Tacos El Franc, one of Tijuana's most popular taquerías, opened its first U.S. restaurant in San Diego on Wednesday.
"After many years of waiting, we've made our way across the border," said Roberto Kelly, one of the main partners of the restaurant.
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WATCH HEREThe restaurant is located in Westfield's Plaza Bonita in National City, next to Broken Yolk Cafe. The restaurant offers two terraces, a bar, and ample seating inside.
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SIGN UP National City was an obvious expansion option for Kelly because of its proximity to the southern border and the space.
"The biggest issue we have in Tijuana is that there are no parking spaces, and here we have thousands. Between having thousands of parking spaces, a pretty big restaurant space, we couldn't have picked a better place to open the first one," he said.
Since Tacos El Franc was featured in the Michelin Guide in 2024 and 2025, Kelly was determined to bring the same flavors and taste to the U.S.
"We dedicated a couple of years to make sure that we could transfer the same taco. We wanted to be fair to our customers," Kelly said.
Tacos El Franc started as a taco stand on a street corner in Tijuana in 1974 by Javier Valdez. It wasn't until 1996 when they opened Tacos El Franc in Zona Río, Tijuana, which is where most people know Tacos El Franc from, Kelly said.
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What's on the menu at San Diego's Tacos El Franc?
The menu is very similar to the one offered in Tijuana. It still includes the crowd favorites: Tacos de Adobada, Asada, Cabeza, Suadero, Tripa, quesadillas and fries.
We're a place where they are going to come and eat authentic tacos as if they were on the other side of the border,
Kelly said
Kelly also says they are working towards opening a second location in San Diego.
