The owners of Su Casa, the popular La Jolla Mexican restaurant that has been serving its famous margaritas and guacamole for 52 years, announced Tuesday the eatery will be shutting its doors for good come Oct. 28.
In the hours following the announcement, servers moved through the restaurant chatting with regulars about family and good times like they always do. Underneath the surface, though, some were coming to grips with what the decision really means.
“It’s been helping us support our families for a really long time,” server Karen Valenzuela told NBC 7. “We’re a family here. It’s going to be hard to kind of split us up and each go our own ways, but we’ll be OK."
Customers said they will definitely miss Su Casa and its legacy. Patron Scott Slade said his family has been coming to the restaurant since the 1970s and have made countless memories there.
When asked what his favorite things were he said, “Of course the Su Casa margarita, I mean it’s estupendo. The happy hour’s always been great.”
While the owners told customers they were ready to retire, a long-planned residential-commercial mixed-use plan first proposed in 2017 could have been the final push.
“I’m sure it’s very pricey land, so the way things seem to be going now is they remove something that’s been around for a long time and they seem to build condos or apartments,” Slade added.
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Slade said a new restaurant may take its place but added, “There’s nothing that can replace it, absolutely not. Sadly missed.”
“The restaurant as well as the owner are ready to retire,” a flyer posted at the restaurant read. “Thank you for making Su Casa Restaurant one of La Jolla’s most popular eating establishments and thank you for your loyal patronage over the years.”
The La Jolla Community Planning Board meets every 1st Thursday at 6 p.m. at the La Jolla Recreation Center located at 615 Prospect Street.