Moreno Valley sits in the Inland Empire east of Riverside, and its food is straightforwardly Mexican — taquerias, birrieria, mariscos and panaderias serving a largely Mexican-American city.
The surrounding valley was citrus and dairy country before the housing reached it, and the agricultural edges are still there. The farmers’ markets carry Inland Empire produce that does not travel far.
The city itself has little in the way of a destination restaurant scene, and the honest advice is that the good eating is in the neighbourhood taquerias along Sunnymead and Alessandro rather than anywhere with a reputation. Riverside is fifteen minutes west with a more developed downtown, and the mountains and desert are both within an hour.