Taqueria del Vaquero. Mexican street food, cooked on a 1978 step van. Essex, England.

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A 1978 American step van, shipped over, stripped to the shell and rebuilt as a commercial kitchen. It is a genuine one, not a replica with stickers on.

The side of the HoTaco step van showing the Taqueria del Vaquero roundel and the menu board.
01Six metres. Trompo in the window.
THE STEP VANOUTDOOR
—The vehicle1978 American step van, sourced and shipped from the States. Engine rebuilt for reliability, not for show.Six metres
—The kitchenFull commercial fit out. LPG, plancha, and the trompo in the service window where people can watch it.LPG
—Run by usOur own crew, every service. No hired in kitchens, no agency staff who have never seen the menu.—
—The signA six foot TACOS sign on the roof. Not subtle, and that is the point.—
A member of the crew working the line inside the truck under warm light during service.
02Inside.
The ceiling inside the truck, covered in stickers collected from years of events.
03The ceiling. Years of it.
A handwritten sign in the cab window reading Tacos over meth, obviously.
04House policy.
Glass bottles of Coca-Cola packed in a red crate on the truck.
—Glass bottles. Always.
THE INDOOR SETUPNO GAS, NO EXTRACTION
—What it isA second, fully electric setup that runs without gas or extraction. Same food, same crew, no truck.Electric
—When you need itListed buildings, hotel function rooms, anywhere a six metre van cannot get to or is not allowed.—
—The trade offNo trompo indoors. The al pastor is still ours, it is just not carved in front of you.—
—What we needStandard sockets and a bit of bench space. Tell us the venue and we will tell you straight if it works.13A
The Chevy day van with TACOS painted across the bonnet, parked up beside the step van.
05La Mula. The day van.
La Mula painted in red script on the back doors of the day van.
06Named for what it does.
THE DAY VANLA MULA
—What it isA Chevy van that does the running about. Prep, stock, markets, and anything the step van is too big or too precious for.Chevy
—The nameLa Mula. The mule. It carries everything and complains about none of it.—
—Where you will see itSmaller jobs and tighter sites. If a venue cannot take six metres of step van, this is usually what turns up instead.—
Three of the crew sat on the roof of the truck in Taco Club shirts.
07Run by us. Every service.
The side of the step van with the Taqueria del Vaquero roundel and the menu board, a customer at the hatch.
08Between services.
ACCESSWORTH CHECKING EARLY
—GroundFirm and reasonably level. Soft ground after a wet week is the one thing that stops us, so tell us what the field is like.—
—SpaceAbout six metres of length and room to open the hatch on one side, plus somewhere to turn.6m
—Power and waterWe bring our own. If you have them we will use them, but nothing depends on it.Self contained
—WasteOurs leaves with us. Your venue will not find anything behind where we parked.Taken away
PAPERWORKAS AT SEPT 2026
—Food hygieneRated 5, Very Good. Uttlesford District Council, inspected April 2026.5 / 5
—LiabilityPublic, products and employers liability with Aviva.£10m
—GasGas Safe CP44 mobile catering certificate.To May 2027
—ElectricalInstallation condition report and PAT testing, both satisfactory.To May 2027
—PoliciesHealth and safety, food safety, COSHH, fire and allergen documentation.Current
—The packYour venue or organiser will ask for all of it. Ask us and it goes over the same day.On request

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