For months, no one lined up at Asadero.
But Emiliano “Ruben” Martinez believed in his fledgling taqueria and its charcoal-scented steaks, and he felt that Angelenos might yet embrace his premium-steak tacos despite the cost. As an opening chef of Los Feliz taqueria Mírate, he’d cooked artisan tacos that reached $9 or $10 apiece; selling tacos on the street was another story.
“No one wanted to buy a $5 or $6 taco,” he said.
His patience paid off. Now the steak-centric taco stand is drawing thousands to an edge of a Pavilions parking lot in Hollywood, with waits as long as three hours for grilled Wagyu, USDA Prime or Angus tacos alongside pork al pastor, plancha-seared pollo and gooey chile relleno. Asadero is joining the ranks of L.A. taquerias such as Sonoratown and Tacos Los Cholos, as well as newer faces like Tacos Royale, in serving flame-kissed-meat tacos. Martinez says there’s space and a price point for everyone.
“Culture-wise, we always seek that cheap taco stand to go eat, but you have 32 regions in Mexico and everyone cooks different,” he said. “Even in my neighborhood where I grew up there was different kinds of tacos.”
His own signature is the four-ounce gaonera, a thinly sliced rib-eye steak cooked over mesquite charcoal. At another kettle grill, thicker skirt steaks sizzle over the coals before receiving a dicing for the arrachera tacos. Crispy, plancha-fried beef trimmings — available to top any taco or use as its own taco filling — are priced at only $1 to minimize waste.
Asadero’s signature gaonera taco at the steak-centric Hollywood taco stand.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
All of Asadero’s beef is seasoned gently with salt, Sonora-style, to let the flavor of the meat shine, while options such as the al pastor involve a multi-day marinade made using house tepache. All are available on either locally made flour or blue corn tortillas.
While the menu is inspired by the carnes asadas at his family’s farms in Vizcaíno and La Paz, Martinez’s setup is informed by his years cooking in some of Las Vegas’ most high-volume restaurants, where he’d cater 10,000-person banquets. Much like a kitchen with traditional stations, or areas for specific tasks, Martinez runs multiple grills for specific steaks, one designated team overseeing the trompo and the meats on the main plancha, another team warming tortillas on another, and a team member solely doling out the rib-eye tacos, as those are cooked to order.
Guests line up for Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Nearby is a table full of house-made salsas: a smoky tatemada for the al pastor, a sesame-packed macha, and a bright salsa verde best used to cut through some of the fattier steaks.
Martinez grew up in Mexicali surrounded by his family’s cooking but never considered a career as a chef. When he moved to Las Vegas to continue his education in psychology, he found himself in casino and hotel kitchens to finance his schooling. He didn’t expect it, but in 2011 Martinez fell in love with the rush of the industry.
“The culture in Vegas is very rooted in how good you can be versus everyone else,” he said. “Everyone cooking is competitive, and then eventually I took one job, two jobs, three jobs.”
Al pastor, asada chuck eye steak, and arrachera skirt steak tacos at Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
His first sous chef role came only six months into his tenure at T-Bones Chophouse in Red Rocks Casino, where he learned the intricacies of steaks: dry-aging, preparation, the perfect char. He cooked his way through Caesar’s Palace, the Belaggio, the Palazzo and at José Andrés’ restaurant group, which helped him to understand kitchen management — especially at high volume.
“You get enchanted by the kitchen somehow,” Martinez said. “After that, I became really good at it.”
When he moved to Los Angeles in 2016 he began working at the Cheesecake Factory, Bottega Louie, the W Hotel and later Mírate, where he cooked with the late, influential Alta California chef Joshua Gil. He ate his way through the city’s street food all the while and turned to it for inspiration when he started his own operation.
Martinez set up a puesto (stall) in Sylmar as proof of concept while focusing on catering orders for film studios. When it picked up steam, he moved Asadero to the more central, current, Hollywood location in February 2025.
It took three or four months, but local residents began to trickle in. Some weeks customers were so sparse that Martinez couldn’t afford to offer his now-signature rib-eye taco.
While Asadero’s signature gaonera and arrachera tacos cool on kettle grills, its others are prepared on the plancha.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
“Those repeat customers were the ones that kept us alive at the beginning,” he said.
Hollywood resident Luke Skywalker — real name — is one of those guests. The self-described “meat-and-potatoes kind of guy” said he visits Asadero three or four times each week, and has counted himself a fan for nearly a year.
“I observed how he keeps the stand very clean, and then I started watching how he makes the food,” Skywalker said. “Everything is fresh. He makes his own condiments every day. I haven’t seen any kind of competition that does anything like it. He’s not a cook, he’s a chef.”
Mentions on the LA Food Podcast and the Infatuation this spring spurred lines that lasted up to three hours, according to Martinez; he went from serving 100 customers in eight hours to 1,000 customers in four hours. He scrambled to increase production to meet demand, leaning on his years in high-volume Vegas hotels and casinos to train more staff and expedite service. Now the line moves more quickly — often only 15 or 20 minutes of waiting — despite being 20% to 30% busier.
When local resident Sean Mann began visiting Asadero, there were no lines. But he’s thrilled to see the stand’s success, even if it means a longer wait for his weekly chicken burrito.
“[Martinez] deserves it because he puts a lot of love into the food,” Mann said. “They make everything fresh over the charcoal and you can taste it. You can taste when love is put into it.”
Rib-eye steaks on the charcoal grill at Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
But with more customers comes more scrutiny. Martinez previously made his own corn tortillas, which garnered ire on social media for easily breaking. Recently, he’s switched to blue-corn tortillas from Boyle Heights tortilleria Kernel of Truth Organics.
Even with thousands of positive posts and interactions across social media, there are still comments that decry the price.
“It’s not that we’re trying to make money,” Martinez said. “Flank steak was $7 a pound a month ago, now it’s $11. We’ve got to charge just to be able to provide you that quality…I think it’s just the culture. French cuisine, Italian cuisine is highly regarded, but we just got the first Mexican Michelin[-starred] restaurant, right? So there is that opportunity for recognition.”
He’s had to hire on more staff to handle the increase in catering demands, too.
Martinez is overwhelmed by the support and hopes to capitalize on it. He wants to expand with a food truck by the end of the year, and eventually, realize his dream of owning a bricks-and-mortar restaurant. For now, there are small black kettle grills of premium steaks on a Hollywood sidewalk, and a small line is always forming near the smoke.
Asadero is at 723 Vine St., Los Angeles and open Thursday to Sunday from 6 to 11:30 p.m.
For months, no one lined up at Asadero.
But Emiliano “Ruben” Martinez believed in his fledgling taqueria and its charcoal-scented steaks, and he felt that Angelenos might yet embrace his premium-steak tacos despite the cost. As an opening chef of Los Feliz taqueria Mírate, he’d cooked artisan tacos that reached $9 or $10 apiece; selling tacos on the street was another story.
“No one wanted to buy a $5 or $6 taco,” he said.
His patience paid off. Now the steak-centric taco stand is drawing thousands to an edge of a Pavilions parking lot in Hollywood, with waits as long as three hours for grilled Wagyu, USDA Prime or Angus tacos alongside pork al pastor, plancha-seared pollo and gooey chile relleno. Asadero is joining the ranks of L.A. taquerias such as Sonoratown and Tacos Los Cholos, as well as newer faces like Tacos Royale, in serving flame-kissed-meat tacos. Martinez says there’s space and a price point for everyone.
“Culture-wise, we always seek that cheap taco stand to go eat, but you have 32 regions in Mexico and everyone cooks different,” he said. “Even in my neighborhood where I grew up there was different kinds of tacos.”
His own signature is the four-ounce gaonera, a thinly sliced rib-eye steak cooked over mesquite charcoal. At another kettle grill, thicker skirt steaks sizzle over the coals before receiving a dicing for the arrachera tacos. Crispy, plancha-fried beef trimmings — available to top any taco or use as its own taco filling — are priced at only $1 to minimize waste.
Asadero’s signature gaonera taco at the steak-centric Hollywood taco stand.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
All of Asadero’s beef is seasoned gently with salt, Sonora-style, to let the flavor of the meat shine, while options such as the al pastor involve a multi-day marinade made using house tepache. All are available on either locally made flour or blue corn tortillas.
While the menu is inspired by the carnes asadas at his family’s farms in Vizcaíno and La Paz, Martinez’s setup is informed by his years cooking in some of Las Vegas’ most high-volume restaurants, where he’d cater 10,000-person banquets. Much like a kitchen with traditional stations, or areas for specific tasks, Martinez runs multiple grills for specific steaks, one designated team overseeing the trompo and the meats on the main plancha, another team warming tortillas on another, and a team member solely doling out the rib-eye tacos, as those are cooked to order.
Guests line up for Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Nearby is a table full of house-made salsas: a smoky tatemada for the al pastor, a sesame-packed macha, and a bright salsa verde best used to cut through some of the fattier steaks.
Martinez grew up in Mexicali surrounded by his family’s cooking but never considered a career as a chef. When he moved to Las Vegas to continue his education in psychology, he found himself in casino and hotel kitchens to finance his schooling. He didn’t expect it, but in 2011 Martinez fell in love with the rush of the industry.
“The culture in Vegas is very rooted in how good you can be versus everyone else,” he said. “Everyone cooking is competitive, and then eventually I took one job, two jobs, three jobs.”
Al pastor, asada chuck eye steak, and arrachera skirt steak tacos at Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
His first sous chef role came only six months into his tenure at T-Bones Chophouse in Red Rocks Casino, where he learned the intricacies of steaks: dry-aging, preparation, the perfect char. He cooked his way through Caesar’s Palace, the Belaggio, the Palazzo and at José Andrés’ restaurant group, which helped him to understand kitchen management — especially at high volume.
“You get enchanted by the kitchen somehow,” Martinez said. “After that, I became really good at it.”
When he moved to Los Angeles in 2016 he began working at the Cheesecake Factory, Bottega Louie, the W Hotel and later Mírate, where he cooked with the late, influential Alta California chef Joshua Gil. He ate his way through the city’s street food all the while and turned to it for inspiration when he started his own operation.
Martinez set up a puesto (stall) in Sylmar as proof of concept while focusing on catering orders for film studios. When it picked up steam, he moved Asadero to the more central, current, Hollywood location in February 2025.
It took three or four months, but local residents began to trickle in. Some weeks customers were so sparse that Martinez couldn’t afford to offer his now-signature rib-eye taco.
While Asadero’s signature gaonera and arrachera tacos cool on kettle grills, its others are prepared on the plancha.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
“Those repeat customers were the ones that kept us alive at the beginning,” he said.
Hollywood resident Luke Skywalker — real name — is one of those guests. The self-described “meat-and-potatoes kind of guy” said he visits Asadero three or four times each week, and has counted himself a fan for nearly a year.
“I observed how he keeps the stand very clean, and then I started watching how he makes the food,” Skywalker said. “Everything is fresh. He makes his own condiments every day. I haven’t seen any kind of competition that does anything like it. He’s not a cook, he’s a chef.”
Mentions on the LA Food Podcast and the Infatuation this spring spurred lines that lasted up to three hours, according to Martinez; he went from serving 100 customers in eight hours to 1,000 customers in four hours. He scrambled to increase production to meet demand, leaning on his years in high-volume Vegas hotels and casinos to train more staff and expedite service. Now the line moves more quickly — often only 15 or 20 minutes of waiting — despite being 20% to 30% busier.
When local resident Sean Mann began visiting Asadero, there were no lines. But he’s thrilled to see the stand’s success, even if it means a longer wait for his weekly chicken burrito.
“[Martinez] deserves it because he puts a lot of love into the food,” Mann said. “They make everything fresh over the charcoal and you can taste it. You can taste when love is put into it.”
Rib-eye steaks on the charcoal grill at Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
But with more customers comes more scrutiny. Martinez previously made his own corn tortillas, which garnered ire on social media for easily breaking. Recently, he’s switched to blue-corn tortillas from Boyle Heights tortilleria Kernel of Truth Organics.
Even with thousands of positive posts and interactions across social media, there are still comments that decry the price.
“It’s not that we’re trying to make money,” Martinez said. “Flank steak was $7 a pound a month ago, now it’s $11. We’ve got to charge just to be able to provide you that quality…I think it’s just the culture. French cuisine, Italian cuisine is highly regarded, but we just got the first Mexican Michelin[-starred] restaurant, right? So there is that opportunity for recognition.”
He’s had to hire on more staff to handle the increase in catering demands, too.
Martinez is overwhelmed by the support and hopes to capitalize on it. He wants to expand with a food truck by the end of the year, and eventually, realize his dream of owning a bricks-and-mortar restaurant. For now, there are small black kettle grills of premium steaks on a Hollywood sidewalk, and a small line is always forming near the smoke.
Asadero is at 723 Vine St., Los Angeles and open Thursday to Sunday from 6 to 11:30 p.m.
For months, no one lined up at Asadero.
But Emiliano “Ruben” Martinez believed in his fledgling taqueria and its charcoal-scented steaks, and he felt that Angelenos might yet embrace his premium-steak tacos despite the cost. As an opening chef of Los Feliz taqueria Mírate, he’d cooked artisan tacos that reached $9 or $10 apiece; selling tacos on the street was another story.
“No one wanted to buy a $5 or $6 taco,” he said.
His patience paid off. Now the steak-centric taco stand is drawing thousands to an edge of a Pavilions parking lot in Hollywood, with waits as long as three hours for grilled Wagyu, USDA Prime or Angus tacos alongside pork al pastor, plancha-seared pollo and gooey chile relleno. Asadero is joining the ranks of L.A. taquerias such as Sonoratown and Tacos Los Cholos, as well as newer faces like Tacos Royale, in serving flame-kissed-meat tacos. Martinez says there’s space and a price point for everyone.
“Culture-wise, we always seek that cheap taco stand to go eat, but you have 32 regions in Mexico and everyone cooks different,” he said. “Even in my neighborhood where I grew up there was different kinds of tacos.”
His own signature is the four-ounce gaonera, a thinly sliced rib-eye steak cooked over mesquite charcoal. At another kettle grill, thicker skirt steaks sizzle over the coals before receiving a dicing for the arrachera tacos. Crispy, plancha-fried beef trimmings — available to top any taco or use as its own taco filling — are priced at only $1 to minimize waste.
Asadero’s signature gaonera taco at the steak-centric Hollywood taco stand.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
All of Asadero’s beef is seasoned gently with salt, Sonora-style, to let the flavor of the meat shine, while options such as the al pastor involve a multi-day marinade made using house tepache. All are available on either locally made flour or blue corn tortillas.
While the menu is inspired by the carnes asadas at his family’s farms in Vizcaíno and La Paz, Martinez’s setup is informed by his years cooking in some of Las Vegas’ most high-volume restaurants, where he’d cater 10,000-person banquets. Much like a kitchen with traditional stations, or areas for specific tasks, Martinez runs multiple grills for specific steaks, one designated team overseeing the trompo and the meats on the main plancha, another team warming tortillas on another, and a team member solely doling out the rib-eye tacos, as those are cooked to order.
Guests line up for Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Nearby is a table full of house-made salsas: a smoky tatemada for the al pastor, a sesame-packed macha, and a bright salsa verde best used to cut through some of the fattier steaks.
Martinez grew up in Mexicali surrounded by his family’s cooking but never considered a career as a chef. When he moved to Las Vegas to continue his education in psychology, he found himself in casino and hotel kitchens to finance his schooling. He didn’t expect it, but in 2011 Martinez fell in love with the rush of the industry.
“The culture in Vegas is very rooted in how good you can be versus everyone else,” he said. “Everyone cooking is competitive, and then eventually I took one job, two jobs, three jobs.”
Al pastor, asada chuck eye steak, and arrachera skirt steak tacos at Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
His first sous chef role came only six months into his tenure at T-Bones Chophouse in Red Rocks Casino, where he learned the intricacies of steaks: dry-aging, preparation, the perfect char. He cooked his way through Caesar’s Palace, the Belaggio, the Palazzo and at José Andrés’ restaurant group, which helped him to understand kitchen management — especially at high volume.
“You get enchanted by the kitchen somehow,” Martinez said. “After that, I became really good at it.”
When he moved to Los Angeles in 2016 he began working at the Cheesecake Factory, Bottega Louie, the W Hotel and later Mírate, where he cooked with the late, influential Alta California chef Joshua Gil. He ate his way through the city’s street food all the while and turned to it for inspiration when he started his own operation.
Martinez set up a puesto (stall) in Sylmar as proof of concept while focusing on catering orders for film studios. When it picked up steam, he moved Asadero to the more central, current, Hollywood location in February 2025.
It took three or four months, but local residents began to trickle in. Some weeks customers were so sparse that Martinez couldn’t afford to offer his now-signature rib-eye taco.
While Asadero’s signature gaonera and arrachera tacos cool on kettle grills, its others are prepared on the plancha.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
“Those repeat customers were the ones that kept us alive at the beginning,” he said.
Hollywood resident Luke Skywalker — real name — is one of those guests. The self-described “meat-and-potatoes kind of guy” said he visits Asadero three or four times each week, and has counted himself a fan for nearly a year.
“I observed how he keeps the stand very clean, and then I started watching how he makes the food,” Skywalker said. “Everything is fresh. He makes his own condiments every day. I haven’t seen any kind of competition that does anything like it. He’s not a cook, he’s a chef.”
Mentions on the LA Food Podcast and the Infatuation this spring spurred lines that lasted up to three hours, according to Martinez; he went from serving 100 customers in eight hours to 1,000 customers in four hours. He scrambled to increase production to meet demand, leaning on his years in high-volume Vegas hotels and casinos to train more staff and expedite service. Now the line moves more quickly — often only 15 or 20 minutes of waiting — despite being 20% to 30% busier.
When local resident Sean Mann began visiting Asadero, there were no lines. But he’s thrilled to see the stand’s success, even if it means a longer wait for his weekly chicken burrito.
“[Martinez] deserves it because he puts a lot of love into the food,” Mann said. “They make everything fresh over the charcoal and you can taste it. You can taste when love is put into it.”
Rib-eye steaks on the charcoal grill at Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
But with more customers comes more scrutiny. Martinez previously made his own corn tortillas, which garnered ire on social media for easily breaking. Recently, he’s switched to blue-corn tortillas from Boyle Heights tortilleria Kernel of Truth Organics.
Even with thousands of positive posts and interactions across social media, there are still comments that decry the price.
“It’s not that we’re trying to make money,” Martinez said. “Flank steak was $7 a pound a month ago, now it’s $11. We’ve got to charge just to be able to provide you that quality…I think it’s just the culture. French cuisine, Italian cuisine is highly regarded, but we just got the first Mexican Michelin[-starred] restaurant, right? So there is that opportunity for recognition.”
He’s had to hire on more staff to handle the increase in catering demands, too.
Martinez is overwhelmed by the support and hopes to capitalize on it. He wants to expand with a food truck by the end of the year, and eventually, realize his dream of owning a bricks-and-mortar restaurant. For now, there are small black kettle grills of premium steaks on a Hollywood sidewalk, and a small line is always forming near the smoke.
Asadero is at 723 Vine St., Los Angeles and open Thursday to Sunday from 6 to 11:30 p.m.
For months, no one lined up at Asadero.
But Emiliano “Ruben” Martinez believed in his fledgling taqueria and its charcoal-scented steaks, and he felt that Angelenos might yet embrace his premium-steak tacos despite the cost. As an opening chef of Los Feliz taqueria Mírate, he’d cooked artisan tacos that reached $9 or $10 apiece; selling tacos on the street was another story.
“No one wanted to buy a $5 or $6 taco,” he said.
His patience paid off. Now the steak-centric taco stand is drawing thousands to an edge of a Pavilions parking lot in Hollywood, with waits as long as three hours for grilled Wagyu, USDA Prime or Angus tacos alongside pork al pastor, plancha-seared pollo and gooey chile relleno. Asadero is joining the ranks of L.A. taquerias such as Sonoratown and Tacos Los Cholos, as well as newer faces like Tacos Royale, in serving flame-kissed-meat tacos. Martinez says there’s space and a price point for everyone.
“Culture-wise, we always seek that cheap taco stand to go eat, but you have 32 regions in Mexico and everyone cooks different,” he said. “Even in my neighborhood where I grew up there was different kinds of tacos.”
His own signature is the four-ounce gaonera, a thinly sliced rib-eye steak cooked over mesquite charcoal. At another kettle grill, thicker skirt steaks sizzle over the coals before receiving a dicing for the arrachera tacos. Crispy, plancha-fried beef trimmings — available to top any taco or use as its own taco filling — are priced at only $1 to minimize waste.
Asadero’s signature gaonera taco at the steak-centric Hollywood taco stand.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
All of Asadero’s beef is seasoned gently with salt, Sonora-style, to let the flavor of the meat shine, while options such as the al pastor involve a multi-day marinade made using house tepache. All are available on either locally made flour or blue corn tortillas.
While the menu is inspired by the carnes asadas at his family’s farms in Vizcaíno and La Paz, Martinez’s setup is informed by his years cooking in some of Las Vegas’ most high-volume restaurants, where he’d cater 10,000-person banquets. Much like a kitchen with traditional stations, or areas for specific tasks, Martinez runs multiple grills for specific steaks, one designated team overseeing the trompo and the meats on the main plancha, another team warming tortillas on another, and a team member solely doling out the rib-eye tacos, as those are cooked to order.
Guests line up for Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Nearby is a table full of house-made salsas: a smoky tatemada for the al pastor, a sesame-packed macha, and a bright salsa verde best used to cut through some of the fattier steaks.
Martinez grew up in Mexicali surrounded by his family’s cooking but never considered a career as a chef. When he moved to Las Vegas to continue his education in psychology, he found himself in casino and hotel kitchens to finance his schooling. He didn’t expect it, but in 2011 Martinez fell in love with the rush of the industry.
“The culture in Vegas is very rooted in how good you can be versus everyone else,” he said. “Everyone cooking is competitive, and then eventually I took one job, two jobs, three jobs.”
Al pastor, asada chuck eye steak, and arrachera skirt steak tacos at Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
His first sous chef role came only six months into his tenure at T-Bones Chophouse in Red Rocks Casino, where he learned the intricacies of steaks: dry-aging, preparation, the perfect char. He cooked his way through Caesar’s Palace, the Belaggio, the Palazzo and at José Andrés’ restaurant group, which helped him to understand kitchen management — especially at high volume.
“You get enchanted by the kitchen somehow,” Martinez said. “After that, I became really good at it.”
When he moved to Los Angeles in 2016 he began working at the Cheesecake Factory, Bottega Louie, the W Hotel and later Mírate, where he cooked with the late, influential Alta California chef Joshua Gil. He ate his way through the city’s street food all the while and turned to it for inspiration when he started his own operation.
Martinez set up a puesto (stall) in Sylmar as proof of concept while focusing on catering orders for film studios. When it picked up steam, he moved Asadero to the more central, current, Hollywood location in February 2025.
It took three or four months, but local residents began to trickle in. Some weeks customers were so sparse that Martinez couldn’t afford to offer his now-signature rib-eye taco.
While Asadero’s signature gaonera and arrachera tacos cool on kettle grills, its others are prepared on the plancha.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
“Those repeat customers were the ones that kept us alive at the beginning,” he said.
Hollywood resident Luke Skywalker — real name — is one of those guests. The self-described “meat-and-potatoes kind of guy” said he visits Asadero three or four times each week, and has counted himself a fan for nearly a year.
“I observed how he keeps the stand very clean, and then I started watching how he makes the food,” Skywalker said. “Everything is fresh. He makes his own condiments every day. I haven’t seen any kind of competition that does anything like it. He’s not a cook, he’s a chef.”
Mentions on the LA Food Podcast and the Infatuation this spring spurred lines that lasted up to three hours, according to Martinez; he went from serving 100 customers in eight hours to 1,000 customers in four hours. He scrambled to increase production to meet demand, leaning on his years in high-volume Vegas hotels and casinos to train more staff and expedite service. Now the line moves more quickly — often only 15 or 20 minutes of waiting — despite being 20% to 30% busier.
When local resident Sean Mann began visiting Asadero, there were no lines. But he’s thrilled to see the stand’s success, even if it means a longer wait for his weekly chicken burrito.
“[Martinez] deserves it because he puts a lot of love into the food,” Mann said. “They make everything fresh over the charcoal and you can taste it. You can taste when love is put into it.”
Rib-eye steaks on the charcoal grill at Hollywood taco stand Asadero.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
But with more customers comes more scrutiny. Martinez previously made his own corn tortillas, which garnered ire on social media for easily breaking. Recently, he’s switched to blue-corn tortillas from Boyle Heights tortilleria Kernel of Truth Organics.
Even with thousands of positive posts and interactions across social media, there are still comments that decry the price.
“It’s not that we’re trying to make money,” Martinez said. “Flank steak was $7 a pound a month ago, now it’s $11. We’ve got to charge just to be able to provide you that quality…I think it’s just the culture. French cuisine, Italian cuisine is highly regarded, but we just got the first Mexican Michelin[-starred] restaurant, right? So there is that opportunity for recognition.”
He’s had to hire on more staff to handle the increase in catering demands, too.
Martinez is overwhelmed by the support and hopes to capitalize on it. He wants to expand with a food truck by the end of the year, and eventually, realize his dream of owning a bricks-and-mortar restaurant. For now, there are small black kettle grills of premium steaks on a Hollywood sidewalk, and a small line is always forming near the smoke.
Asadero is at 723 Vine St., Los Angeles and open Thursday to Sunday from 6 to 11:30 p.m.
