Highland Park’s Charlie’s Tacos Returns to York Boulevard After City Removes ‘Unauthorized’ Red Paint

Two weeks ago, on Sunday, July 22, Charlie Cardenas, owner of Charlie’s Tacos in Highland Park, arrived at his location in front of the CVS on York and Eagle Rock Boulevard, just like he does every other day, only this time, the curb where he usually parks his food truck was painted red .

While Cardenas is no stranger to having to move from location to location due to painted curbs, city rules, and the occasional issue with neighboring businesses, something about this situation did not sit well with him.

Years of going through similar situations gave him a hunch, and in part, he was right.

At the time, L.A. TACO reached out to LADOT to see if they knew any details about when the curb was painted and for what reasons. To which LADOT responded with :

“LADOT installed a red curb at York & Ave 50 as part of the bike rack installation at this location. The red curb near Eagle Rock Blvd does not appear to be an authorized installation. LADOT crews will review this location to confirm and remove it if it is determined to be unauthorized.”

After hearing that the city was possibly not responsible for the red curb, Cardenas disclosed that he believed it could have been one of the businesses in the area. However, as of last week, that has yet to be proven true.

L.A. TACO followed up with LADOT this week, and they confirmed that a crew went out to inspect the location, saying:

“The red curb near Eagle Rock Blvd was unauthorized and removed/repainted at 11:30 a.m. this (Wednesday) morning."

It is still unknown who painted the curb, but Charlie’s Tacos has returned to its location to sell its famous birria, tacos al pastor, and other Mexican dishes.