How Mexican supermarket chains, food merchants are standing up for immigrants

Evelin Gomez works at the juice bar inside a Vallarta Supermarket in Carson, a place where Mexican culture functions as the business’s beating heart. In the last week, Gomez said, her customers and co-workers have been rattled by ICE immigration raids, while life at the same time continues inside: shoppers browsing dried chiles and pushing shopping carts filled with freshly made tortillas and carne asada.

“I’m very glad that I’m able to interact with people that are really going through things that are really tough right now,” said Gomez, while serving aguas frescas to customers. “I’ve even had customers come in and tell me, ‘The American dream doesn’t exist anymore.’ ”

Vallarta, Northgate Gonzalez Markets and others are among prominent immigrant success stories in the food industry of Southern California. Owned and operated by immigrant families, the chains are among the largest Mexican supermarket brands in the country and also stock key ingredients for other Latin American cuisines.

Over the last week and a half, the stores, alongside many local restaurants, have spoken up for their neighbors amid ICE raids and protests, and they have also found new ways to support customers looking for a safe way to get their groceries.

“We believe everyone deserves to feel safe, welcomed and valued,” read an Instagram post from Vallarta Supermarkets on Thursday. “Our doors remain open to all and we remain committed to fostering a warm, respectful space where people can come together — regardless of background or circumstance.”

In an Instagram post, Northgate said reports of raids at its stores were unsubstantiated. “We are also working closely with trusted community organizations to understand how we can best offer support. Rest assured, we will help in any way we can,” the post said.

The first Northgate Market was opened in Anaheim by Don Miguel González Jiménez, a Mexican immigrant, in 1980. Five years later, Mexican immigrant Enrique Gonzalez opened Carnicería Vallarta in Van Nuys, the first iteration of Vallarta Supermarkets. Today, both chains are still owned by their founding families, including more than 45 family members representing the second and third generations working at Northgate.

Like many local stores and restaurants, some Vallarta locations are reporting slower business as more customers are choosing to stay at home while ICE raids spread across the county.

“The way we meet our community’s needs is by staying open — food is essential, and oftentimes it brings happiness, joy,” said Alexandra Bolanos, a third-generation owner and member of the Gonzalez family and Northgate’s director of brand marketing.

Unlike many businesses across L.A., who have been forced to limit operating hours to comply with the downtown curfew or are closing early for the safety of their employees and customers, Northgate and Vallarta are operating at full hours across their locations, from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., in an effort to provide customers with a sense of normalcy amid a climate of uncertainty and fear, the companies said.

“If you get a late-night craving, you want some tacos at 9:30 p.m., our doors are open,” said Lizette Gomez, Vallarta’s director of marketing.

Vallarta supermarkets are also offering free or discounted food delivery on UberEats, Instacart and DoorDash, while Northgate Markets is waiving its curbside delivery fee and plans to match $50,000 worth of customer donations to fundraise for local education and faith-based organizations.

These supermarket chains are just some of the dozens, possibly hundreds, of L.A.- and Southern California-based food businesses that have used social media to express support for the area’s immigrant communities in the last week and a half — voicing many of the same sentiments shared by anti-ICE protesters.

Christy Vega, owner of Casa Vega in Sherman Oaks, has spoken out strongly in support of immigrants since the ICE raids began.

(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)

“We will never let the evil will of a sad, malignant despot dictate how we treat one another,” said the Greyhound Bar & Grill in Highland Park.

“The immigrant experience in this country is too often met with hostility rather than gratitude,” said Moo’s Craft Barbecue in Lincoln Heights.

Christy Vega, owner of celebrity-favorite Mexican restaurant Casa Vega in Sherman Oaks, has been an outspoken critic of ICE since the recent raids began and posted on social media showing herself attending a “No Kings” protest on Saturday.

“I protested in honor of my Mexican immigrant father, Rafael Evaristo Vega, and the very people Casa Vega was built on since 1956,” Vega wrote on Instagram on Sunday. “I will always remember my roots and ALWAYS fight for the voiceless immigrant community.”

Other prominent local food industry leaders, like Valerie Gordon, chef and owner of Valerie Confections in Glendale, have used their platforms to help fellow business owners understand their rights during an ICE encounter.

Gordon encouraged others to “label private areas of your business,” train staff “not to speak with ICE” and give Red Cards to “the most vulnerable members of your staff” in an Instagram post Friday.

Many food businesses are also organizing fundraising events, donation systems and other tactics to support immigrant neighbors, customers and even fellow businesses. Santa Ana’s Alta Baja Market has begun selling the fruit cups of Mr. Diablito, a longtime, city-approved fruit vendor that has stopped serving following the wave of recent raids and protests.

Petitgrain Boulangerie in Santa Monica will give free drip coffee to customers who show that “they donate to the ACLU or any other legal rights organizations,” said co-founder Clémence de Lutz in a Friday Instagram Reel. Michelada mix brand held a “No Ice” event of live music and food on Friday night, with all proceeds going to the Immigrant Defenders Law Center. Mexican restaurant Cha Cha Chá in the Arts District recently debuted a “pay what you can” policy for its full food menu.

“We’re really afraid of what’s happening, and just being able to at least give [customers] a smile,” Gomez said back at the Vallarta in Carson. “As long as we’re there to at least give them some sort of hope — that it’s really dark right now, but it’ll hopefully be good at the end.”