When I heard there was a La Taqueria in the Central Valley, I thought it must be an AI hoax.
I studied the logo: The font was the same as the one for the La Taqueria in San Francisco. But the original features neon. The doppelganger’s looked solid white. Snooping through the restaurant’s Instagram, I only saw photos of tacos — a suspicious departure from the burrito-dominated feed of the OG. I started believing that someone was impersonating the Mission District legend. In the name of justice and all that is good in this wicked world, I had to check it out.
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I drove over two hours east, traversing through roads where chickens roam and corn grows in abundance, before making it to Turlock, a small city between Modesto and Fresno. I discovered the restaurant is indeed real, yet I couldn’t help but feel like it was a remnant from a bizzaro alternate timeline — one where the taqueria abandoned the bustling city for a life in the countryside.
Quietly opened eight years ago, this outpost is run by Irene Jara Gonzalez, daughter of La Taqueria founder Miguel Jara. Whereas the modestly sized flagship regularly keeps a line out the door, the Turlock location has triple the space and virtually none of the wait. The dining room, which could easily double as a quinceañera dance floor, is styled with retro film posters of Mexican actor Cantinflas. The pièce de résistance: This location has a drive-through!…