The new venture will operate from 5 to 10pm at 4448 University Avenue, bringing an evening option to a restaurant traditionally known for its morning and afternoon service. The announcement marks another chapter for a local Mexican restaurant business that has grown from a modest Chula Vista operation into a recognizable name throughout San Diego.
Birrieria y Menuderia Guadalajara was founded in 2015 by Marcos Cardenas and his family on Broadway in Chula Vista, where the restaurant quickly developed a following for its Guadalajara-style birria prepared using recipes passed down from Cardenas' grandmother. Its specialties include birria de chivo, a deeply seasoned preparation of slow-cooked goat, alongside beef birria, traditional menudo, pozole and tacos served with fresh tortillas.
The restaurant's popularity eventually fueled expansion beyond its original South Bay location. A second outpost opened in Otay in 2023, followed by the City Heights restaurant later that year in the former International Cuisine space along University Avenue.
SanDiegoVille first reported on the City Heights expansion in October 2023, when the family was preparing to introduce its signature Jalisco-inspired cooking to central San Diego. The restaurant has since become a destination for diners seeking traditional Mexican comfort food, including birria-topped bone marrow, goat quesatacos, beef tongue, menudo and pozole.
The family's cooking has also attracted recognition beyond its neighborhood restaurants. In a 2020 review, San Diego Magazine highlighted the Chula Vista original as a destination for authentic goat birria, praising the restaurant's focus on a small collection of traditional dishes rather than an expansive menu.
Part of the appeal lies in the restaurant's commitment to the cooking traditions of Guadalajara, the capital of the Mexican state of Jalisco and the region most closely associated with birria. The dish typically involves meat slowly cooked with dried chiles, spices and aromatics until tender, producing a flavorful broth that can be enjoyed as a stew or served alongside tacos for dipping.
At Birrieria y Menuderia Guadalajara, the traditional goat preparation remains a defining specialty, although the menu also includes beef birria and other regional favorites. Handmade corn tortillas, rich consommé and accompaniments such as cilantro, onion, lime and salsa complete the experience.
Until now, the City Heights restaurant has primarily operated as a daytime destination, with published hours of 8am to 4pm. The introduction of Vamos a Cenar represents an opportunity to bring the family's cooking to a different dining crowd, including neighborhood residents and visitors looking for an evening meal.
The business announced the new concept through its social media account, promoting a November 4 grand opening under the name Vamos a Cenar, accompanied by the description cenaduría. In Mexico, a cenaduría generally refers to a casual evening eatery specializing in traditional, home-style dishes, often serving the kinds of comforting regional foods associated with family kitchens and neighborhood dining establishments.
That positioning suggests a natural extension of the restaurant's existing identity rather than a departure from the traditional Mexican cooking that established its reputation. However, the business has not yet publicly detailed the complete evening menu, and it remains unclear whether Vamos a Cenar will introduce additional dishes beyond the restaurant's established specialties.
The timing also gives City Heights another nighttime dining option along University Avenue, one of San Diego's most diverse culinary corridors. The neighborhood is already celebrated for its concentration of independently operated restaurants representing Mexican, Vietnamese, Cambodian, Ethiopian, Somali and numerous other international cuisines.
For the Cardenas family, the new venture represents another step in the evolution of a restaurant business built around traditional recipes and a loyal local customer base. Rather than introducing an entirely new location, Vamos a Cenar will give diners another reason to visit the existing City Heights restaurant, this time after the sun goes down.
Vamos a Cenar will celebrate its grand opening Wednesday, November 4, 2026, from 5 to 10pm at Birrieria y Menuderia Guadalajara, located at 4448 University Avenue in San Diego's City Heights neighborhood. Additional information and updates can be found on Instagram at @birrieria.menuderiaguadalajara.
Originally published on October 24, 2026.