Community Highlights: Meet Humberto Lopez of Ranchos Onsite Tacos

Today we’d like to introduce you to Humberto Lopez.

Hi Humberto, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Yes of course!

I started Ranchos Onsite Tacos 9 years ago with the help of my Mother and Grandmother. I was working for another catering company prior to opening my own. I was living from paycheck to paycheck. I was working long underpaid hours. At the time I was 22 years old turning 23 soon and I was raising my first born daughter who was 1 year old at the time. Quitting my 9-5 job was difficult because of the amount of responsibility I had at home.

I was raised by my mother and grandmother along with my two sisters. My Mom always worked hard to provide for us! During our up bringing my mother worked in the clothing manufacturing industry which was paying her less then minimum wage at about $5.00 an hour. She worked in the industry for about 20 years! She gave us the best life she could and worked 15 hour days, weekends included. We had a little and the little we had was enough to get us by! When I was in highschool my mom would pack me sandwiches and tortas for lunch. Other kids would bully me for it but I didn’t care I enjoyed every lunch my mom packed me. Eventually kids/friends would ask me for half of my sandwich or torta. I walked home one day and kept thinking what if I sold a couple of tortas a day to make a few a bucks? The next day at school I sold 3 tortas. Within two weeks I was selling 30 tortas a day! I was selling 150 tortas a week! My mom would wake up at 4am everyday to make them for me and soon we were off to the races and bills were getting easier, I was 16 years old at the time and very grateful I was able to help my mom with the bills! I was also able to help her with my little sisters needs, such as clothes and shoes! I sold food at school during my last two years of highschool. College was around the corner and we weren’t financially prepared for it one bit. Myself being undocumented before DACA was approved was hard. I had no access or help from FaFsa. My classes and books were to be paid prior to the start of the semester. I was 19 years old, I decided to drop out of college and start working. I worked a few jobs such as packing veggies in a warehouse, I also worked in a clothing manufacturing shop but had to keep searching because the jobs weren’t paying enough.

At the time I was part of a youth group at church which I was very involved in. A friend from the group told me her brother’s job was hiring. I was hired and started working right away. I started working with an open mind. It was my first official job so I was very optimistic and trusted everything my employer told me even if it wasn’t true because I didn’t know any better. I was being neglected as well as my coworkers but felt trapped because of my immigration status. I never treated any of my coworkers or clients unfairly. I was always the go to guy when things needed to get done. I had climbed the work ladder and was named Executive Chef at just 20 years old which I represented proudly. I built a high rep and name for myself so I thought. I worked 15 hour days including weekends with a un negotiable salary base pay. Every time I got paid I always ended up owing instead of profiting. I wasn’t allowed sick days or paid vacations. If I had an emergency or had to call off due to being sick, my pay was docked drastically. I was pushed to the limit of exhaustion. My ex-workers and I who I am still friends with always reminisce how horrible it was working there. We were so young and brainwashed into thinking that was the best we can do. After work we would literally sleep in our cars in the parking lot to avoid being late to work the next day because our employer at the time would dock our pay if we would show up late. We would work from 8am to 12am sometimes and open at 4am on weekends. Things had to change and I knew God had something better for me if I hung on for little longer.

A year later My Mother came to me and offered me a loan. I accept it and promised her I would get her out of the clothing manufacturing shops! With my family’s motivation and a fresh new start I gave it my all! My grandmother would help me prep and I would go out to the field and cater 2-3 events a week. It was a full family effort. My little cousin would help me with our taco carts which at the time were three, he would also help me assemble produce and equipment bins. I was taking care of the events on the field and networking at the time to build client relationships that still strive till this day! We soon climbed to 10 events a week and bought more stations. We started hiring cooks who soon became part of the family and the journey. Some still work with us till this day! Months later Ranchos climbed to 20 events a week and in only a year and half we were shopping for a commercial kitchen. We officially got our commercial kitchen in 2017 and my mom was officially my kitchen manager! We built our kitchen from the ground up such as walls, drains, appliances and equipment. We were at full capacity at 23 stations that were being used throughout the week! We were at our highest at 29 employees and catering about 40 events a week. Ranchos Onsite Tacos had a new home and everything was running smooth. I was able to provide for my family comfortably and even contributed to my youngest sisters education. We held toy drives for Christmas and gave toys and food away to our community. We even gave food to the homeless on many occasions as well! We payed it forward! Every year we celebrated with our cooks with a huge Christmas party with lots of food and music. In 2019 we started working with Music Video Producers who would hire us for lunches and breakfast for their crew. We had expanded our clientele to the film industry and are proudly one of the go to caterers till this day. We were very excited for what was to come the following year!

2020 was our worst year in business due to the pandemic. It was surreal and confusing because what we thought was only going to last a month lasted a whole year. Months went by without a single email or phone call. Employees soon started leaving. We were quarantined with no source of income and the bills kept pilling up. I had to make a decision and decide if I wanted to sink or float. I called up my in-house kitchen staff my mom, sister, cousin, and our great friends Gerson and Danny! They helped prep and sell food to our closest family, friends, and clients. We were hanging on hoping for a miracle! Later in the fall quarantine mandates were being lifted to a certain extent. Productions were the first to open back up during quarantine and we finally had our first break with our first set of productions scheduled, were back out on the field doing what we loved! Soon other producers heard of us and wanted us to cater their sets as well! We were busy again catering 10-15 events a week! We ended the year barley surviving! At the beginning of 2021 the mandates were easing up! We soon started hiring our cooks back and by mid year we were back at 100 percent! In 2022 we hit record of catering up to 60 events in a week and 37 events in one day. We are now stable and working hard to continue providing the best food and service in SoCal! We recently received amazing news, we made 2025 Yelps Best Tacos Spots in the United States! We were ranked #39 in the Country! #20 in California and #8 in Los Angeles. After all of the life struggles my family and I have gone through coming to this country undocumented and being a dreamer! Accomplishing things we never imagined is surreal still! Anything is possible with family, great friends, and a great work environment that believes in one another and who uplifts each other during the good and bad.

Just wanted to add this as well, during the pandemic aside from business I went through hardships in my personal life. My daughter and I lost our apartment and had to reside in our 150 sq ft office, where we lived for 8 months. I also met my now Wife who I was dating for a few months prior to moving in together. She believed in me so much she moved in with my daughter and I! She was part of the journey now! Living in the office was for sure a great life experience. Something we always talk about. We are very grateful for everything God has given us! In 2022 we became a family of four welcoming our first son! We had a fairytale wedding in 2024 with our closest family and friends and are now expecting our new addition to the family and our second boy! I am a DACA recipient who always had to work a little harder to overcome adversity. Anything is possible if you believe in yourself! I always tell my self when things are going bad “this to will pass”. Thank you for your time and I hope to cater your success one day!

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Yes, there has definitely been struggles! Just like any other business, trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t. One of our initial struggles was getting the ingredients, consistency, and touch right. Basically doing it over and over again. In order for that to happen everyone had to be on the same page and know their responsibilities.

Another struggle was convincing landlords to lease us a commercial kitchen. Being 22 years old at the time and trying to lease a kitchen was very hard.

Learning how to build a website and create pricing once you grow was hard as well because I wasn’t working just for myself anymore I was working for 29 others chefs and families.

Going through slow weeks sometimes was tough as well because you get use to be being stable you have to learn how to manage financials for hard times.

Disagreements in the kitchen happen all of the time as well! Sometimes when theres a change of recipes or shortcuts are taken. Shortcuts are a big no no in our kitchen.

Last but not least Covid had to be the strongest struggle because bills just kept stacking rent was due with no source of income. We were so close to going out business.

We also have a new struggle now with ice raids. We constantly have to look over our shoulder in fear of being detained.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Ranchos Onsite Tacos?
We are a Taco Catering company who specializes in authentic Mexican food! We use recipes passed down that date back to the late 1800’s. We use all organic ingredients and always take the long way to complete our food. We do not use any preservatives or shortcuts. I am proud of this brand because we have accomplished so many things and have met so many good people along the way who can count on us any time of day to serve them and their guests a warm meal anywhere anytime.

We want our readers to know that our food will taste like you are eating in your grandmas/mom’s kitchen. Our service goal is always to make sure the clients and their guests always come first. To have them take a bite of our food and feel comfort.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
What I like best about our city is the diversity and how communities come together when it matters most. I like how you can eat any cultural food you are craving whenever you like! Something I like least maybe would be that I haven’t tried all of the good food yet!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ranchosonsitetacos.com
• Instagram: @ranchosonsitetacos
• Twitter: https://www.yelp.com/article/top-100-taco-spots-2025
• Yelp: https://m.yelp.com/biz/ranchos-onsite-tacos-los-angeles-2

Image Credits
Picture of Best Tacos Spots (Yelp)