El Rey Tacos
Los Angeles, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
An old neighborhood taco stand gives El Rey Tacos in Los Angeles a straightforward roadside introduction. No elaborate dining room announcement needed here. The name gets to the point, leaving hungry customers to decide how many tacos might be enough.
The stand recalls the smaller independent eateries that gave Southern California’s commercial streets their variety. A quick meal could come from a modest building with its own name and personality, rather than another familiar corporate storefront.
An unverified tale describes paper bags rustling after midnight, followed by a voice calling “ticket number forty-two” from the darkened counter. Really? Hopefully whoever placed that order hasn’t been waiting too long.
UPDATE: El Rey Tacos remains documented among Los Angeles’ older roadside food stands. Its modest appearance recalls a neighborhood stop where the main attraction was something to eat. 10-26
El Patio (Closed)
Azusa, CA Photo courtesy Adriene Biondo
Several marquees gave El Patio in Azusa more than one opportunity to catch a hungry motorist’s attention. Apparently a single restaurant announcement wasn’t quite enough. The collection made this vintage Mexican restaurant worth a closer look before dinner even entered the discussion.
The lettering and different sign shapes gave the frontage its own character. There was something appealing about a restaurant that could assemble several roadside greetings and let them share the job. One might catch the eye from down the street, while another supplied a closer introduction near the entrance.
Unfortunately, the restaurant’s later years brought uncertainty, followed by closure. The familiar name and its signs became reminders of another neighborhood dining spot whose kitchen had finished its run.
El Patio (Closed)
Azusa, CA Photo courtesy Adriene Biondo
An unverified tale describes the old El Patio lettering briefly glowing through autumn fog, accompanied by the aroma of chili colorado and toasted tortillas. Think this is true? Perhaps the sign still had one more dinner invitation to deliver.
UPDATE: The El Patio no longer exists and is now home to Canyon City BBQ. It closed its doors this summer (2003). Many thanks to Joseph Tessier for update. 01-04
UPDATE: El Patio has closed. Its collection of vintage marquees remains a distinctive part of Azusa’s roadside restaurant history, recalling a place that gave passing motorists several reasons to look over. 10-26
Ernie's Mexican Restaurant (Demolished)
South Gate, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Take a look at the lantern above Ernie’s Mexican Restaurant in South Gate. At Firestone Boulevard and Hildreth Avenue, the sign combined a tiled arch with a sweeping boomerang-shaped neon cabinet. Oval “Mexican Restaurant” and “Cocktails” panels hung below, accented by wrought-iron scrollwork. Apparently one style wasn’t enough for this dinner invitation.
Part of Ernest U. Cruz’s regional restaurant business, this operation previously occupied a Long Beach Boulevard location near Lynwood. After a fire damaged that restaurant, Ernie’s moved to Firestone Boulevard.
An unverified tale describes the lantern flickering amber during rainstorms despite supposedly being disconnected. True story? Perhaps it hadn’t heard that dinner service was over.
UPDATE: The restaurant was demolished, and the site became a Starbucks drive-thru in 2018. Ernie’s original neon marquee and restaurant panels are gone. 10-26
Ernie Jr's Taco House (Gone)
Glendale, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
The familiar name at Ernie Jr.’s Taco House brings back a longtime restaurant tradition from the Glendale and Eagle Rock area. A taco house makes a fairly direct promise to hungry motorists. Fortunately, nobody needed to spend much time wondering what sort of meal was available.
The family business began in Lincoln Heights in 1944, founded by Ernie and Albina Cruz. Following their separation in the mid-1950s, Albina’s restaurants took the Ernie Jr.’s name, giving the business another chapter and generations of customers a familiar place for Mexican food.
UPDATE: Ernie Jr.’s Taco House has closed. The longtime Eagle Rock restaurant served its final meals on April 19, 2014, ending another chapter of the family’s Southern California restaurant history. 10-26
El Gordo (Demolished)
Temple City, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
A sombrero worked its way into the marquee at El Gordo Restaurant, giving this Temple City eatery a roadside greeting with something extra on top. Apparently the restaurant name needed a hat before it was ready to meet passing traffic.
The broad outline made the sign worth noticing beyond its lettering. For anyone collecting a mental inventory of Southern California’s unusual restaurant marquees, another oversized sombrero was certainly welcome.
Unfortunately, El Gordo eventually met the bulldozer, taking the restaurant out of the neighborhood landscape.
El Gordo (Demolished)
Temple City, CA Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
An unverified tale describes a sombrero-shaped shadow stretching across the sidewalk at midnight, with faint mariachi music drifting through the air. Really? Perhaps the old marquee was making an encore appearance.
UPDATE: Unfortunately the bulldozers got to this place just
after the start of the new year. Fortunately, the El Gordo neon sign on the roof was acquired by the Museum of Neon Art and spared from destruction. 01-02
UPDATE: El Gordo is demolished. Its sombrero marquee remains a memorable part of the area’s roadside restaurant record, recalling a dining stop that dressed up its introduction. 10-26
El Rey Tacos
El Patio (Closed)
El Patio (Closed)
Ernie's Mexican Restaurant (Demolished)
Ernie Jr's Taco House (Gone)
El Gordo (Demolished)
El Gordo (Demolished)
