Los Tacos No. 1
Los Tacos No. 1 is a privately held, founder-owned chain of 9 authentic Mexican taquerias in high-traffic New York City neighborhoods, serving individual diners via dine-in, pickup, delivery, catering, and a small branded merchandise e-commerce storefront.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded-
- Headquarters—
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Los Tacos No. 1 does
Los Tacos No. 1 is a privately held, founder-owned Mexican restaurant company operating 9 company-owned taquerias concentrated in high-foot-traffic New York City locations including Chelsea Market, Grand Central, Hudson Yards, NoHo, Penn Station, Times Square, Tribeca, Wall Street, and Union Square. The business was created by three close friends from Tijuana, Mexico, and Brawley, California, to bring authentic Mexican street-style tacos to the East Coast, and the menu centers on tacos (Carne Asada, Pollo Asado, Adobada, Nopal) priced $5.25–$5.95, plus quesadillas, mulas, breakfast burritos under the El Donkey sub-brand (8:00–11:00 AM weekdays, $7.00), and a seafood-focused sub-brand called Los Mariscos.
The company's technology stack is intentionally outsourced rather than proprietary: the website, online ordering, and e-commerce merchandising run on BentoBox; gift card infrastructure is handled by Toast Tab; delivery/pickup for Los Mariscos is operated via GetSauce; HR/recruiting uses Workday; and spam protection relies on Google reCAPTCHA. There is no proprietary mobile app, no disclosed API, and no internal AI/ML capability. Operations are pure direct-to-consumer restaurant service with no franchising, supplemented by a catering business (minimum 50 burritos, with staffed and breakfast-burrito variants), an e-commerce merchandise storefront (branded T-shirts at $40), and gift card sales.
The business model is fundamentally unit-economic and transaction-based: in-restaurant sales, takeout, pickup, and delivery at each taqueria drive the bulk of revenue, with catering providing a modest enterprise/groups channel and merchandise/gift cards contributing small but diversified streams. The company serves a broad consumer base — tourists, office workers, local residents — with no named enterprise or institutional customers, making the model a long-tail consumer transaction business. All growth to date appears internally funded; no institutional investors, parent company, public funding rounds, M&A, or leadership changes are disclosed. The 2024 Eat This Not That "15 Best Mexican Restaurants in America" recognition and the pending salsa-spiciness lawsuit ($100,000 sought) are the principal external reputational signals on record.
Los Tacos No. 1 firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Los Tacos No. 1
- Legal name
- Los Tacos No. 1
- Website
- https://lostacos1.com
- Company type
- Private
- Operating status
- Operating
- Short description
- Los Tacos No. 1 is a privately held, founder-owned chain of 9 authentic Mexican taquerias in high-traffic New York City neighborhoods, serving individual diners via dine-in, pickup, delivery, catering, and a small branded merchandise e-commerce storefront.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Los Tacos No. 1 industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Casual Dining Mexican Restaurants
- NAICS
- Limited-Service Restaurants (722513)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating Places (5812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual (THAFABAC)
Keywords
Los Tacos No. 1 business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Food and Beverage Sales: In-restaurant and online ordering of tacos, quesadillas, mulas, burritos, sides, and beverages at multiple New York City locations. Revenue generated through dine-in, takeout, pickup, and delivery orders.
- Catering Services: Catering orders for events including Los Tacos No.1 Catering, Staffed Catering, and El Donkey Breakfast Burritos Catering. Minimum 50 burritos required for catering orders with advance notice required.
- Merchandise Sales: Online sales of branded merchandise including T-shirts (T-Shirt No.1 and Los Mariscos-T-Shirt) at $40 each through the company's e-commerce storefront.
- Gift Cards: Sale of gift cards for use at all Los Tacos No.1 locations through a third-party platform (Toasttab).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Tacos - Carne Asada (Grilled Steak) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Tacos - Pollo Asado (Grilled Chicken) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Tacos - Adobada (Marinated Pork) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Tacos - Nopal (Grilled Cactus) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Quesadillas & Mulas |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Sides - Chips y Salsa / Chips y Guacamole |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Drinks |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Nopal Plate |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Breakfast Burritos (All Varieties) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Merchandise - T-Shirts |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Los Tacos No. 1 product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Los Tacos No. 1 operates authentic Mexican taquerias across 9 New York City locations, serving traditional street-style tacos, quesadillas, mulas, and sides made from family recipes and fresh ingredients imported from Mexico. The company also runs the El Donkey breakfast burrito service, multiple catering formats, an online merchandise store, and gift card programs, all distributed through direct in-store dining, online ordering for pickup and delivery, and event catering.
Product overview
Los Tacos No. 1 is an authentic Mexican restaurant chain founded by three close friends from Tijuana, Mexico, and Brawley, California. The company operates a unified dining service portfolio centered on restaurant dining with tacos, quesadillas, and Mexican dishes made from family recipes and fresh ingredients. The product suite includes El Donkey Breakfast Burritos (morning service), various catering options (standard catering, staffed catering, and breakfast burrito catering), an online merchandise store selling branded apparel, and website-based online ordering with gift card functionality. All services are powered through the BentoBox website commerce platform.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Los Mariscos: Seafood-focused sub-brand with dedicated location at 409 W 15th St, offering delivery and pickup service
- El Donkey
Products and services
- Restaurant Dining Services
- El Donkey Breakfast Burritos
- Los Tacos No. 1 Catering
- Staffed Catering
- El Donkey Breakfast Burritos Catering
- Los Tacos No. 1 Merchandise Store
- Online Ordering for Pickup and Delivery
- Gift Cards
Companies that use Los Tacos No. 1
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Los Tacos No. 1 technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration5 records
Los Tacos No. 1 partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.
- 4th Avenue Press / ESPO's Art WorldminorThird-party merchandise printing partner that produces branded T-shirts for Los Tacos No. 1. Located in Brooklyn, New York. All merchandise is printed by this vendor.
- Toasttab (Gift Cards Platform)minorThird-party platform provider for gift card sales and balance checking through Toasttab. Handles gift card infrastructure for the restaurant.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Los Tacos No. 1 competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Mission Cantina: NYC-based Mexican restaurant serving authentic tacos and Mexican street food in Manhattan. Directly comparable in product offering, NYC concentration, and customer demographic.
- Taqueria Diana: NYC taqueria known for authentic tacos and a similar counter-service model. Comparable as an NYC-focused, authenticity-driven Mexican concept targeting similar lunchtime foot traffic in Manhattan.
- La Esquina: Iconic NYC Mexican restaurant with multiple SoHo/NYC locations and a catering/event business. Comparable as a multi-location NYC Mexican brand with event revenue and similar Manhattan customer base.
- Dos Toros Taqueria: NYC-based fast-casual Mexican chain founded by two brothers from California with a similar authenticity-led menu of tacos, burritos, and quesadillas. Most directly comparable peer given overlapping NYC footprint, similar target customer, and near-identical product set.
Broad incumbents
- Sweetgreen: Public fast-casual chain with a tech-forward, ingredient-obsessed positioning similar to Los Tacos No. 1's authenticity narrative. Comparable in customer demographic and as a digital/omnichannel fast-casual peer, though in a different cuisine category.
- Taco Bell: Dominant QSR Mexican chain operating thousands of U.S. locations. Represents the mass-market price tier against which authentic fast-casual concepts like Los Tacos No. 1 compete on quality and authenticity rather than price.
- Chipotle Mexican Grill: Largest U.S. fast-casual Mexican chain with a national footprint and assembly-line model. Competes for the same value-conscious but quality-seeking customer and sets the price/format benchmark Los Tacos No. 1 must differentiate against.
- Cava: Fast-casual Mediterranean chain with national footprint and recent IPO. Competes for the same "elevated fast-casual" customer segment in NYC and serves as a comp for category valuation and scale economics.
Regional players
- Shake Shack: NYC-born premium fast-casual chain with strong brand and digital ordering. Comparable as a NYC-originated premium fast-casual brand targeting similar urban diners, though serving American fare rather than Mexican.
Emerging players
- Taco Dumbo: NYC fast-casual Mexican concept with multiple Manhattan locations. Comparable as a smaller, NYC-focused fast-casual peer in a similar competitive set, though at a different price/format tier.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Los Tacos No. 1 social profiles
Digital presenceLos Tacos No. 1 financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Los Tacos No. 1 leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Los Tacos No. 1 funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Los Tacos No. 1 M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Los Tacos No. 1
What does Los Tacos No. 1 do?
Los Tacos No. 1 operates authentic Mexican taquerias across 9 New York City locations, serving traditional street-style tacos, quesadillas, mulas, and sides made from family recipes and fresh ingredients imported from Mexico. The company also runs the El Donkey breakfast burrito service, multiple catering formats, an online merchandise store, and gift card programs, all distributed through direct in-store dining, online ordering for pickup and delivery, and event catering.
Is Los Tacos No. 1 a public or private company?
Los Tacos No. 1 is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Los Tacos No. 1 founded?
Los Tacos No. 1 was founded in -1.
How does Los Tacos No. 1 make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Food and Beverage Sales are the primary driver. The others are catering Services, merchandise Sales and gift Cards.
Who are Los Tacos No. 1's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Mission Cantina, Taqueria Diana, La Esquina and Dos Toros Taqueria. Broad incumbents are Sweetgreen, Taco Bell, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Cava. Shake Shack is listed as a regional player. Taco Dumbo is listed as an emerging player.
Does Los Tacos No. 1 have an API?
No public API is recorded for Los Tacos No. 1.
What industry is Los Tacos No. 1 in?
Los Tacos No. 1's product category is Casual Dining Mexican Restaurants. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFABAC, Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual. Its NAICS code is 722513 and its SIC code is 5812.