Commentary: How a fast food taco showed us who Steve Hilton really is

"Out in the high desert city of Barstow stand three Del Tacos that bill themselves as better than their corporate cousins. They're the last ones owned and operated by Ed Hackbarth, the founder of the Mexican fast food chain. Two of them feature the word "Original" under their marquees, even though that's historically inaccurate - Hackbarth opened the first Del Taco in the nearby town of Yermo in 1964."

"Among those visitors was Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton. He stopped by the Original Del Taco off 1st Avenue on Saturday after a town hall with lieutenant governor candidate and Barstow native Gloria Romero. His campaign posted a short video on social media of him standing outside the spot - the oldest operating Del Taco - while holding something that looked like a melted Frisbee."

"It was what the place calls a Barstow Taco: ground beef, a few strips of lettuce, a blizzard of bright yellow cheese and a thick red tomato slice on top, all inside a hard taco shell. Hilton gleefully wielded the crunchy mass with one hand as he pointed to the Original Del Taco sign with the other. "My Barstow street taco, I'm going to enjoy," he concluded in an accent from his native England, while giving a thumbs-up. "See you soon.""

"The social media blowback exploded like a digital Montezuma's revenge. Haters ridiculed Hilton for visiting a Mexican restaurant in what seemed like an attempt to attract Latino voters - if he was going to do that, why on Earth pick a multimillion-dollar empire founded by a gringo? Others noted that "street tacos" are made with corn tortillas and bought from a food tr"

Three Del Tacos in Barstow are independently owned by Del Taco founder Ed Hackbarth, with two locations using “Original” despite historical inaccuracies about the first restaurant opening in Yermo in 1964. Visitors travel to these sites for memorabilia, historical photos, and specific menu items such as hard shell tacos, burritos, and bun tacos. Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton stopped at the oldest operating Original Del Taco after a town hall, holding a Barstow Taco topped with ground beef, lettuce, bright yellow cheese, and a thick red tomato slice. He posed for a campaign video and did not take a bite. Online reactions mocked the visit as potential Latino-voter pandering and questioned the authenticity of “street tacos.”

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