Mexican restaurant chain closes 11 Northern California locations. Is yours on the list?
About two weeks after closing two Sacramento-area locations, a popular Mexican restaurant chain has shut all its Northern California locations.
Rubio’s Coastal Grill, which is known for its Baja-style fish tacos, listed locations in Sacramento, Elk Grove, Roseville and other cities in the region as “closed” on its website as of Tuesday.
The chain previously closed locations in El Dorado Hills and Folsom.
What is Rubio’s Coastal Grill?
Ralph Rubio opened his first taco stand in San Diego in 1983.
At one point, Rubio’s was dishing out Baja Mexico-inspired food at about 200 restaurants across California and other states.
The menu includes fish tacos, burritos, bowls and salads.
Why did Mexican restaurant chain close California locations?
Rubio’s filed for bankruptcy protection in October 2020, The Mercury News reported at the time, and has been shutting down restaurants ever since.
On Monday, Rubio’s announced it had decided to close 48 “underperforming locations” in California as of May 31 after “a thorough review of its operations and the current business climate.”
“Making the decision to close a store is never an easy one,” the San Diego-based company said Monday in a statement issued by media strategist Sitrick & Co. “The closings were brought about by the rising cost of doing business in California. While painful, the store closures are a necessary step in our strategic long-term plan to position Rubio’s for success for years to come.”
Eleven of the closed locations were in Northern California, the Orange County Register reported, while 37 were in Southern California.
Those included restaurants in Lodi, San Jose, Stockton and Tracy.
The move came two months after the state instituted a $20-an-hour minimum wage for workers at fast-food restaurants, the Los Angeles Times reported.
When did Sacramento-area eateries close?
Rubio’s Coastal Grill closed at 4359 Town Center Blvd. in El Dorado Hills on May 23, according to Dawn Bricker, El Dorado Hills Town Center property manager.
Bricker said the restaurant chain defaulted on its lease, meaning that it violated the terms of the contract.
“There was no communication from Rubio’s prior to closing and their handling of the default was extremely disappointing,” Bricker wrote in an email to The Sacramento Bee on Wednesday. “We will be pursuing Rubio’s in civil court for damages and breach of lease.”
Rubio’s at 2776 East Bidwell St. in Folsom has also closed, according to Yelp reviewers.
“Rubio’s Folsom location closed last week (as) the result of a decline in customer traffic in those neighborhoods combined with the recently enacted wage increases,” a Rubio’s spokesman wrote in an email to The Bee on May 29.
“Together, these factors resulted in the store no longer being financially sustainable,” the spokesman said.
On May 15, Rubio’s closed its locations in Fresno and Clovis, The Fresno Bee previously reported.
This story was originally published June 4, 2024 at 10:35 AM.