Tacos Don Rafa
Call 801-600-4011
A looping film of the cart at 798 South State Street, then Salt Lake City at sunset, then the Wasatch Range at dusk.
30 years of Utah tradition
in the same old corner
The same old corner
01 / 06
In February 1998, Jesus Rosas put a cart on the sidewalk in front of Sears, at 798 State Street, and stayed. A red-striped umbrella, a small steel cart, and the name of his father, Rafael “Don Rafa” Rosas, who had a taquería in Colima.
10am to midnight, 365 days a year, at State and 800 South.
Corn tortillas made locally. Meat from Utah ranches. Vegetables bought fresh. Nothing frozen, prepared every day — that’s how they put it on their own site.
Their website doesn’t publish a walk-up menu. Prices here come from their Instagram and recent write-ups, 2023–2026. Every one is marked Sample until the family confirms it.
Any meat except tripe or tongue. Carne asada, al pastor, pollo, carnitas, and the rest of the regular board.
Heat at the salsa bar
$2 Sample
Call to order
A third-party menu lists cans at $1 and bottles at $3. Those aren’t on their site.
No heat
$1 Sample
Call to orderCarne asada · Al pastor · Pollo · Carnitas · Barbacoa · Chorizo · Pollo mole · Fajita chicken · Buche · Lengua · Tripe · Burrito sin carne
Meats rotate. This list is what shows up on their flyers, in reviews, and on aggregator menus, not a guaranteed board for tonight.
The salsa bar is self-serve. Reviewers and their catering flyers describe red and green salsa, avocado salsa, onion and cilantro, cabbage, radishes, cucumber, jalapeño, lime, pico de gallo, and crema.
In February 1998, Jesus Rosas put a cart on the sidewalk in front of Sears, at 798 State Street, and stayed. He named it for his father, Rafael “Don Rafa” Rosas, who had a taquería in Colima.
The stand has kept that corner through rain, snow, and the years after Sears came down. His sons, Cristian and Jessie, are taking the day-to-day on. Jesus still keeps a hand in the events.
The family, and the Salt Lake papers, call it the first legal, licensed taco stand in Utah.
“Whoever comes to Salt Lake City and doesn’t try Tacos Don Rafa, doesn’t know the city — because we’re part of Salt Lake City.”
“I don’t care if only one person shows all day, I’m still going to put the cart here all day, all night.”
4.5
Best Taco in Utah. Carnitas. “Crispy and flavorful,” they wrote, when the tacos were still 75 cents.
Food Truck. The separate tacos category that year went to someone else. This one is the food-truck prize.
City Weekly’s Best of Utah 2023 ranked them #2 for inexpensive lunch. Not a “best tacos” win, and not a bare “voted number one.”
“Best tacos for sure. Had 1 of each and sucked em down. Fast, cheap, and tasty. Thank you, Don Rafa!!” Sample
Find the cart
10am to midnight 365 days a year
798 South State Street
Salt Lake City, UT 84111
It’s a fixed stand, not a truck that moves. Canopy, outdoor seating, a salsa bar, and string lights over the lot. Park off 800 South, on the old Sears block. The State Street driveway closed after Sears came down, so come in from 800 South. Construction on the block may shift the entrance. If the lot looks torn up, call.
Sears is gone. In September 2026, Intermountain said the hospital planned for this block includes room for the food carts, and that they hope the carts stay. The stand is still on the corner.
Fridays and Saturdays, about 8 to 11pm, are when the line is longest.
Open in Google Maps
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. The pin is 40.752182, −111.888628.
Parties, weddings, and company events. Their flyers include the salsa and vegetable bar, plates, napkins, staff, and two hours of service. The numbers below are read off those flyers and marked Sample until someone at the stand confirms them.
300 tacos and 6 lbs of chips.
$750 Sample
600 tacos, 12 lbs of chips, one bucket of horchata.
$1,350 Sample
1,500 tacos, 15 lbs of chips, horchata and Jamaica.
$3,000 Sample
Four at a time, plus horchata, chips, and salsa. $39 / $34 / $29 / $24 a person at 25, 50, 51–100, and 101+ guests.
$24+ Sample
Tacos, burritos, quesadillas, rice and beans, chips and salsa, horchata, Jamaica, and sweet churros. $55 down to $40 a person on that same scale.
$40+ Sample
Two churros or four bites a guest, two toppings. Their flyer lists 50 guests at $400.
$400 Sample
A la carte on the same flyer, also Sample: street tacos from $3.50 down to $2 by volume, burritos and quesadillas from $12 to $10, rice and beans or guacamole from $7 to $5, chips and salsa from $5 to $3.
Call or write with the date, the head count, and the address. Their flyer asks for a deposit to reserve the date.
