Readers Respond to Taco Truck War
The cartoon above is by Al Guerrero, one of our city’s up-and-coming cartoonists and a blogger at our new favorite site laeastsise.com. We also heard from our pals at York Blvd. who send along a “Save the Taco Trucks” online petition: www.saveourtacotrucks.org.
Meanwhile, our poll results are overwhelming– 88% of our readers, who represent a cross section of the taco lifestyle, are against Gloria Molina’s anti-taco truck law. So, vote in the poll, sign the petition, visit the pro-taco truck sites above.
(8 tacos)
EL CHAVO! wrote:
Tacos Al Cabron! Nice. Al’s stuff is pretty kick ass.
Posted on 17-Apr-08 at 7:47 pm | Permalink
godoggo wrote:
The man knows his Big Daddy Roth, don’t he?
Posted on 18-Apr-08 at 8:49 am | Permalink
Al Guerrero wrote:
This toon is part of a tribute to Big Daddy Roth. There will be a series of
ELA inspired Hot Rod toons appearing soon on my site alguerrero.com
Posted on 18-Apr-08 at 10:33 am | Permalink
Clint wrote:
I heard Erin on KROQ this morning, and although she comes off as well spoken, I couldn’t disagree more with your cause.
I would like to give you some reasons why Gloria Molina’s legislation is actually a very good thing. First, I should tell you that I spent 7 years working as County of Los Angeles Health Inspector, so my perspective is based mainly on what I witnessed first hand with too many of these taco trucks.
Taco trucks are classified as Mobile Food Facilities. Key word being mobile. Their historical and original purpose was to prepare food and bring it to the workers who did not have enough of a lunch break to travel to a restaurant and sit down and eat. They would travel from one location to another, typically spending an hour or less at any single location. However, the historical aspect doesn’t really matter anymore. If these mobile food facilties (Taco Trucks as you call them, Catering Trucks as they are most often called by the Health Department, and Roach Coaches by many of the workers who eat off of them) want to park at one location and not move, who does that hurt you ask, right? Let’s explore that.
As a former health inspector, one of the most common complaints we received is by restaurant owners, usually struggling restaurant owners who have their entire family’s life saving invested in a moderately successful traditional restaurant (restaurants like La Fogata, Dos Arbolitos, Perla del Mar and hundreds of others that most of you have never heard of) have their business stolen by Taco trucks. These owners build a good business, create a great family atmosphere, and sure enough, very soon you have at least one, if not two Taco Trucks parked right outside of their establishment, taking business from the restaurant. Why would anyone walk inside of a restaurant and pay $2.50 (or even $1.75) for aTaco when you can get one outside for $1? A single Taco Truck can bury a struggling restaurant at anytime. Without warning, like a mosquito, they can show up during the busiest time, on the busiest night, and steal literally thousands of dollars from the restaurant. Some might say “Well tough, they weren’t as smart as the taco truck owner, he bought a vehicle and he can park it anywhere he wants.” This is not true. There is already a law on the books limiting the distance it can park from a restaurant, and time a truck can stay in any one place. It is not typcially enforced because the Police don’t have the time to chase a taco truck away, but the law is already there. I honestly can’t remember if it is a State law, a Vehicle Code for catering vehicles, or what, its been more than 5 years since I was health inspector. So, the first question I ask, is it fair to the equally hardworking restaurant owner to have his business so easily stolen? My opinion is No.
Another major reason why I feel Taco Trucks in front of restaurants is so unfair is that Taco Trucks get many breaks that Restaurant owners do not. A cost of a Food Facilities Health Permit is based on the number of seats within that Food Facility. I am not sure why they choose that method, but they did. When I was inspecting, if you had a restaurant with 0-9 seats, the permit was $359 a year. 10-49 seats was $429, and 50-150 seats was $524. A Mobile Food Facility has no seats, so it paid (I think) $247 a year. (I’m sure the fees are higher now for both restaurants and catering trucks). What is fair about that? Well, it would be fair if the mobile food facilities fulfilled their historical role, and were truly mobile, bringing food to construction workers, field workers, industrial workers. But is it fair when that owner parks his truck that cost him $60,000 to $120,000 with his $247 permit in front of a restaurant that cost the owner $300,000 to $750,000 to buy, $5,000 to $10,000 to remodel, and pay’s permit fees nearly doublt that of the Taco Truck? Again, my opinion is No.
How about the taco truck owners that DON’T park in front of a restaurant? Well, I applaud those guys (and girls) for not taking advantage of other hard working restaurant owners. However, perhaps the single biggest issue involving Taco Trucks is the fact that approximately 80% of them are not permitted at all. I personally believe that number is a little higher than 80%, but right now it is estimated at 80%. We’ve all seen them, the taco truck that really arent even a taco truck. Instead, now someone takes a trailer, puts some cooking equipment in it (sometimes just a barbecue they set on the street while they cook), throws a neon sign on it, and as soon as the sun goes down (and the Health Inspectors are home and getting ready for bed) hundreds of “Taco Trucks” pop up. You see them on Sepulveda, Van Nuys, Laurel Canyon, York, Soto, Garvey, Atlantic, Crenshaw, Venice, Baldwin, it doesn’t matter what street, hundreds, actually thousands of illegal, unapproved, never inspected Taco Trucks selling who knows what to anyone with a dollar or two. Is the food good? Maybe. Do we know? Of course not. So now you have literally thousands of illegal taco trucks who don’t pay taxes, don’t pay for permits, hide from the inspections, do not meet minimum health standards, and run the risk of poisoning hundreds of Angelinos with E-coli, Salmonella, Botulism, Trichinosis, and a hundred other diseases that can actually kill you. By comparison, when a restaurant is suspected in causing a “Foodborne Illness Outbreak” (multiple person food poisoning), an extremely detailed inspection occurs, catching nearly every health code violation in the restaurant, and also tracking the source of the food as far back as possible. Remember recently when the spinach was pulled from the shelves in all markets in the US about 6 months ago? They finally tracked that outbreak to the actual farm the spinach was grown, then it was tracked even further to the section of the land that spinach came from). How can you track down a foodborne illness from a taco truck without a permit, without any records of where he purchased his food (if he purchased it at all, in some cases unapproved and uninspected livestock is used in these illegal Taco Trucks) and any even any knowledge of who owns the truck, and no way to contact him or her? I understand that it may be hard to believe that 80% (or more) of the taco trucks out there are illegal, but after 6PM, the majority of Taco Trucks you see have never been inspected and don’t have a permit. They don’t pay taxes. Their food may be safe and healthy, or it may not. The point is that there is no way to know. Some of you may think that the Health Department should do something about this! I agree! And they do. The Vehicle Inspection Program, the group that actually inspects approved vehicles and confiscates illegal vehicles does on average 2-4 “Sweeps” per month. I have worked these sweeps. We would get about 15 inspectors, 5 police officers (for those times people don’t want to just let you peacefully confiscate their unapproved food after they paid for it), and we would attempt to hit a bad section of every city if LA County. 2 interesting things happen when we start a sweep. Within 2 hours we have confiscated literally hundreds of pounds of illegal food items, and also hundreds of Mobile Food Facilties mysteriously scatter, only to come back as soon as the coast is clear. Sometimes we would stay out just to prevent them from coming back immediately. But it is a losing battle. What’s interesting is that for all of the illegal vehicles and food preparation equipment that is seized, instead of being detroyed, the county auctions it off. So not long after it is confiscated, it is quickly back on the street contributing to the problem all over again.
For those Taco Truck owners who do the right thing, they get their permits, they don’t park within 1,000 feet of any real restaurant to steal their business, and they work hard, God Bless them. They have their own disadvantages because they are doing it honestly, getting inspected, complying with the law, paying their taxes. But they also have many advantages over the restaurant owner. If business is bad, they can go find a new location in a day. If that doesn’t work, another new location. And if another truck comes and competes vigoursly for their business, they can simply go find a new corner. If they are smart, they can work a route where they go from industrial park to industrial park and do pretty well. Restaurant owners are at the mercy of their reputation, and the neighborhood they are in. If an owner is struggling, and Taco Truck pulls up and takes his business, he may lose everything. The restaurant owners and the Taco Truck owners both have it tough. It is just my opinion, but I believe there are already way too many Taco Trucks in LA County. If a special permit was issued, allowing those taco trucks that apply for a certain area to be statiionary for a day, I would have no problem with that. Perhaps the county could develop some sort of method for having trucks apply for special permits. If so, I hope they limit these to a very small number, and that the police actively enforce the law confiscating those who do not (the Police/Sheriff are now more responsible in this battle, but they ignore it completely). But as it is now, Taco Trucks should not be allowed to park wherever, open shop, and take business from restaurant owners who can’t get away with not having a permit, not following health standards, not buying food from approved vendors (which means paying slightly more), without having lower permit fees, without having larger staff, and cleaner facilities, and buying more equipment. They are both tough businesses, but without supporting the people who do it the right way, this society will go in reverse. We have to support the restaurant owner, and also the taco truck owners who follow the law. Right now, most truck owners do not. DO they already move their vehicles? No. Do they already stay 1,000 feet away from restaurants? No? Do they pay for permits, get inspected, and keep their truck clean? Most do not.
The laws are in place to keep it as fair as possible for everyone. Sure if you own a taco truck you probably disagree. But I don’t own a taco truck. I don’t own a restaurant. I don’t have any friends that do. I don’t have any real interest on either side. I just know, from experience, that the people who are doing it right are getting screwed the worst by the people who are not doing it right. I don’t like that. Just like I don’t like anyone who doesn’t register their car, or have a drivers license, or don’t have car insurance. They hit somebody, and they don’t care. Who get’s screwed? The people who did it right. We just can’t allow that.
Posted on 07-May-08 at 11:19 am | Permalink
Kari Gibb wrote:
interesting. I can see how determined taco truckers can do better than simply staying out of poverty, but there seems to be some idea that they actually have a right to exist in that manner.
Yes, it is definitely a novel idea for some lower income business plans. it innovative to dedicate it as niche food also. However, that does not mean they have a right to use this better way of selling.
We can create holograms out of thin air with only the use of localized lasers. Does that mean that advertisers can use billboard and taxi-roof mounted systems to shoot adverts all over the place in the middle of sidewalks and on the street in front of your home?
There seems to be a lot of reports about grassroots activity but its odd how the main supporter site does not allow people to comment…only some pages with internet signatures.
But there is one thing that I am certainly glad about…that the lawmaker pushing this isnt a non-latino. whew! can you imagine the accusations of racism then?!
Posted on 15-May-08 at 10:15 am | Permalink