2010 Census Data and Korean BBQ Tacos

What do Vietnamese tortillas and Korean barbeque tacos have to do with 2010 Census data? A recent New York Times article titled “ Blending of Cultures Visible in the Food Trucks” provides an answer. The article describes how demographic changes have led to a shift in the offerings of sidewalk food trucks. Since PolicyMap just posted the latest Census 2010 data that’s mentioned in the article, we and our friends at 3D-L in Los Angeles wanted to find out more details about how the Hispanic and Asian populations in Southern California have been growing and contributing to this burgeoning food truck culture featuring mixed menus of Vietnamese, Mexican, Korean and Salvadoran cuisines, to name a few.

Digging into the 2010 Census data just released on PolicyMap today, we found that the Hispanic population hasn’t grown at nearly the same rate from 2000-2010 as the Asian population has. Check out the maps below to see which Orange County neighborhoods have experienced significant changes in racial composition:

Percent change in the number of Hispanic people between 2000 and 2010

Percent change in the number of Asian people between 2000 and 2010

We were also able to confirm that there’s a significant population of Hispanics and Asians living in the same neighborhoods by using our Analytics tool. We’ve shown below where in Southern California there are high percentages of both Asians and Hispanics, which the New York Times says may be driving this exciting blending of cultures and foods.

Analytic of Orange County, CA for Hispanics and Asians


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