and hard-to-find labio (lips).

With a daytime Mid-City lunch residency on La Cienega and a more dependable evening post in Boyle Heights, this family-run taco truck provides one of the most unique tacos in the city: the taco arabe. Influenced by 19th-century Lebanese immigrants who immigrated to the Mexican city of Puebla, each thick flour tortilla holds curls of a distinctive shawarma-like al pastor that tastes faintly of cumin and marjoram—though the exact recipe is a deeply guarded Villegas family secret. Topped with stringy Oaxacan cheese and slices of avocado—a.k.a. especiale—and paired with a tangy chipotle salsa, these super-hefty, super-delicious tacos are worth going out of your way for. Pro tip: You very likely won’t need more than two.

The wait can be killer, but this eye-catching deep blue lonchera parked in Silver Lake’s Sunset Triangle Plaza serves some of the most creative mariscos in town. (It also occasionally pops up on the Westside somewhere near the corner of Sawtelle and Olympic.) Drawing upon culinary school training, Francisco Aguilar serves a seasonally driven menu of tacos, tostadas, ceviches and aguachiles that pack acid, flavor and heat all into one delicious, beautiful package. If available, be sure to get the soft-shell crab taco, but you also can’t go wrong with the fish al pastor and enchilada suiza—a mouthwatering mix of grilled shrimp, melted cheese, habanero lime crema, avocado slices and salsa verde. Best of all, Simón offers a selection of colorful, ultra-fiery salsas that add even more zhuzh to your meal.

This family-run Afro-Mexican taco truck in Watts (with a separate, but oft-closed restaurant in Bell Gardens) serves up pozoles, tamales and phenomenal tacos from Mexico's Guerrero region, piling avocado and cabbage and chicharrones atop hours-long–simmered stews, and folding masa into both corn husks and banana leaves, depending on your mood. Our advice? Order both varieties of tamales (as well as some sweet ones), and always order extra to take home with you. 

A few years in and L.A.’s first bagel truck still draws big crowds for their high-quality hand-rolled bagels served up with plenty of schmear and swagger. Available in plain, poppy, sesame, everything and a very craveable cheddar, the Yeastie Boys' bagels offer that sought-after delicate balance of fluffy center and thin crust. Particularly after a late night, the Game Over scores with soft scrambled eggs, bacon, tomato and house-made jalapeño schmear, while the Lox Deluxe features smoked salmon, house scallion spread, tomatoes, red onion and capers. You can follow the fleet on Instagram for daily locations and the specials to be had at their four trucks around the city.

This Sinaloa-style seafood truck is a Highland Park staple, and a Northeast L.A. destination for tostadas, ceviches, fish tacos, and gloriously fresh shrimp empanadas. Get your cash ready and line up for some of the most refreshing seafood in the city, which often comes tart with citrus and kicking with chiltepin. You can't miss with any item here, but the ceviche de lobina—their salt-cured sea bass—is almost always our order, and it comes served over perfectly crispy tostadas for a silken and crunchy combo with every bite.

While there are certain trucks around town that we rely upon for knockout renditions of one particular type of taco, El Chato manages to deliver excellent options across the board (or plancha, rather). And since their small, palm-sized tacos run for $1.75 each, you can easily sample your way through the menu without breaking the bank. Favorites include the diced carne asada, al pastor, chorizo and lengua, all of which are treated to a healthy splash of their smoky roasted salsa roja, cilantro and onions. If you’re looking for a more hefty option, the quesadilla is a solid choice and still perfect for those on a budget. Check ahead on Instagram for daily hours of operation, though you can usually find them at 1013 South La Brea Avenue.

Look for the brightly painted trailer—splashed with purples and blues—that started parked along Figueroa in Highland Park to find some of the best rolled tacos known to man. Often fried up right on the sidewalk, the flautas from the Los Dorados truck provide a meal and a show and come dripping with refreshing salsas for a perfect hot-to-cold sensation with every crunchy bite. Massive corn tortillas wrap around chorizo, chicken, potato and (our favorite) the lamb barbacoa, and all come two of each variety to a pair, and topped with a showering of cotija. The schedule changes—and can be found on Instagram—but you can typically find these flautas in the Arts District, Highland Park and El Sereno throughout the week.