San Diego

Boxer Canelo Álvarez Doesn't Like San Diego's Tacos, So He's Opening His Own Shop

“We want to make them the same like in Guadalajara and we want to make them taste the same so that people can finally taste what real tacos are”

NBCUniversal Media, LLC

Yeah, Canelo Álvarez, the best boxer in the world, may have been in San Diego promoting his upcoming matches Wednesday, but we had another topic on our minds -- tacos.

As we previously reported, Álvarez and his brother, Ricardo, are bringing their El Pastor Del Rica taqueria across the border and into Chula Vista at 645 Broadway in the coming months.

And, as he told our sister station Telemundo 20 in Spanish, the idea basically started because he couldn't find tacos up to his standards here in San Diego.

Read the interview below (Editorial Note: The interview has been translated from Spanish and lightly edited for clarity):

Q: What made you and your brother decide to open a taco shop in Chula Vista?
Canelo
: I woke up one day craving tacos and obviously the tacos here [in San Diego] are not the same as the ones we eat in Mexico. And [my brother’s] taqueria is one of the best ones in Mexico and so good, and I told him [brother] why don’t we open one in San Diego first, to see? And that’s how we came up with the idea; I woke up craving tacos.

Q: Will they have they have the same taste as the ones in Guadalajara?
Canelo
: Of course, that’s the idea. The idea is to bring the same flavors, everything that is in Guadalajara -- because if it doesn’t, it’s not worth it. Because then it’ll be the same, tacos as here [in San Diego] are not that good, but that’s all that is here and that’s what people eat.

But we want to bring the flavors that are in Guadalajara, we want to make them the same like in Guadalajara and we want to make them taste the same so that people can finally taste what real tacos are.

In all seriousness, it wasn’t just about tacos. We also did want to know about Álvarez’ upcoming matches. He also talked to NBC 7 and Telemundo 20 about golf and life in San Diego. For that story, click here.

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