A new UCLA study finds immigration enforcement is reducing customer traffic and hurting neighborhood restaurants. For many Latino business owners, the data simply confirms a reality they’ve faced for months.
LOS ANGELES — On paper, it’s a research report filled with statistics, economic analysis, and charts.
In reality, it’s the story of restaurant owners across Los Angeles who have watched dining rooms grow quieter, worried about making payroll, and stood beside employees fearful of coming to work.
A new report from the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute (LPPI), conducted in partnership with Inclusive Action for the City, finds that immigration enforcement has created measurable economic consequences for restaurants and small businesses throughout Latino communities in Los Angeles County.
The research documents what many business owners have already been telling Parriva: when fear spreads through a neighborhood, restaurants often feel the impact first.
The Numbers Tell One Story. Restaurant Owners Tell Another.
Researchers analyzed mobility data and interviewed Latino business owners located near immigration enforcement activity.
They found that commercial corridors experienced approximately 46,000 fewer customer visits during the two weeks following major immigration enforcement operations in June 2025, resulting in an estimated $3.2 million in lost sales.
For restaurants, those numbers represent far more than declining revenue.
Every empty table means meals that will never be served.
Every canceled reservation represents income that cannot be recovered.
For businesses operating on narrow margins, even a brief decline in customer traffic can make it difficult to pay rent, purchase inventory, or keep employees working.
For Elizabeth Mendoza, owner of La Ceiba Restaurant and Pupusería in Compton and Bell Gardens, the UCLA findings are not surprising.
They reflect the daily reality of running a restaurant during periods of uncertainty.
“These aren’t times to get rich; they’re times to meet the demands of the business. If I can cover the salaries of my 18 workers and the operating costs of the restaurants, I feel happy. Later this will pass—it will just be another story. We have to persevere.”
Mendoza’s words capture the difficult balancing act many restaurant owners face today.
Success is no longer measured by growth or expansion.
Instead, many owners say success means keeping employees on payroll, paying suppliers, and making sure the doors open again tomorrow.
The UCLA report concludes that immigration enforcement affects more than those directly involved.
Fear changes behavior.
Families postpone dinners out.
Friends cancel weekend gatherings.
Workers head straight home instead of stopping for a meal after work.
Neighborhood restaurants lose the steady customer traffic that keeps small businesses alive.
The economic effects ripple outward, touching restaurant owners, employees, food suppliers, and neighboring businesses.
Restaurant Workers Carry the Weight Too
The study also found that many businesses experienced staffing disruptions as employees struggled with immigration-related concerns affecting themselves or their families.
Mendoza says that has become one of her greatest concerns.
“What worries me most are my workers. They get very stressed and fear immigration raids. But the greatest gift—the thing that makes me feel wonderful—is when they call and tell me ICE is nearby and ask what time I’ll arrive. Because, they say, when I’m there with them, they feel safe and protected.”
Restaurant owners are not only managing businesses.
Many have become mentors, counselors, and sources of reassurance for employees navigating uncertainty.
Across Los Angeles County, family-owned restaurants are woven into the fabric of their communities.
They are places where birthdays are celebrated, soccer games are watched together, grandparents introduce grandchildren to family recipes, and neighbors gather after church or work.
They also provide jobs, support local suppliers, and help keep neighborhood commercial corridors vibrant.
When restaurants struggle, the impact extends beyond business owners.
Employees lose hours.
Suppliers receive fewer orders.
Nearby shops experience less foot traffic.
Communities lose gathering spaces that help define their neighborhoods.
Long before UCLA researchers released their findings, Parriva interviewed restaurant owners who described many of the same challenges now documented in the report.
Owners spoke about quieter dining rooms, declining sales, and customers who stayed home because they were afraid to spend time in public.
The UCLA research does not introduce a new story.
It confirms one that neighborhood entrepreneurs have been living every day.
A Community’s Resilience
Despite the challenges, many restaurant owners remain determined to keep serving their neighborhoods.
For Mendoza, giving up has never been an option.
“I’m Salvadoran—I’m not made to be afraid. I’ve lived through very difficult things: violence, scarcity, everything. This won’t scare me. We have to prepare for what we face day by day and for the future. We can’t sit with our arms crossed.”
Her determination reflects the resilience that has long defined immigrant entrepreneurs across Los Angeles.
Many built their businesses through years of sacrifice, long hours, and unwavering commitment to their communities.
Today, they continue showing up—not because business is easy, but because they believe their restaurants are worth fighting for.
How can you help:
- Support locally owned restaurants in your community.
- Dine at Latino-owned businesses and encourage others to do the same.
- Share this story to help others understand the broader economic impact of immigration enforcement.
- If you own a restaurant, tell Parriva your story. Community voices help illuminate how public policy affects everyday life.
