A Tijuana-born taco shop has exited San Diego’s Hillcrest neighborhood, as Taquería Tijuanazo confirmed it has officially closed on University Avenue. The announcement, shared this week on the restaurant’s Instagram account, thanks the community for its support while making clear the closure is not the end of Tijuanazo’s San Diego presence, but rather a transition ahead of a planned relocation to Little Italy.
Tijuanazo opened at 406 University Avenue in Hillcrest in late 2024 hoping to tap into San Diego’s growing appetite for Tijuana-style tacos, a movement that has fueled major success stories like Tacos El Gordo and Tacos El Franc. Those operators have thrived by delivering a gritty, no-frills version of border taco culture centered on carne asada grilled over open flames and adobada shaved straight off the trompo. While Tijuanazo arrived with strong brand recognition from Tijuana and Los Angeles, Hillcrest proved to be a tougher environment, with higher operating costs, intense competition, and a dining scene that has struggled to support late-night, high-volume taquerías in recent years.
The closure underscores a broader reality for San Diego neighborhoods like Hillcrest, which has seen a wave of restaurant turnover as operators test concepts that perform well closer to the border or in tourist-heavy districts. Tijuanazo’s Hillcrest location earned praise for its faithful execution of Tijuana street food classics, including carne asada, al pastor, suadero, and specialty items like cactus-wrapped taco aztecas and crispy cheese “fantasmas,” but consistency and foot traffic appear to have fallen short of what the model requires to sustain itself long term…