If nostalgia was a restaurant, Henry's Tacos would be its name. Since the 1960s, this Studio City taco stand has been a staple of the San Fernando Valley, a beloved landmark of my upbringing, and the likely genesis of my love for Googie architecture.
As a child, I spent many hours of my life at the coin-op laundromat just across the street from Henry's Tacos, folding towels and clothes with my Dad. As an adult in my early 20s, broke with student loan debt and a thankless design job on the Westside, these tacos fed me until my next paycheck.
Henry's Tacos is a cash only type of place, and I definitely paid for these crunchy shell ground beef tacos - deliciously overloaded with mounds of iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, and bright orange shredded cheese - with the rolls of quarters that I was supposed to be saving for laundry on more than one occasion.
These tacos are best eaten from a brown paper to-go bag in your car, three at a time, dripping with their homemade hot sauce, while waiting for your clothes to dry. Side note - This building on Moorpark St. and Tujunga Ave. is apparently occupied by a new tenant, but Henry's Tacos still lives on just down the street in a smaller space.
Henry's Tacos
4389 Tujunga Ave.
Studio City, CA 91604