Fast Food Industry Los Angeles

His friends believed that Raul O. Martinez had lost his mind. Martinez had a plan to sell soft-shell tacos out of a renovated ice cream truck on the streets of East Los Angeles. "How will you sell those kinds of tacos?" he was asked. Despite the skepticism, Martinez, his wife and father at his side, parked the truck next to an East Los Angeles bar on a summer night in 1974. Martinez sold $70 worth of tacos that first night and soon afterward was selling $150 an evening.

Police arrested two men in San Fernando suspected of robbing at least 10 fast-food restaurants in the Valley over the last three weeks, authorities said Wednesday. Carlos Gonzales, 34, of Simi Valley, and Juan Hernandez, 30, of San Fernando, were booked on suspicion of robbery after they were found at Hernandez's home Tuesday night in the 1100 block of Hollister Street. Police suspect the pair are the "Burger Chain Robbers," who hit 10 restaurants between Aug. 17 and Sunday.

Big Mac is boning up for a home delivery attack. So are Kentucky Fried Chicken, Subway and El Pollo Loco. As fast as you can phone or fax your request, these familiar fast-food names are starting to deliver--to the home or the office. Pizza parlors that long reigned as kings of home delivery are suddenly competing with the big names in burgers and chicken. For now, most of the big chains are watching closely while their franchisees experiment with delivery.

What was once part of the St. James Presbyterian Church sanctuary at 19414 Ventura Blvd. is slated to become a Carl's Jr. fast-food restaurant, pending the city's approval of a conditional use permit. The 1994 Northridge earthquake destroyed the church sanctuary, sending the ceiling and light fixtures crashing down on the pews of the 1,000-seat church. A year later, church members voted to demolish the sanctuary and sell part of the property. The 120-by-260-foot parcel is currently in escrow.

There is no mistaking what Francisco Galvez sells. Painted across the front of his catering truck, in big red letters, is the word TACOS , and that says it all . Every weekend evening, Friday through Monday, Galvez and his wife Elvia serve up steaming soft tacos to the mostly Latino patrons of a neighborhood nightclub on Lankershim Boulevard in North Hollywood. On a good night, Galvez's Tacos don Paco rings up $300 in sales.

An employee of a fast-food restaurant was wounded in a shoot-out with a robber inside a South-Central eatery, police said Thursday. The suspect entered El Cihualteco Taqueria at 925 E. Vernon Ave. about 7 p.m. Wednesday and ordered food. He then drew a handgun and demanded money. Pedro Pena, 18, backed away in an attempt to run, but was shot once in the stomach. The assailant ran outside and tried to get inside the store through the back door.

A woman standing with a group of people in the parking lot of a South-Central Los Angeles hamburger stand was fatally shot Monday by a man who fired several times from a nearby alley, authorities said. "She was standing in a parking lot adjacent to a fast-food restaurant at 100 E. Florence Ave. and a male suspect approached the parking lot from a rear alley," Sgt. John Lack said. "He fired several shots into the group she was standing with."

McDonald's Corp. is among four firms charged Wednesday with misdemeanor asbestos safety violations for razing two buildings in the Atwater district to make way for a fast-food restaurant. The criminal complaint alleges 35 violations of South Coast Air Quality Management District regulations and five violations of the state Hazardous Waste Control act stemming from the demolition of adjacent two-story structures.

Police arrested two men in San Fernando suspected of robbing at least 10 fast-food restaurants in the Valley over the last three weeks, authorities said Wednesday. Carlos Gonzales, 34, of Simi Valley, and Juan Hernandez, 30, of San Fernando, were booked on suspicion of robbery after they were found at Hernandez's home Tuesday night in the 1100 block of Hollister Street. Police suspect the pair are the "Burger Chain Robbers," who hit 10 restaurants between Aug. 17 and Sunday.

Attorney Bryan Jackson did a double take after being handed two paper towels by a men's room attendant in--of all places--a fast food restaurant in downtown Los Angeles. "I think he's great," said Jackson of the lone attendant at the Carl's Jr. restaurant on Pershing Square. "It's nice to have somebody to take care of things."

At first glance, 42-year-old Gary Diamond might seem slightly out of place on the streets of Westwood in his blue and red Domino's uniform. Delivering pizza, as portrayed in the TV ads, is strictly a young man's game. "I guess I don't exactly fit the image, but most of the drivers around here don't," said Diamond, who signed on as a driver about six years ago after the Compton warehouse that employed him closed.

Big Mac is boning up for a home delivery attack. So are Kentucky Fried Chicken, Subway and El Pollo Loco. As fast as you can phone or fax your request, these familiar fast-food names are starting to deliver--to the home or the office. Pizza parlors that long reigned as kings of home delivery are suddenly competing with the big names in burgers and chicken. For now, most of the big chains are watching closely while their franchisees experiment with delivery.

For some Encino residents, "having it your way" means not having it at all. A group of homeowners is protesting a proposal to build a Burger King near them on a vacant lot at the northwest corner of Ventura Boulevard and Gloria Avenue. "We just cannot have it," said Marilyn Carrabino, who lives on Gloria about a block from the site. "It's going to cause enormous problems."

The Marriott Corp., the outfit that wanted to rein in the peanut vendors at Dodger Stadium and keep selling food during the National Anthem, is again embroiled in controversy--this time, wage disputes with its employees. The state labor commissioner's office is reviewing four complaints about payroll snafus filed recently by food service employees at the stadium. But former and current employees say the payroll problems are more widespread than the complaints would indicate.

McDonald's Corp. is among four firms charged Wednesday with misdemeanor asbestos safety violations for razing two buildings in the Atwater district to make way for a fast-food restaurant. The criminal complaint alleges 35 violations of South Coast Air Quality Management District regulations and five violations of the state Hazardous Waste Control act stemming from the demolition of adjacent two-story structures.

An employee of a fast-food restaurant was wounded in a shoot-out with a robber inside a South-Central eatery, police said Thursday. The suspect entered El Cihualteco Taqueria at 925 E. Vernon Ave. about 7 p.m. Wednesday and ordered food. He then drew a handgun and demanded money. Pedro Pena, 18, backed away in an attempt to run, but was shot once in the stomach. The assailant ran outside and tried to get inside the store through the back door.

Pioneer Take-Out Corp.--the Los Angeles-based fried chicken chain that filed for bankruptcy--has received a buyout offer from a group affiliated with a chain of recreation centers, it was announced Thursday. The offer is the latest attempt to salvage the ailing franchise operation, which lost sales to competing fried chicken chains and has been sued by disgruntled franchisees.

At first glance, 42-year-old Gary Diamond might seem slightly out of place on the streets of Westwood in his blue and red Domino's uniform. Delivering pizza, as portrayed in the TV ads, is strictly a young man's game. "I guess I don't exactly fit the image, but most of the drivers around here don't," said Diamond, who signed on as a driver about six years ago after the Compton warehouse that employed him closed.

A masked gunman killed a customer and wounded two other people during a Christmas night robbery attempt at an Echo Park pizza parlor, police said Wednesday. The gunman fled after the shooting without any money, said Police Sgt. Dan Dejarnette. The dead customer, whose name was being withheld, was handing over his money to the gunman when he was shot, investigators said. "The guy actually took out his wallet and was giving him his money when the suspect shot him," Detective Ron Whitt said.

HEADING NORTH FROM the Santa Monica Freeway, Los Angeles' Western Avenue is a blur of storefronts, offices and mini-malls. Only the green corner tower of the Wiltern Center and a few lesser examples of Art Deco architecture catch the eye. Suddenly, at 1st Street, Col. Sanders appears, smiling like the Cheshire cat from what seems to be a lantern floating above the street.