LA Street Food - Kike's Tacos

Tell the Zagat Guide to eat a d#@k! We've all heard the cliche about how what you pay for at a restaurant is the ambience ... yada yada yada. Well that's all it is - a hollow cliche. If you've ever dined out in Los Angeles, you know that what you're really paying for is some faux Tuscan hole in a stripmall with all the romance of a trip to the dentist, where you'll be ignored by some jerk whose name tag says "Giovanni" or "Bruno" when it really ought to say "Ahmed" and you have to pay for valet parking even though there are only three parking spaces in the whole lot which measures 20 feet by 20 feet. We've all had that experience where all we ordered was a sandwich and a coke and the waiter comes back grinning from ear to ear with a bill that demands $14.99. The staff here at Liquid Premium has good news for you: those days are over! We'll be keeping it strictly real here in this column, scouring the land to bring you only the purest Los Angeles street food.

Kike's (Kike is short for Enrique) Tacos sets up in a parking lot at the intersection of 2nd & Beaudry right in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles. After you roll down 2nd from Glendale on your bike and stop to change a tube, you can dine under the stars late at night for just pennies with a view of the fabulous Downtown skyline. Folding beach recliners complete with beverage holders in the arm rests are arranged for the patrons to gaze up at the city lights once the food coma sets in. Kike and his wife whip up dollar tacos made to order and then you help yourself to cilantro, onions, radishes and salsa from a long table with a checkered table cloth. Coolers full of softdrinks are available under the table. Buen provecho!

Kike's Tacos
2nd & Beaudry, Downtown Los Angeles
Open: when you're hungry late at night