Courtesy of Google Maps

Taqueria Tlaxcala, a popular food truck located at 131 Grove St., by the bottom of Science Hill and the entrance of Silliman College, offers a wide variety of Mexican food, including tacos, burritos, cemitas, quesadillas, churros with ice cream and spicy mangonadas. 

The food truck is named after the state of Tlaxcala in Mexico, home state of the Pérez Hernández family, who own and operate Taqueria Tlaxcala. The food truck was inaugurated on Jan. 30, 2021.

“We chose this location to cater to Yale students so that they could try our food and the business could grow,” Miguel Hernández said in an interview, as translated by the News. 

Alejandro Pérez stated that they chose that location because it was one of the only ones where the 20-foot truck could fit and be accessible to Yale students. Hernández talked about how students and other customers enjoyed the authentic Mexican seasonings and flavors used. 

The food truck is located in the same place year round and operates from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. from Tuesday to Friday and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the weekend. Mondays are their day off. 

“It’s a family business. The idea came from Alejandro Pérez and the family came together,” co-owner Miguel Hernández said. 

Hernández stated that the food truck was inaugurated after the hard times the family faced due to the pandemic. He expressed gratitude to God for allowing them to keep going and growing. 

Many Yale students shared positive experiences at the Tlaxcala Taqueria. 

“Seeing such traditional food served as best as they possibly can with such pride every single day reminds me of the hard work that takes to dream, as I know that this truck is their dream,” Christian Tamez ’25 said. “Tlaxcala to me is more than just meat on a tortilla, more than corn with toppings. Tlaxcala is a piece of home.”

When discussing the family’s future plans for their business, Alejandro Pérez talked about buying another food truck and locating it nearby to continue serving Yale students and “providing good service in New Haven.”

Vianney Pérez, daughter of Alejandro Pérez, talked about her role using social media to advertise Taqueria Tlaxcala. She runs the Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp and Facebook accounts of the business. She discussed how she has used TikTok to post short videos that show the preparation of their dishes. 

“Because of social media, we’ve had people visit from New York City, Bridgeport, New Jersey and even Mexico,” Vianney Pérez said in an interview, as translated by the News. 

She added that the governor of the state of Tlaxcala, after which the food truck is named, visited the business a week ago. 

“Although I’m not Mexican, being Latin American, there are some places that provide food that I’m closer to, rather than American food,” Caue Pascarelli ’25 said. “It feels like a little bit of home outside of home.”

Miguel Hernández invites Yale students to go try their “100 percent authentic Mexican food.” He expressed gratitude for the Yale community because of the support they have received and continue to receive in their business. 

Taqueria Tlaxcala is located at 131 Grove St. 

Correction, April 29: This article has been updated with the correct spelling of Hernández’s name.