“Tenemos narco-corridos, porque no narco-tacos?”

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Let’s Taco ‘Bout It: There’s a Narco-Themed Taqueria in LA

 Drug lords are EVERYWHERE these days. Not only do they make headlines on the news, they’re immortalized on narcocorridos, and their stories are told on telenovelas like “El Señor de Los Cielos” and TV shows like Netflix’s “Narcos.”

 

Now, a taco shop just outside of Los Angeles is bringing even more notoriety to narcos, with a side of salsa roja.

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(CREDIT: YOUTUBE/UNIVISION NOTICIAS) 

Tacos Los Desvelados, which roughly translates to “The Insomniac Tacos,” has a chalkboard menu featuring a who’s who of the narco world.

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                                                                                                                                                                                                                         (CREDIT: UNIVISION NOTICIAS / YOUTUBE)You don’t order carne asada burritos here — no, at this narco-themed taqueria, it’s all about the burrito de Pablo Escobar or tacos de El Chapito Guzman (they’re mini tacos). Oh, there’s also a taco dedicated to the most famous woman in the drug trading business: Sandra Avila Beltran, a.k.a. La Reina del Pacifico.

If burritos and tacos aren’t your thing, there are the Nachos Coronel, named after the late Sinaloa Cartel boss Ignacio “Nacho” Coronel Villareal.

Besides its narco-themed eats, Tacos Los Desvelados’ biggest attraction (or eye sore, depending on who you ask) had been a shrine dedicated to El Chapo.

framed photos, a candle and a terra cotta statue of Jesus Malvarde (the patron saint of drug smugglers) welcomed visitors to the establishment. The owner eventually took down the shrine — it was made by a customer — because too many onlookers were huddling around it, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The Chapo shrine may be gone, but you can still find him on tabletops…

You’ll also find Scarface…

And Pablo Escobar, who appears on fake blood-stained tabletops and several posters that line the walls of the taqueria.

They’ve even got the endorsement of narcocorrido singer El Komander

The mastermind behind these cartel creations is Fabricio Ramirez, a Mexican immigrant who moved to the U.S. with dreams of becoming a doctor.


He eventually made a living in the U.S. as a musician, producing both music and concerts in the States and Mexico.

He opened the restaurant last year in October and has already received attention from a variety of media outlets in English and Spanish, including “El Gordo y La Flaca.” How are the tacos? Not bad, it seems: Tacos Los Desvelados currently holds a four-star rating on Yelp.

Ramirez appears to believe he’s just giving people what they want.


“We have narco-corridos, so why not narco-tacos?” Ramirez told the Los Angeles Times.

For those of you who want to take a step inside the narco world without having to go to the dark side (or build your own escape tunnel El Chapo-style), take a trip to this taqueria that is tucked unassumingly between a tax preparation office and a doughnut shop.

(Por Jacquelinne Mejia de mitu)