A record-breaking crowd flocked to this year’s Taco Wars to celebrate
Latino culture, food and music at the region’s largest taco and salsa festival and competition.
The festival, presented by Maestro Dobel, Modelo, and the Prize Foundation, returned for 2024
on April 27 outside the Shreveport Municipal Auditorium to much fanfare of taco lovers
throughout the area and generated over $128,000 in revenue for these local businesses. Taco
Wars featured 14 taquerias from Northwest Louisiana and East Texas. This year, the
award-winning mariachi band, Los Reyes de Mexico, and Los Rancheritos were also featured.
“We are so proud of our community, and we are so humbled by their support of Taco Wars and
these small businesses who worked so hard to make this the biggest, boldest and spiciest Taco
Wars on record” said Gregory Kallenberg, Executive Director of the Prize Foundation and
founder of Taco Wars. “Congrats to Ramirez and Taqueria San Miguel on the big wins. That
said, it was such a glorious day, I think we all won Taco Wars!”
The festival featured fourteen local taquerias, selling tacos to the public and battling it out for the
coveted Golden Taco (Best Taco) and Golden Molcajete (Best Salsa). Participating taquerías
included Mi Mercadito, El Novillo Carniceria, Taqueria El Eden, Taqueria San Miguel, Ramirez
Mexican Restaurant, Tamalocos, Taqueria Mi Palmar, Mi Meza Latin Cuisine, Taqueria Flores,
Nicky’s Mexican Restaurant, Taqueria La Reyna Del Sur, Taqueria Tierra Santa, La Potranca
and La Villa Taqueria.
A panel of celebrity taco aficionados visited each of taquerias tents, tasted all of the submitted
tacos and after careful deliberation, declared Taqueria San Miguel the winner of the Best Taco
and the $1000 cash prize.
All taquerias also gave out free tastings of chips and salsas to the hungry crowd. Attendees
were given voting tokens upon entry to the festival and voted to decide the Golden Molcajete
winner. Ramirez Mexican Restaurant defended its title and was again crowned best salsa by the
audience and awarded a $500 cash prize.