22 June 13th-June 19th, 2024 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | gentrified versions of Mexican food that saturate restaurants across the Southwest — you’re not going to find sour cream anywhere near her food truck. Choose from asada, pollo, al pastor and veggie tacos, quesadillas with or without meat, crunchy vampiros, slow roasted elote, tacos dorados or spicy birria ramen finished with cilantro, onions, radish, lime and a hit of chiltepin on your next visit. There’s also a secret menu, which show- cases some of Carillo’s more complex creations — you just have to ask. Cultivating a culture In addition to putting out delicious Mexican food, Carillo fosters a space for women in the culinary industry. “I feel like a lot of women in the kitchen are overseen,” she says. Carillo isn’t wrong. Research from the National Restaurant Association shows just one in five chefs are female. “If you’re telling us a woman belongs in the kitchen, allow women to have a plat- form in the kitchen,” Carillo says. “Allow them to shine.” Currently, Carillo and her wife Taylor Gurolla-Nava work alongside an all-female staff inside the Baja Roots food truck. But employing a team of women isn’t something she planned to do, it happened organically. “I wanted to create a space where women feel comfortable,” she says. “They don’t have to feel judged, they don’t have to feel criticized.” Baja Roots is a departure from what Carillo calls the “macho mentality” that is present in a lot of male-dominated kitchens where inclusivity is often an afterthought. “I’m a masculine lesbian woman, it’s always been a diffi- cult thing for people to give respect without being judged,” she says. “I created the food truck to create a space for me.” Baja summer For Carillo, summer isn’t the time for a vacation. On June 12 and 26, Baja Roots will be taking over the kitchen at Gracie’s Tax Bar with a menu of flautas, rolled tacos and her signature spicy birria ramen. “It’s really spicy, but people enjoy that,” she says. Carillo says she will offer a rainbow taco platter “to represent the LGBTQ commu- nity” for Pride Month. The rainbow taco special will be similar to last year’s Pride offering: pink tacos assembled inside beet-infused corn torti- llas. And just like the pink tacos, Carillo will use natural ingredients, not food dyes, to add color to her hand-pressed medley of tortillas. The rainbow taco platter will be featured on her secret menu and will be available throughout June. And, in a push to underscore her passion for street food, Carillo has teamed up with Rob Cordero of RC Creative Co. to create a documentary film about her life as a food truck owner and chef. The duo plan to host a community screening of the docu- mentary flick this summer. A date has yet to be announced. Until then, late night noshers can find Carillo and her crew at Baja Roots serving street tacos and more from the Cobra Arcade Bar lot, near the intersection of Second and McKinley streets, every Thursday, Friday and Sunday from 8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. So when your cravings for after-hours elote and spicy birria hit, you know exactly where to go. Baja Roots at Cobra Arcade Bar 801 N. Second St. Baja Roots from p 21 Left: Baja Roots serves a selection of tacos loaded with asada, pollo, al pastor or veggies plus guac, salsa and limes. Top: Baja Roots dishes out Tijuana-style eats including tacos, burritos and quesadillas to late- night crowds from its post at the Cobra Arcade Bar lot in downtown Phoenix. (Photos by Lauren Topor/Good Karma Photo)
