Karina Rodriguez
Staff Writer
Tacos La Villa La Verne opened recently on D Street, walking distance from the University.
The La Verne spot is the newest restaurant to be added to the small family-owned chain, which originated in Bakersfield, California.
Tacos La Villa specializes in Mexican food and has specialty items such as a Hot Cheeto burrito.
It is a woman-owned, veteran-owned business.
Married co-owners Luz Bautista Abad was in the Navy for 22 years, and Alexandra Bautista Abad was in the Navy for eight years.
“It’s good to be able to have a dream completed, you know work towards it. We started one dream in the military and now we’re on another, you know,” Alexandra Bautista Abad said.
Luz Bautista Abad said that the residents of La Verne have been welcoming towards the new shop.
“Mostly all (nearby businesses) have come here and supported us and welcomed us,” Mitsy Solis, a supervisor at the restaurant said.
Despite being a new restaurant, Tacos La Villa already has returning customers.
“We have only been here over two weeks and we already have regulars,” Luz Bautista Abad said. “They’re coming in every day, so we get their breakfast Chilaquiles and then they come to get their tacos or just a simple bean and cheese burrito.”
The restaurant is still being modified, the owners said.
“We’re working on getting our liquor license and also putting up more TVs to show the games and have an area for people to come and watch TV,” Luz Bautista Abad said.
They also hope to add more seating and decorations and to eventually open Tacos La Villa sites in both Claremont and Upland. Luz Bautista Abad finds the location of Tacos La Villa to be important to its success as well.
“Why D Street? It is like the best spot in La Verne to have a business,” Luz Bautista Abad said.
Both owners have a vision of taking care of the community due to the fact that they worked hard to be granted opportunities in life.
“Both of us, we weren’t spoon fed opportunities. We had to achieve it on our own,” Luz Bautista Abad said.
Maximum profits are not the goal for the owners, they say.
Tacos La Villa offers a 10% discount to students. There is also a 10% discount for veterans.
“We just want to help out all the veterans, like you know, they’re unsung heroes. So we appreciate their service just by giving them a discount, even as small as it is, you know,” Luz Bautista Abad said.
The restaurant features a specialty Flamin’ Hot Cheetos menu and a birria menu ranging from $3.99 to $12.99
Breakfast plates, including tortas and burritos range from $10.50 to $12.50.
Tacos La Villa, at 2325 D St., is open from 7 a.m. to midnight daily.
Karina Rodriguez can be reached at karina.rodriguez3@laverne.edu.
Karina Rodriguez is a senior journalism major with a concentration in broadcast journalism, and editor-in-chief of the Campus Times. She has previously served as sports editor, social media editor, arts editor and a staff writer.
Chris Rogers is a junior photography major with a minor in art history. He is a staff photographer for the Campus Times and photography editor of La Verne Magazine. He is also a freelance photographer and movie stills photographer. He discovered his love for photography at a young age as he and his family traveled the world in their goal to reach all seven continents. They were fortunate to reach their seventh continent in the winter of 2019. He have a deep love for photography and loves being able to tell an entire story through one still image at a time. His work can be found at ChrisRogersPhotography.com.
