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The Sporkful

When ICE Came, This Minnesota Restaurant Stepped Up

The Sporkful

SiriusXM Podcasts

Arts

4.63.9K Ratings

🗓️ 2 March 2026

⏱️ 38 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

El Burrito Mercado has been a bedrock of West Side community in St. Paul for nearly 50 years. It’s changed a lot over that time, evolving from a small grocery store into a restaurant, deli, bakery, and so much more. Now, it’s had to change again, as thousands of federal immigration agents have descended on this Twin Cities neighborhood over the past few months.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Sirius XM Podcasts.

0:10.0

We have the carnitas, the barbacola, the barbacoa, the deep-fried tacos, the chicharrones.

0:23.3

Our salsas are very popular in the store.

0:28.9

When you walk into El Burrito Mercado in St. Paul, Minnesota, you see that they got everything you need.

0:31.3

In addition to a market, there's a restaurant and bar.

0:38.7

We have Taco Tuesday on Tuesdays, $2 tacos. Wednesdays kids eat free with a meal purchase from an adult.

0:40.4

There's a grab-and-go deli.

0:45.4

Pre-rolled flautas. We have pre-made masa for tamale season.

0:49.2

Home-made tamales that get done every day as well.

0:52.9

We go through a lot of tamales at the store.

0:57.4

We have pretty much everything for you just to hit it at home.

1:01.5

And it's also a bakery, serving homemade cakes and conchas and so much more.

1:02.6

Churros.

1:05.8

If you love churros, we do have churros here.

1:07.2

Those are so good, too.

1:12.4

Since it opened nearly 50 years ago, El Burrito Mercado has changed locations,

1:17.5

it's changed what it offers, it's expanded. Recently though, it's made a different kind of change.

1:25.0

We have people that donate gift cards via online or come in store and do food donations, and they actually create to-go baskets, I guess,

1:29.3

and they have extended people from the community

1:32.2

that actually help and go deliver those baskets of free food to those in need

1:37.7

that are unable to leave their homes or unable to even pay rent right now at this point.

1:44.1

It's been really good being able to be a part of such a big movement right now.

...

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