Tacos with Mom’s Recipe.
Daisy Rodríguez is a determined and very energetic woman. She wants to learn and do things — she has always known she wants to be a businesswoman.
“I didn’t like school, I knew what I wanted to do: be a businesswoman,” says the owner of Tacos Madres, located in Baldwin Park.
She and her family were born in Tepetongo, Zacatecas. Her father worked as a butcher, but he soon realized he had to migrate to give his family a different future.
“I migrated when I was five years old. I was a normal little girl. I played with pebbles, with animals. Everything changed when we arrived in California. Life was very hard. My dad had three jobs, and we lived with relatives in one room. The good thing was that we had lots of cousins to play with. But I remember this well — like any child, we’d crave a McDonald’s hamburger, and my parents didn’t have the money. They’d always say, ‘We have food at home,’” she says.
She watched her mom cook, and later stuck close to her dad, who worked first in a butcher shop and also sold tacos at events on the weekends.
She studied what she needed to, she says. After finishing high school, she enrolled in a cosmetology school. She liked it, but deep down, she knew it wouldn’t last long.
“I worked in that field for about 10 years. I liked it — I’ve always been a very communicative woman, I like talking to people, having conversations. And that job allowed for that. I liked it, but then the 2008 recession hit, or around then, and we started losing clients. I had to rethink everything,” she says.
Her dad told her that he already had a job for her at his taquería. Years earlier, he had opened Taquería Super Taco in Visalia. She joined her father’s business, where she learned everything, and this helped her plan what would become Tacos Madres.
“I did the employee schedules, managed the place, cooked — everything. It was fine, but I still knew it wasn’t what I wanted. I kept thinking about it — I wanted to open a business of my own,” she adds.
That’s how Tacos Madres was born. Her dad and mom didn’t seem convinced, but deep down, they were happy for her. She was clear on what she had to do. She named her business as a tribute to her family — “tacos” because her father had always been in that line of work, and “Madres” for the recipes passed down from her mother and grandmothers.
“I wanted to do something different, an artisanal kitchen. All the food is like it’s made at home — the stews, the handmade tortillas — we even make the chorizo, which is typical of Tepetongo,” she says proudly.
Her business is only a year and a half old, but she knows people like it — and she also knows there’s still a lot to do for it to be truly successful.
“Not many people know us yet; we’re still getting our name out there. I need to increase our presence on social media, on Instagram. I already have it all planned. I’m scared about what’s happening right now, but I also know I’m a fighter. This has to pass. When it’s all over, I’ll still be here,” she says.
Daisy cares deeply about her employees. She wants them to feel good, to feel like a family.
“I have regular meetings with them. If there’s a problem, we talk it out and solve it. There has to be a lot of honesty. I try to pay them the best I can. I throw parties for them when the occasion arises — lots of little things,” she says.
Tacos Madres is now part of the Baldwin Park community. In these difficult times, especially due to the immigration situation, she tries to help however she can. She offers food to those affected — she knows they are also her community, her people.
“Some people didn’t take me seriously — I didn’t worry about that. But I’ve shown my capability and the quality of my business,” she concludes.
