Taqueando with Bill Esparza

In this episode of Taqueando , Bill Esparza sits down at Michelin-starred Valle in Oceanside with Chef Roberto Alcocer , the Ensenada-born chef behind Valle and the beloved Baja restaurant Malva . Roberto reflects on his early days cooking in France, Puebla, and Pujol, the once-intimate rise of Valle de Guadalupe, and how Baja’s seafood, wine, and farm-to-table culture helped shape modern Mexican...

At Alto in Studio City, chefs Juana Castellanos Lagemann and Esteban Klenzi are bringing the food and fire traditions of Argentina, Uruguay and the Río de la Plata to Los Angeles in a way the city has never experienced before. Bill Esparza joins the duo to discuss their journey from some of the world’s most demanding fine-dining kitchens to Ventura Boulevard, why asado should be cooked over glowin...

In Part 2 of Bill Esparza’s intimate conversation with chef, author and television personality Marcela Valladolid , the two dig deeper into Matriarca , her growing Mexican pantry brand built around clean ingredients, traditional cooking and the belief that Mexican families deserve beautiful, high-quality products rooted in their own culture. Marcela breaks down Matriarca’s expanding lineup, from o...

In Part 1 of a two-part conversation , chef, author and television personality Marcela Valladolid welcomes Bill Esparza into her Chula Vista home for an intimate look back at her journey from Tijuana’s culinary world to becoming one of the Food Network’s most recognizable Mexican chefs. Over a pot of fideo seco, Marcela opens up about fighting for authentic Mexican representation on television, th...

This week on Taqueando with Bill Esparza , Bill sits down at one of Los Angeles’ most iconic Mexican American restaurants, Casa Vega , with owner Christy Vega and Nayomie Mendoza , owner of Cuernavaca’s Grill , for a conversation about legacy, survival, margaritas, wet burritos, taquitos, salsa, and what it really takes to preserve an LA institution. From Casa Vega’s 70-year history in Sherman Oak...

This week on Taqueando , Bill Esparza heads to Canter’s Deli to talk with Marc Canter about the deep history between Jewish delis, Boyle Heights, East LA, Fairfax, and Los Angeles’ Mexican American love affair with pastrami. From pastrami burritos and pastrami fries to the survival of old-school LA delis, the conversation traces how Canter’s helped shape one of the city’s most unexpected food conn...

On this episode of Taqueando, Bill Esparza sits down with Chef Xrysw Ruelas of Xokol , the Michelin-starred Guadalajara restaurant she runs with Chef Oscar Segundo. They discuss Xokol’s evolution from a humble molino and antojería into one of Mexico’s most important modern Mexican restaurants, rooted in heirloom corn, indigenous knowledge, the milpa, and the culinary traditions of Jalisco and Esta...

This week on Taqueando , Bill Esparza takes on the messy new era of LA food influencers, anti-influencers, restaurant grifters, and the viral claim that “LA dining is a scam.” He breaks down the Christian Garcia /Hollywood Thai controversy, the rise of outrage-based restaurant content, and why struggling small restaurants are especially vulnerable when influencers promise exposure but may not deli...

This week on Taqueando , Bill Esparza heads back to Hermosillo, Sonora with chef, writer, and cookbook author Noah Galuten and Sonoran culinary investigator Eloy Alvarez Uribe for a deep dive into carne asada, grilling culture, and the food traditions of Northern Mexico. Noah discusses his new cookbook Grill Time , how a research trip to Sonora changed the way he thinks about carne asada, and why...

On this episode of Taqueando, Bill Esparza sits down with Jonatan Gómez Luna , the chef behind Le Chique, one of Mexico’s most ambitious and influential fine dining destinations. Recorded at Hotel Xcaret Arte in Playa del Carmen, this conversation explores the launch of Le Chique 2.0 — a bold, 27-course tasting menu that blends cutting-edge technique with deep Mexican tradition. Jonatan shares his...

Part 2 of Bill Esparza's interview with Andrew Zimmern. Zimmern goes deeper on the intersection of food, politics, and culture—and why what we eat is inseparable from how we treat people. From the role of restaurants in local economies to the human stories behind immigration, Zimmern shares a candid, unfiltered perspective on what’s happening right now in America and why the restaurant industr...

Andrew Zimmern joins Bill Esparza on Taqueando for a wide-ranging conversation on food, culture, and the power of independent restaurants. From the early days of Bizarre Foods to groundbreaking trips through Baja California, Zimmern reflects on how places like Tijuana and Ensenada reshaped global perceptions of Mexican cuisine—and helped spark today’s gastrotourism boom. The two dive into why Mexi...

On this episode of Taqueando , Bill Esparza sits down with Rocío Moreno of Birrieria Nochistlán , one of Los Angeles’ most traditional and enduring Mexican restaurants, located in Boyle Heights. Together, they trace the restaurant’s roots back to Nochistlán, Zacatecas, where Rocío’s family has been preparing birria for generations—offering a rare, direct connection between a small Mexican town and...

On this episode of Taqueando , Bill Esparza heads to Chileno Bay in Cabo San Lucas to sit down with Chef Yvan Mucharraz , the culinary force behind COMAL, YAYA, and TnT (Tacos and Tequila) at Chileno Bay Resort & Residences , Auberge Resorts Collection. Together, they unpack why Baja is quietly becoming one of the most important food regions in the world, from its unmatched seafood to its deep...

On this episode of Taqueando , Bill Esparza sits down with Chef Jon Yao of Kato —the Michelin-starred, James Beard Award-winning restaurant redefining what Los Angeles cuisine can be. From his upbringing in the San Gabriel Valley to the philosophy behind Kato’s cooking, Jon shares how his food is less about invention and more about memory, identity, and place. The conversation dives deep into the...

This week on Taqueando , Bill sits down with Chef Manu Buffara , one of Latin America’s most influential chefs and the force behind Manu in Curitiba, Brazil — consistently ranked among the Latin America’s 50 Best Restaurants . From her early days in journalism to training in Italy and staging at Noma , Manu shares how her global experiences shaped a deeply personal approach to cooking rooted in lo...

In this Q&A episode of Taqueando , James Beard–winning journalist Bill Esparza and producer Rob Haleblian tackle listener questions about taco culture, Mexican food traditions, and the biggest controversy shaking the global dining world. The episode opens with a deep dive into the Noma scandal involving chef René Redzepi , the protests surrounding the restaurant’s Los Angeles pop-up, and what...

In this episode of Taqueando , James Beard–winning journalist Bill Esparza wraps up his three-part Mexico City series with a deep dive into the restaurants shaping the CDMX dining scene right now. From iconic fine-dining institutions like Pujol, Quintonil, Rosetta, and Sud 777 to buzzy newcomers and chef-driven fondas, Bill breaks down where to eat in Mexico City and how to think about the city’s...

On this episode of Taqueando , Bill Esparza heads back to Tijuana to talk with one of the most quietly influential chefs in modern Mexican cuisine: Chef Guillermo “Oso” Campos . If you’ve eaten modern tacos anywhere in the last decade—from taco omakases to Baja-inspired tasting menus—you’re tasting the ripple effects of what Oso started on the streets of Tijuana with Tacos Kokopelli . In this conv...

This week on Taqueando , Bill Esparza and Producer Rob kick things off with a raw, unfiltered conversation about Mexico, violence, and the uncomfortable hypocrisy behind how Americans talk about cartel chaos while fueling the very systems that sustain it. From there, the mood shifts to Los Angeles food culture as Bill pulls back the curtain on The New York Times’ “25 Essential LA Dishes” list — wh...

This week on Taqueando, Bill Esparza presents a special three-part episode unpacking Bad Bunny’s historic halftime show and its deeper cultural impact. In Part 1, Bill and producer Rob break down the performance, its symbolism, and why the show resonated so powerfully across Latino communities. Part 2 features Chef Odessa Rodriguez of Tainos LA , who explores Puerto Rican cuisine, kiosko culture,...

In Part Two of Taqueando’s three-part Mexico City (CDMX) series, James Beard-winning journalist Bill Esparza is joined live on mic for the first time by producer Robert Haleblian to go beyond tacos and into pura vitamina T: antojitos, street snacks, fondas, comedores, cantinas, tortas, and the dishes that define everyday eating in Ciudad de México. Bill maps out a DIY walking tour you can actually...

This week on Taqueando , Bill Esparza sits down with Chef Ivan Ralston of Tuju — Brazil’s top restaurant and one of the most important dining rooms in South America. A two-Michelin-star, Green Star destination recently named Best Restaurant in Brazil by Latin America’s 50 Best, Tuju isn’t just redefining Brazilian fine dining — it’s rewriting how kitchens work. Ivan traces his unlikely path from s...

In this episode of Taqueando , Bill Esparza sits down with Chef Byron Gomez , executive chef of Bruto in Denver, Colorado, the Michelin-starred restaurant redefining modern Costa Rican cuisine in America. Gomez, who made national waves on Top Chef and trained at some of the world’s most influential kitchens including Eleven Madison Park , shares his journey from Costa Rica to becoming the first Co...

On this episode of Taqueando with Bill Esparza , we head to Portland to sit down with Chef Angel Medina , co-owner of Republica Hospitality (Republica, Lillia Comedor, Komala) and one of the key architects of the city’s modern Mexican dining scene. Bill and Angel trace how Portland went from “Burrito-Gate” and appropriation headlines to a post-pandemic boom driven by Mexican chefs, indigenous cook...