Mike Hess Brewing & City Tacos To Open Oceanfront Imperial Beach Location As Early As This Weekend

March 1, 2019

Nearly 2 years in the making, Mike Hess Brewing Co. and City Taco's collaborative, oceanfront Imperial Beach location is near completion, with a soft opening scheduled for as early as this weekend.

In Spring 2017, Mike Hess Brewing Co. took over the seaside space previously occupied by IB Yoga for the opening of its 4th San Diego County tasting room to include an onsite eatery operated in partnership with City Tacos. Part of the site was scheduled to be the ambitious Shipping Yard restaurant, which seems to be a dead project, especially being that Chef Steve Brown is no longer living in San Diego.

The new tasting room and eatery is located on the sand a stone's throw from the Imperial Beach Pier and will offer indoor and outdoor seating. Originally planned to have a rooftop beer garden, it appears that those plans have been scrapped, although a shipping container dining area is still in the process of being installed, as well as outdoor games and a fire pit. For the soft opening, which could come as early as Saturday, March 2, depending on final inspections, Mike Hess will be pouring its signature brews with City Tacos offering a variety of traditional, seafood and vegetarian tacos, along with a few classics from its sister concept, nearby IB Street Tacos. Once the location is fully operational, expect it to offer the same core menu items as City Tacos' North Park and La Mesa outposts, as well as appetizers, breakfast items such as Chilaquiles and benedicts, and an array of tostadas. Mike Hess Brewing will also offer its craft beers for takeout via growlers and crowlers. 

Mike Hess Brewing was founded in 2010 in Miramar and has since added tasting rooms in North Park & Ocean Beach. Gerry Torres and chef/partner Eduardo Baeza opened the flagship City Tacos in North Park in 2014 and IB Street Tacos in Imperial Beach in 2015. Building on the success of the first City Tacos restaurant, they opened a second location in La Mesa in late 2017. The duo also launched Mexican eatery and tortilla shop Tortilla N' Taco Factory in El Cajon in 2018 and will be opening a branch at 1031 S Coast Hwy 101 in Encinitas at some point in the near future with more outposts planned for other local neighborhoods. The City Tacos team also launched Tostadas in North Park in summer 2015, which closed last year and was rebranded into Baja-style bar & restaurant, La Catrina Tapas & Cantina.

Keep an eye out for the opening announcement by following City Tacos & Mike Hess Brewings' Instagram pages, as they will be offering one free taco to the first 200 guests on the restaurant’s opening day. Mike Hess Brewing Co. and City Tacos Imperial Beach is located at 805 Ocean Lane in San Diego's South County.