Los Angeles County home to most Mexican restaurants in US, data shows

LOS ANGELES - Let's taco 'bout this new prestigious accolade for the Los Angeles County food scene, shall we?

Whether you're craving authentic tacos, pozole, flautas, or tortas, you name it, you'll find it in Los Angeles County - (mostly) guaranteed. 

That's because LA County is home to the most Mexican restaurants in the entire U.S., according to the latest data from the Pew Research Center. There are nearly 5,500 Mexican restaurants in LA County alone. 

Breakfast tacos from HomeState on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2020 in Los Angeles, CA. (Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Expand

Harris County in Texas ranked No. 2, followed by San Diego County at No. 3. Maricopa County, Arizona, and Cook County, Illinois rounded out the top five.

According to the data from SafeGraph, which collects information on places of interest around the world, as well as Yelp, 85% of counties in the U.S. have at least one Mexican restaurant. 

SUGGESTED:

• Sweet Lady Jane sued for wage theft before abrupt closures: report
• Longstanding Downtown Disney restaurant closing after 20 years in business
• Wetzel's Pretzels opens second 'Twisted' bakery in Southern California

There are 10 counties in the U.S. where Mexican restaurants make up more than a third of all dining establishments. Eight of these 10 counties are in Texas, with a majority located near the U.S.-Mexico border. 

An array of taco offerings from Villa's Tacos on Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023 in Los Angeles, CA. (Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

California and Texas are home to a majority of the Mexican American population, as well as 40% of all Mexican restaurants in the country, with 22% in California and 17% in Texas. 

According to the data, this reflects an expanding Mexican-American population, with 37.2 million people or 11.2% of the U.S. population tracing their ancestry back to Mexico.

Of the Hispanic population living in the U.S., nearly 60% identify as Mexican-American.

To see the full study, tap or click here.