LA’s New Gogo’s Tacos Keeps a Colorful Connection to Its Community

Welcome to LA, Gogo’s Tacos. The brand-new restaurant along Beverly Boulevard, where Silver Lake, Virgil Village, Rampart Village, Historic Filipinotown, and Koreatown all converge, opens today as part of the growing empire of one of LA’s most thoughtful taco operators. Housed in the former Tacos Mexico space, Gogo’s is a fast-casual, LA-inspired restaurant laced in bright pink and retro design details, a perfect complement to owner (and Eater New Guard recipient) Brittney Valles’ restaurant portfolio.

Valles was long familiar with the funky corner location, checking in on it often while driving to work at Petty Cash years ago. While not a regular there herself, Valles says she took comfort in the fact that the previous tenant was always there, ready to serve the neighborhood. Now she’s looking to do the same thing, and at the same address. “I want to create something that’s super familiar, super straightforward, something to take while commuting.” But while other taco stands can be “hit or miss,” Valles is focused on only giving the people what they want.

Inside, diners start by choosing the base of chicken, carnitas, mushroom, ribeye steak, or shrimp. From there the protein or main of choice gets funneled into categories like tacos, quesadillas (with sour cream and cheese), or burritos with rice, beans, onions, and cilantro. Aside from the savory options, Gogo’s serves dipped cones and floats. Staff will put root beer, Coca Cola, or Sprite in your float, says Valles.

Dishes hover at or below $10, says Valles, a conscious decision designed to keep the entire community in mind. Much of her staff hails from the surrounding neighborhood, and many attended the charter school adjacent to Gogo’s. A dedicated amount of sales goes to the Juan Carlos Cantoni Foundation, a nonprofit that supports youth and mental health in Los Angeles.

Gogo’s chef is Christina Galtman, an LA native who worked at Patina, Marche, Palihouse, and Le Comptoir. Galtman stepped away from the kitchen for a few years to focus on her family as a private and corporate chef before joining Gogo’s this year.

This is the third LA restaurant from Valles, who operates Tiago Coffee Bar + Kitchen in Hollywood Guerrilla Tacos and Guerrilla Cafecito in the Arts District; she named Gogo’s after her mother.

The new Gogo’s is open from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. daily, with hours set to expand down the line. Be mindful though, Gogo’s remains in the early restaurant opening stage while a labor shortage persists.