Family-owned taco truck settles on the Palouse

Three years ago a family-owned taco truck left the busy streets of Tacoma looking for a place to park.

After arriving on the Palouse, Taqueria Las Torres began operating in Moscow, expanded to Pullman and is now expecting to open another truck in Clarkston in the coming weeks.

It may be on wheels, but it looks like Taqueria Las Torres is not going anywhere.

David Medina started running the Pullman truck after his cousin and owner of Taqueria Las Torres, Manuel Valdovinos, asked him to help out. He told the Daily News his family moved from Mexico to Tacoma to start their business after friends of the family started working in taco trucks in Seattle.

Taqueria Las Torres stayed in western Washington for 15 years until the price of rent began to soar. They packed up and started looking for a new home.

"We were driving all over the state," Medina said.

When they came Moscow, they liked what they saw. Taqueria Las Torres is parked next to the grain silos off Jackson Street. Customers can park in the gravel lot, walk up to the window and order from a menu of tacos, burritos, enchiladas, carnitas and other affordable items. Once the order is ready, an employee will call it out and the customer can pick it up and enjoy the meal on an outdoor bench in the shade of the silos.

In Pullman, the truck is located on the corner of Whitman Street and Grand Avenue near the Pufferbelly Depot. It opened in 2017, and promoted $1 taco Tuesdays, which Medina said always draws a crowd of people looking to get a meal for less than $5. It became so popular, the business started $1 taco Tuesdays in Moscow this past month.

Medina said the business has attracted people mostly through word of mouth. When one customer tries it, he or she will bring a friend the next time, he said.

Medina said people love Mexican food, but the truck's popularity has more to do with the quality of the food than the type of food. He said they prepare all of the ingredients they need in the morning, and that makes the difference.

"People say it's really authentic Mexican food, but I think everything we sell is really fresh," he said when asked why customers like the truck.

Medina said the family has thought about running a brick and mortar restaurant in the future if the price is right. For now, the family is sticking with the taco truck and happily serving its loyal customers.

"When people try our food, they just want to come back," he said.

Anthony Kuipers can be reached at (208) 883-4640, or by email to business@dnews.com.