Rubio’s Coastal Grill has permanently closed 48 restaurants, including the one in Stockton
Three Rubio’s Coastal Grill restaurants in San Joaquin County have permanently closed.
The closing of the popular fast-casual taco restaurant at the Stonecreek Village shopping center, located at 5779 Pacific Ave., suite 105 in Stockton, came as a surprise to some residents.
“Another Stockton restaurant becomes a memory. Rubio’s, located at Stone Creek Center on Pacific Ave, closed permanently today,” Kevin Shawver posted last Friday on the public Facebook group “Memories of Stockton.”
The Lodi and Tracy locations also closed.
“Making the decision to close a store is never an easy decision,” a spokesperson for Rubio’s said in an emailed statement. “After a thorough review of its operations and the current business climate, (the company) has decided to close 48 underperforming locations in California as of May 31.
Rubio’s said 86 stores would remain open in California, Arizona and Nevada.
“The closures were prompted by the rising costs of doing business in California,” the company said in a statement. “While painful, the store closures are a necessary step in our long-term strategic plan to position Rubio’s for success for years to come. »
According to USA TODAY NETWORK-California, a former employee of Victorville Rubio’s, who declined to be identified, said he received no warning about the popular restaurant’s closure.
Rubio’s, which has struggled with weak sales for years, blamed the closures on the state’s operating environment, which in April began requiring fast-food chains with 60 units or more to pay their workers a minimum of 20 dollars per hour.
The closures came approximately 3.5 years after Rubio declared bankruptcy as part of a “complete financial restructuring” aimed at recapitalizing the brand, according to QSR.
At the time, Rubio’s had 167 locations and was saddled with $82.3 million in debt. As a result of the COVID-19 crisis, approximately 45% of the company’s help desk and field management employees were furloughed, along with more than 1,400 store employees, a reported QSR.
Additionally, 26 underperforming units were permanently closed between May and June 2020. In addition to the pandemic, Rubio’s cited the saturation of the fast-casual market, minimum wage increases and the growth of off-premises business as factors contributing to bankruptcy.
In 1983, Frank Rubio opened his first Rubio’s in San Diego after being inspired by a spring break trip to San Felipe, Baja California, where he first discovered the fish taco.
Since then, the company said it has sold more than 250 million fish tacos in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Florida. The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the closure of stores in Florida, Utah and Colorado, the company said.
Rubio’s was purchased by private equity firm Mill Road Capital in 2010 for $91 million. In 2015, the concept changed its name from Rubio’s Fresh Mexican Grill to Rubio’s Coastal Grill as part of a renewed interest in seafood, according to Nation’s Restaurant Review.
Daily Press reporter René Ray De La Cruz contributed to this report.
Reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. To support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Rubio’s is permanently closing 48 restaurants, including the Stockton location.
