It’s National Taco Day :)

This First Friday on Abbot Kinney will have a great variety of trucks specializing in tacos so come on down and celebrate National Taco Day with us!

Last year Americans ate over 4.5 billion tacos. That’s 490,000 miles of tacos, which could take you to the moon and back or, at 775-million pounds, equal to the weight of two Empire State Buildings. (How many miles of that is your taco consumption??)

Taco History

The history of the taco is unclear. According to one taco expert, the word originates from the silver mines in Mexico in the 18th century, when taco referred to the little explosives - pieces of paper wrapped around gunpowder and placed into holes carved in the rock - used to extract ore. One of the first types of edible tacos described is called tacos de minero—miner’s tacos.

Epic Tacos

Others claim tacos predate the arrival of the Spanish in Mexico in the 16th century. Anthropologists say there is evidence suggesting inhabitants of the lake region of the Valley of Mexico ate tacos filled with small fish. The fish were replaced by small live insects and ants in the states of Morelos and Guerrero, while locusts and snails were favorite fillings in Puebla and Oaxaca.

You probably won’t find any snail, locust or ant-filled tacos at First Friday, but there’ll be plenty of other, more familiar fillings available from these trucks offering tasty taco and taco-like dishes to help you celebrate the day.

Not into tacos? It’s also National Vodka Day… just sayin’.