A brand new restaurant called La Familia Restaurant and Bar is getting ready to make its debut in Mission Gorge at 6333 Mission Gorge Road.
Siblings Vincent Becerra and Angelina Luna, whose father owns the now-closed ¡Salud! Tacos and the San Diego Taco Company, will open the restaurant in the former home of the original Tio Leo’s, which closed at the end of last year after being open since 1979. La Familia Restaurant and Bar is expected to open in October 2024, according to Eater San Diego. Ernie Becerra will play a supportive role in the company while he still considers possibly reopening ¡Salud! Tacos, which closed a few months ago.
When La Familia Restaurant and Bar opens, customers can expect a traditional sit-down restaurant featuring a variety of authentic, home-style Mexican dishes. The restaurant will also have its own lounge and bar area. For those who are big fans of ¡Salud! Tacos they can expect a handful of tacos inspired by the restaurant. Vincent Becerra and Angelina Luna gained experience operating restaurants while they worked at ¡Salud! Tacos with their father for more than a decade.
While this is an exciting development for the ¡Salud! Family, it’s one more stake in the coffin for Tio Leo’s. The Mexican restaurant opened in Mission Gorge in 1979 under Leo Sciuto before expanding to Poway and Linda Vista. After the original location closed last year, the Poway site closed in May, leaving only one more location. La Familia Restaurant and Bar will have some big shoes to fill with this location, but the owner’s restaurant experience should be enough to get customers in the doors.
