Tacos Del Rio Closes Unexpectedly
Tacos Del Rio at 421 Union St in The Dalles, Oregon.
Editor's Note: Language barriers encountered while reporting on this story may lead to some misquoting or inaccuracies in this article. The journalist has made every attempt to be accurate however some mistranslations may be present.
By Cole Goodwin
The Dalles, Ore., January 4, 2023 – Tacos Del Rio, a family Mexican restaurant known for their $1.50 Taco Tuesday specials, closed unexpectedly last month after more than ten years of operation at their downtown location at 421 Union St. in The Dalles.
Business owners, who spoke little English, said that they had little time to prepare for the sudden closure.
A sign on the door of Tacos Del Rio.
“My dad was upset, they didn’t give us time,” said Adalina Cruz. “The owner of the place sold it without even telling us. They said you have until the 31st of this month to get out.”
“The building owner, who lives in Portland, said she sent the business a letter explaining that she had sold the building…but he never received it,” said Cruz.
“Or maybe he did, maybe we accidentally put it somewhere. My Dad doesn’t speak or read much English so maybe he throw it away,” she contemplated.
Regardless of whether the letter arrived or not, the sudden news that the building had been sold came as a shock to Reynaldo Cruz and his family.
Isabel Cruz, takes a break from cooking in the kitchen to relax in a booth at Tacos Del Rio.
Tacos Del Rio tacos.
“I feel bad for my Dad because he wanted to keep going,” said Adalina.
Cruz wanted to thank the customers of Tacos Del Rio for their years of patronage at their family restaurant and to apologize for the sudden closure.
“Thank you for coming. For being there while we were open, and we’re sorry because my Dad wanted to keep going. And we didn’t get a chance to tell the customers before we had to go, and we feel sorry that that happened,” said Cruz.
“We were not prepared for this outcome but this is what happened and we are ready to retire and enjoy life. We are planning to travel more to our hometown in Mexico and enjoy family. God bless you for all the support we appreciate you all and Grandpa will miss you all,” said Reynaldo Cruz of Tacos Del Rio. (Quote translation by Adalina Cruz.)
Business owners Reynaldo Cruz and Isabel Cruz.
Customers for whom Tacos Del Rio was a gathering place and staple source of meals said they were deeply saddened by the loss.
“This was my favorite taco place, the location was so convenient and you couldn’t get better prices,” said one customer.
CCCNews reached out to the building owner, Guan Chun Hua, who spoke mostly Chinese and very little English. Using Google Translate, CCCNews was able to communicate with the owner in Chinese to the best of their ability.
“This tenant has refused to renew the lease since 2020. He only pays monthly rent and does not act in accordance with the contract… I am old, don't speak English, and can't drive. I can't deal with these problems, so I have to sell the property,” said Guan Chun Hua in a text message to CCCNews.
Under Oregon law, landlords can issue a written 30-day eviction notice to month-to-month tenants.
CCCNews inquired but was not able to confirm who had bought the building and tax property records show the building to still be owned by Guan Chun Hua.
At this time, any future plans for the 421 Union property remain a mystery.
CCCNews will endeavor to keep you informed of the new owners in the future.
CCCNews also wants to personally thank the Cruz family for their food and their service over the years.
Due to their neighboring location to the CCCNews office, we have probably eaten more tacos there than anywhere else in The Dalles over the last three years. The Cruz family always kept us fed and happy.
I always looked forward to Taco Tuesdays and their dollar fifty tacos. Their carne asada and al pastor were some of the best in town and their salsa verde was to die for. I loved seeing Reynaldo with his cowboy hat. I met him while he was harvesting peppers. That family brought a lot of local flavor to fourth street in The Dalles,” said Tom Peterson, of CCCNews.
Reynaldo Cruz (left) picking peppers.
Tacos Del Rio during sunnier days.
“We would always get tacos there,” said Peggy Peterson, of CCCNews.
“Thank you for feeding our creativity at immense imagery for the last six year am taco Tuesday inevitably brought everybody up every time and they were always delicious,” said Robin Denning of Immense Imagery.
”Thank you to the Cruz family for all these years!” said Cole Goodwin, of CCCNews.
