The ownership group behind Swagyu Burgers and El Prieto Taqueria is preparing to launch a new concept in the space most recently home to Short Stop Mediterranean Cuisine near Petco Park in the East Village. The restaurant is part of the ongoing San Diego expansion by controversial Sinaloa businessman Juan José Arellano Hernández and his Grupo ARHE-backed team, which has rapidly grown its downtown portfolio over the past year.
While details on the menu have not been formally released, the concept is expected to focus on pizza by the slice and whole pies, along with other classic pizzeria fare. The move comes just months after the group opened El Prieto, a Sinaloa-style taqueria next door to Swagyu's East Village location, and ahead of a planned brewery in Eastlake slated for 2026.
The addition of Bobby’s Pizza follows a string of acquisitions in the neighborhood, where Swagyu’s owners reportedly paid above market value to buy out neighboring restaurants El Puerto Seafood By the Park and Short Stop Mediterranean earlier this year. Those buyouts cleared the way for a trio of concepts - Swagyu, El Prieto, and now Bobby's - to operate side by side, just steps from Petco Park.
Bobby’s Pizza represents another step in the group's strategy to diversify beyond burgers, expanding its San Diego footprint with multiple fast-casual formats. Its arrival underscores the group's rapid influence on East Village dining, reshaping a block once home to long-standing local businesses into a cluster of corporate-run ventures with direct ties to Grupo ARHE.
Bobby’s Pizza is scheduled to open September 5 at 319 Tenth Avenue in San Diego’s East Village. For more information, visit bobbys.pizza.
Originally published on August 28, 2025.
