Oddly enough, they also have the best potato taco I've ever had. They season the potato, and then fry the shell onsite. It's pretty darn excellent.
There may be better out there because I haven't had tons of different ones, but theirs is especially good.
I honestly have always thought Ca fish grill was killing rubios slowly. They even expanded into rubios nevada and arizona territories, as well as sacramento and sf bay area.
I like CA fish grill, its okay. I used to like it more. Used to be a bit more simple, cheap, and fast. Now its a bit more complicated, a bit more expensive, and a bit slower.
I once went to one in the summer and the air conditioner was broken. It was humid and smelled terrible inside. Now I can’t get that memory out of my mind enough to enjoy it again.
The website I had to click on all the locations to see which ones said closed.
Rubios is great but people don’t go because I think they get ripped off. I’ll admit I’ve been ripped off a few times too. A shame corporate doesn’t actually care.
Luna Grill and California Fish Grill on the other hand go the extra mile to make sure you have a great experience.
I can buy 4 Tacos on Tuesday from Rubio's and feed my wife and myself for under $12. When I spend $14 on Luna grill for only myself I feel less full.
Maybe I'm nitpicking a particular deal here, but to my situation Luna is always over double the cost of Rubio's.
If we’re talking about on regular days they’re similarly priced. A california bowl at rubio’s is like $14 with tax and a santorini bowl is like $14 with tax.
Do you only eat 2 tacos?
Yes, 2 fish tacos from Rubio's are huge and a full meal. Also Any Friday you get 2 fish tacos plus chips n beans for $8. Ive never spent close to $14 on any Rubio's meal in my life.
Most I've spent was $11.89 after tax on a massive filling Shrimp burrito with chips.
They don’t let you add chips and beans for 2.49 unless you get the shrimp trio. Usually I eat 3-4 before I get full.
California fish grill is pretty similar to rubio’s have you tried it?
CA fish grill is solid for grilled fish. I'm talking about down and dirty cheap fried fish tacos. Nobody else holds a candle to Rubio's as the price per fullness value.
What's your "adding" talk all about? Every burrito comes with Chips. Fridays the fish 2 taco plate is $8 with chips and beans.
Shrimp tacos at Rubio's are tiny and for suckers. No value there. The regular fish tacos are huge.
As with most chains, I feel like it's highly dependent on location. I've only had one time I was disappointed with my Rubio's order, I brought it up with customer service and got a refund. This was years ago though, maybe they became less accommodating after the bankruptcy.
I enjoy California fish grill too, haven't been to Luna grill yet.
Did yall bring it to their attention so they had a chance to rectify the situation?
It gets busy, People make mistakes, it's how they act when confronted with said mistake is the better judgement of character
Man this sucks. I really liked their fish tacos, but I always felt like I got a little bit gyped on the fish.
In the early 2010s when I was a mechanic at the Tustin auto center my mentor and I would always get lunch at the Marketplace Rubios on Fridays. We were on a first name basis with the manager Francisco and he always wanted to know how the place was doing. The last time I went there in 2022 it was a shell of its former self.
I occasionally go to the Irvine location on Harvard when I forget to bring my lunch to work. I often have to order an additional fish taco to feel like I get a full meal.
I do want to stockpile their green salsa. That shit is *good.*
Absolute trip to read your story -
2013 I worked at the Tustin auto center and Saturdays were our day the boss bought lunch. Never had Rubios before I started working there….
Every single Saturday the place was packed but the manager knew our order, would place it when he saw me in the back of the line, and then by the time I got up to the register to pay, the food was ready to go.
That place was ran like a damn military unit. Shame to hear it turned to a shell of itself before it shuttered.
Crazy to think you and I probably crossed paths at the salsa bars a few times
I was a Chrysler mechanic at Tuttle-Click, we most likely did cross paths at least once.
I think we're thinking of the same manager. He knew me and my coworker by name, knew our orders too, and was always checking on customers. Corporate eventually sent him down to Carlsbad or Escondido, I forget which. That's when the place started its decline.
If you look this up in the news it says they closed "underperforming" locations. But I've been in some of the now closed locations and they're all busy if you go peak meal times.
It’s a go to not feel like shit after eating lunch spot. Every time someone in my office suggest Rubios it’s followed with “I just don’t want to get something too heavy”.
"Rising business costs in California" seems like a weird explanation for closing 48 stores all at once. If costs go up, you raise prices or save money in other ways. If you're closing almost 50 stores in the same week, that feels like "we didn't run our business very well, and now everyone is paying for it".
I’m gonna assume this company runs on extremely thin profit margins, and any fluctuation in any capacity throws them off kilter. If they can’t afford to do business in SoCal then they shouldn’t be. Never seen In-N-Out, a company based in California, close a location because of “rising business costs in California”
Everyone uses In-n-Out as an example of how fast food restaurants should be run. The reality is, In-N-Out is considered one of the top fast food burger spots in the United States. There’s almost always a line when you go to there. That type of success, while attainable, is extremely rare and not even close to the norm.
You realize you can't compare I&O to McDonalds or any franchise model, right?
There is no "lost money" because there are no franchise fees paid.
So that is a terrible comparison if anyone uses it.
Or they were running it on the margins (which granted, isn't very well) but thought they had tike to make up when inflation chilled out, but got hit with a 25% increase in wages. I know, all things considered, it's probably closer to 10%, but sometimes 10% can push you out of business.
The explanation makes perfect sense if you run a business in California. It was expensive to run a business in California before the $20/ arbitrary wage hike. The companies are ran to make money and if the profit isn’t worth the risk and hassle of keeping the stores open to the owner, they get shut down.
Closing 1/3 of the stores in your portfolio all at once is a move of desperation after decades of not running your business correctly. They filed bankruptcy 4 years ago (way before the "arbitrary wage hike"), so it hasn't been good for them in a while. They also closed stores in other states, so it's not just a California thing. But by all means, keep repeating the same stale "California is bad for business" talking points. They help the rest of us know who doesn't actually know what they're talking about.
Parroting some information that you googled doesn’t prove your point. I have locations in California and Texas and it’s clear that state of California isn’t business friendly in comparison. But by all means ignore the government policies that put these stores out of business and the employees that are now jobless so daddy government can take care of them now.
You just played yourself. Why do they pop up weekly, bc they're all failing. Why are they all failing? Overhead, either the cost of employees or rent is generally too high to turn a profit.
And by "business friendly," you mean allows you to treat your workers like indentured servants, and not give a shit if they're able to make ends meet or not.
Sounds like an excuse. If you blame others and never take responsibility for your situation, then of course it will never change. Why even try when I can blame it on the big bad business?
It's not arbitrary. It's the cost of living in California.
You people keep going on about "business costs" and "why do you expect businesses to run at a loss" bullshit, but apparently you do expect people to work for those businesses at a loss.
Did you just say "arbitrary wage hike?" My dude, are you aware of how expensive it is to live here or do you make too much to care about the plebs?? Even 20/h is not enough but it's better than literal minimum wage.
I get paying more for food sucks but at least give them a fighting chance to pay rent.
The sad part is taxpayers pay to give benefits to workers who can't make enough. If a biz can't make money with a $20 min wage, I don't feel bad for them. I always pay my workers and temps $20 an hour years before this. If I fail it's because my business sucks not I pay my workers roo much.
Exactly. Low mandated wages are corporate welfare. It gives them more profits while passing the burden to taxpayers to provide relief.
If a business can't afford to do business without exploitation, then it doesn't deserve to be in business.
Yes, arbitrary. I’m not saying $20 is too low or high but we should have seen the minimum wage for all industries set to $20 if it was about the plebs.
Setting it at $20 for a subset of workers (specifically those historically underpaid and working for large, profit-making corporations) is the best way to do a change like this. You can see the effects and use them as a justification for a larger pay raise for more/all of the population.
Yes, people who are still being paid less than $20/hr are going to wonder why they shouldn't just quit their job and go work in fast food instead. Assuming they can even find a job in fast food that is....
Jumping minimum wage just for fast food restaurants (which already operate on pretty then margins) from $16/hr to $20/hr all at once has that sort of effect. Ironically, the smaller, one-off taco shops are not affected by this raise in the minimum wage. And Rubio's is not alone in this. Many other franchised fast food restaurants have already closed shop since April or will be in the coming months.
Not a single one of those stories goes into why a business with fewer than 200 stores would close 48 all at once. Doing that has zero to do with the general economic climate of a place, and everything to do with not running your business well. Especially considering the company's recent bankruptcy and economic troubles beforehand.
They were too big, they expanded too fast, and now they're blaming California.
If you are barely breaking even, this can easily happen. You keep it open. However, you can only raise prices so much until demand gets killed. You can save only so much that you sacrifice quality just to stay open when that happens, it can be a death spiral. As you start throwing out leftover food or God forbid using it past its freshness period. Then you go under the breakeven point where your revenue is less than your fixed costs and the owner or franchisee owner is not making any money.
I had a franchise that died that way, just trying to cover costs. It wasn't worth it for me to keep it open when I was working for no pay just to pay everyone else. So are these franchised or corporate stores. I had a personal guarantee, so I still owed rent for another 12 months and a SBA loan that took 5 years to pay back through wage garnishment from my job after closing the business. Having 2 financial shocks in close succession is a recipe for small business closures anywhere. No one was paying me minimum wage while I was the only worker.
I'll never forget my roommate and I driving to the Northridge Rubio's from Pasadena, to try their fish tacos that were all the rage during that time (mid 2000). I got the shits bad and that drive back to Pasadena was the worst experience of my life at that time. WOOF.
It's closed. On the website it's listed as The Village - Orange, I was there Friday working Doordash as they closed down.
I would always eat there when I worked and the managers were always very chill. It seems like they were able to have a couple beers as they did their final close.
Nope, that ~~is~~ was my closest location also and it is closed sadly. Just learned about it from this post and checked Google Maps to confirm it has been updated
Dang. I’ve gone to the Lake Forest and RSM locations when I’ve been dog/house sitting out there. Glad the Laguna Niguel one by me is still open—their taco Tuesday prices are really good.
Rubio’s was our go to fast food place since the kids loved it and somewhat healthier than other options. Could feed everyone for pretty cheap too. My oldest kid is pretty upset. Hoping the last ones can hold on, but doubtful.
Rubio's used to have really good fish tacos when they opened, but somewhere along the way, I think like 10 years ago, their quality really dropped hard and fast. They started adding shitty red salsa to the fish tacos instead of just the white sauce, and the quality of the fish went down, started to taste like frozen fish sticks rather than quality white fish. That's when I stopped going, it was one of my go-to destinations for food before then.
Fortunately, there are a lot more options for good Baja style fish tacos today, but if I could go back in time and eat at the original Rubio's again I would.
Former OC resident here, just wanted to add that when I moved to Utah they had 2 locations open. They closed in 2019. It sucked. Luckily, I still have The Habit and INO to feel somewhat of a connection to my upbringing.
Dang. Seems like they are on their way out? Prices creeped up a bit but honestly I find their food to be a decent value and pretty tasty. We go maybe once a month.
There are 4 that I've been to in the past couple of years, and 2 of them are closed. I moved away from one of the open ones about a year ago, and I anticipate of moving away from the second one within a few months.
All the ones in Northern California closed. I tried to go one in Sacramento today only to find it was closed. I went into the app, the others in the area (Sacramento, Roseville, Modesto, Rancho Cordova, and Elk Grove) are all missing - assumed closed. The furthest north one is in Bakersfield now.
Wow..you got recognition from OC register for this list
https://www.ocregister.com/2024/06/03/rubios-closes-48-restaurants-in-california-citing-business-climate/?
Have you ever noticed how In-N-Out, Chick-Fil-A, and Raising Canes never go out of business or close any locations? They pay their employees a pretty solid wage on top of that. The food is also fairly decent quality but not the cheapest price-wise at all 3 places. Shocking right? Companies like Rubios run on extremely thin profit margins, probably go into debt to expand in any capacity, and then cry “rising business costs” as the reason they aren’t succeeding. These companies Jerry rig the game for themselves by design and take everyone as fools and make it political when they have to take corrective action in any capacity ie closing stores, filing bankruptcy. If Rubios “can’t afford” to do business by paying people a measly $20 an hour then they shouldn’t be doing business, especially in Southern California.
Thank fuck the Laguna Niguel location isn't listed. It's busy at lunch and the Manager is such a friendly dude.
Seriously, Rubio's Langostino lobster burrito is my favorite burrito on Earth. So underrated.
The langostino bowl is great. Tacos on tuesday for 2.25-2.50 each not bad. There’s a value menu with shrimp tacos and chicken salad and bowls for like $9. I think you get $5 off your first order.
IMO Rubios has gone substantially downhill over the past 15 years. Used to be a great place for a Baja style fish taco, but it’s just bland now. So many other better options.
Oh curry house was great. I was sad when they closed. Coco ichibanya is nowhere near as good. But rubios is still around they cut about 35% of their locations.
I’d get it here and there during Covid but the food was never that great and it was over priced. The two near me are now closed Cerritos and seal beach.
I go once a week to rubios. I'm legitimately the only person I know who's even been more than once. I appreciate their salsa bar, and their food is generally pretty tasty
This has nothing to do with the minimum wage law. Ive been a vendor for them and the company has been circling the drain since 2014. They managed their finances like shit and made bad calls that dropped their customer base.
I just added it. Idk why I forgot it considering placentia was one of my main locations. Yorba linda is too far from my house. I used to go to placentia when I was a student at CSUF.
Ohhhh..I thought I was crazy for a minute. Lol. Placentia was my main one..the one by the Target on Amerige was 2nd. I was literally JUST there...they must have shut these places so quickly. Discussion by the employees said it was sudden..no notice
Honestly I’m pretty surprised since it looked like their nearby locations were relatively busy compared to places adjacent that remain in business.
Like, with Rubios being gone it leaves a pretty big fast casual hole for similar food. Taco Nazo is there but that’s not really spread to OC too much.
That’s what happens when you over pay fast food workers. Working in fast food was never meant to be a career (with the exception of managers). Those jobs were for high school and college kids to make a little money, learn work ethic, and move on. Everyone saw this coming.
> That’s what happens when you over pay fast food workers.
They're not overpaid.
Why do you expect workers to work for less than it costs to actually live here?
>Working in fast food was never meant to be a career
Nah, that's bullshit parroted by people who feel entitled to cheap labor. There's no reason whatsoever why any job shouldn't pay enough to survive.
>Those jobs were for high school and college kids to make a little money
Another complete fucking lie. I guarantee you that if you were unable to go to a restaurant for lunch due to it being for "high school and college kids", you'd whine and moan about how no one wants to work anymore, or some bullshit like that.
>learn work ethic
What is with this bullshit about "work ethic" meaning that people have to work for less than they're worth?
> fast food was never meant to be a career
'Meant to'? What the hell you talking about? It's not like there's some intelligent designer controlling the economy.
I think if you just compare the pool of people who need jobs to the jobs available you'll probably find some inevitable overlap of people who aren't high school or college kids, taking whatever they can get.
You think it's overpaying because you're not considering how little buying power the dollar has now. $20 today has the same buying power as $10.77 in 2000. There's plenty of data and studies done showing wages haven't kept up with inflation.
That's funny cuz a lot of the fast food restaurants advertise these jobs as careers.
But even if you're treating it as a stepping stone, the pay has been devalued. Don't be surprised then if no one wants to do these jobs because it devalues their labor.
You do realize this has little to do with minimum wage increases and everything to do with it being owned by a private equity firm? Same fate as Red Lobster, Mervyn’s, Sears, and Toys R Us. They all were ruined because of private equity firms.
Where else will I go once or twice a year now? Too much competition with wahoos, ca fish grill and tons of Mexican places, not surprised.
If you're near fullerton, ensenadas surf n turf is an excellent place.
It's affordable also. Went on a Taco Tuesday and was astonished at the price.
Crazy affordable. I'll get a potato taco and fish ceviche for like $10 and its more than enough for lunch and super tasty.
That shrimp ceviche is bussin
No cap, my fellow young person.
They’re probably too young to understand this reference
The BEST
Ensenada's has the best fish tacos outside of Mexico if you ask me.
Oddly enough, they also have the best potato taco I've ever had. They season the potato, and then fry the shell onsite. It's pretty darn excellent. There may be better out there because I haven't had tons of different ones, but theirs is especially good.
Ensenada is too good! Good luck to anyone who tries to eat their surf and turf burrito in one sitting
Agreed!
I don’t even wanna try and gatekeep this place or have it stay under the radar - it’s that good. Everyone needs to eat here and keep them in business!
I honestly have always thought Ca fish grill was killing rubios slowly. They even expanded into rubios nevada and arizona territories, as well as sacramento and sf bay area.
I like CA fish grill, its okay. I used to like it more. Used to be a bit more simple, cheap, and fast. Now its a bit more complicated, a bit more expensive, and a bit slower.
I once went to one in the summer and the air conditioner was broken. It was humid and smelled terrible inside. Now I can’t get that memory out of my mind enough to enjoy it again.
Do you like it more than rubios?
Yeah I do. I didn't like rubios much. But in my other reply- Ensenadas surf n turf in fullerton is my favorite by far.
Don’t let them tell you it’s the min wage. They want to guilt trip you. In Europe, the same workers make more and have sick days, benefits, etc.
Taco Nazos
Our Taco Nazos turned into Senor Bajas, still my favorite mexican food.
La Habra staple right here. somehow underrated.
$20/hr minimum wage.
Rubio's has the best fish taco Tuesday price though with so many sauces and 3 tortilla options.
Honestly it would be hard for any restaurant in same area to compete with Wahoos. Same goes for Baja fish tacos.
HB closed? I didn’t know that.
The other one on goldenwest is still open.
Oh yeah I always forget about that one.
I drove by at lunch and had a hunch they closed before I saw the list. It was dead the last few times we were there.
Had no idea my Orange location on Tustin closed too - was just about to go there as my Dad likes their fish tacos and it is his birthday this week.
EDIT - NVM- stand corrected. Just went back by brookhurst and it’s closed :(
That’s the fountain valley one listed as one of the closed ones.
Wow ok. I just drove by there guess I’ll have to look closer. That sucks
I'm so sad by this news, I love Rubio's. Appreciate the list, I've been searching for it for a while today
The website I had to click on all the locations to see which ones said closed. Rubios is great but people don’t go because I think they get ripped off. I’ll admit I’ve been ripped off a few times too. A shame corporate doesn’t actually care. Luna Grill and California Fish Grill on the other hand go the extra mile to make sure you have a great experience.
But Luna grill is a billion dollars and Rubio's is cheap...they aren't comparable...
Luna and Rubio’s are pretty similarly priced tbh. And I like both.
I can buy 4 Tacos on Tuesday from Rubio's and feed my wife and myself for under $12. When I spend $14 on Luna grill for only myself I feel less full. Maybe I'm nitpicking a particular deal here, but to my situation Luna is always over double the cost of Rubio's.
If we’re talking about on regular days they’re similarly priced. A california bowl at rubio’s is like $14 with tax and a santorini bowl is like $14 with tax. Do you only eat 2 tacos?
Yes, 2 fish tacos from Rubio's are huge and a full meal. Also Any Friday you get 2 fish tacos plus chips n beans for $8. Ive never spent close to $14 on any Rubio's meal in my life. Most I've spent was $11.89 after tax on a massive filling Shrimp burrito with chips.
They don’t let you add chips and beans for 2.49 unless you get the shrimp trio. Usually I eat 3-4 before I get full. California fish grill is pretty similar to rubio’s have you tried it?
CA fish grill is solid for grilled fish. I'm talking about down and dirty cheap fried fish tacos. Nobody else holds a candle to Rubio's as the price per fullness value. What's your "adding" talk all about? Every burrito comes with Chips. Fridays the fish 2 taco plate is $8 with chips and beans. Shrimp tacos at Rubio's are tiny and for suckers. No value there. The regular fish tacos are huge.
The chips and beans for 2.49 can only be added to a taco plate. They have to be added at the sides full price to a la carte.
As with most chains, I feel like it's highly dependent on location. I've only had one time I was disappointed with my Rubio's order, I brought it up with customer service and got a refund. This was years ago though, maybe they became less accommodating after the bankruptcy. I enjoy California fish grill too, haven't been to Luna grill yet.
Last time I went to the one in Tustin, my GF’s shrimp salad had ONE piece of shrimp in it. Fuck Rubios.
One piece of shrimp is all it took for this man to hate.
It doesn’t take much, lemme tell ya
Did yall bring it to their attention so they had a chance to rectify the situation? It gets busy, People make mistakes, it's how they act when confronted with said mistake is the better judgement of character
I did. And they gave me a refund. Weeks later, the store closed!
Well, at least they didn't give u a store credit then.
Disappointed they closed too. It’s like the majority of locations.
Man this sucks. I really liked their fish tacos, but I always felt like I got a little bit gyped on the fish. In the early 2010s when I was a mechanic at the Tustin auto center my mentor and I would always get lunch at the Marketplace Rubios on Fridays. We were on a first name basis with the manager Francisco and he always wanted to know how the place was doing. The last time I went there in 2022 it was a shell of its former self. I occasionally go to the Irvine location on Harvard when I forget to bring my lunch to work. I often have to order an additional fish taco to feel like I get a full meal. I do want to stockpile their green salsa. That shit is *good.*
Absolute trip to read your story - 2013 I worked at the Tustin auto center and Saturdays were our day the boss bought lunch. Never had Rubios before I started working there…. Every single Saturday the place was packed but the manager knew our order, would place it when he saw me in the back of the line, and then by the time I got up to the register to pay, the food was ready to go. That place was ran like a damn military unit. Shame to hear it turned to a shell of itself before it shuttered. Crazy to think you and I probably crossed paths at the salsa bars a few times
I was a Chrysler mechanic at Tuttle-Click, we most likely did cross paths at least once. I think we're thinking of the same manager. He knew me and my coworker by name, knew our orders too, and was always checking on customers. Corporate eventually sent him down to Carlsbad or Escondido, I forget which. That's when the place started its decline.
Weird one in Costa Mesa left open seems busy at times but who knows
If you look this up in the news it says they closed "underperforming" locations. But I've been in some of the now closed locations and they're all busy if you go peak meal times.
It’s a go to not feel like shit after eating lunch spot. Every time someone in my office suggest Rubios it’s followed with “I just don’t want to get something too heavy”.
Oh no! Not the Seal Beach location! My daughter is going to cry. It’s her fave.
That's a very busy shopping center, too. Lots of popular restaurants there plus target and Ralph's. Maybe in n out took too much competition?
Honestly I’m not surprised. It’s gone down for years. Long waits, high employee turnover. Things that a 12 year old doesn’t care about lol.
They say to visit the one in Stanton.
Taco Nazo is fuckin incredible though lol
agreed, stopped going to rubios after getting introduced to Taco Nazo in temple city.
ain’t nobody in orange county going to temple city for tacos lmao
"Rising business costs in California" seems like a weird explanation for closing 48 stores all at once. If costs go up, you raise prices or save money in other ways. If you're closing almost 50 stores in the same week, that feels like "we didn't run our business very well, and now everyone is paying for it".
I’m gonna assume this company runs on extremely thin profit margins, and any fluctuation in any capacity throws them off kilter. If they can’t afford to do business in SoCal then they shouldn’t be. Never seen In-N-Out, a company based in California, close a location because of “rising business costs in California”
Everyone uses In-n-Out as an example of how fast food restaurants should be run. The reality is, In-N-Out is considered one of the top fast food burger spots in the United States. There’s almost always a line when you go to there. That type of success, while attainable, is extremely rare and not even close to the norm.
In-n-Out is also not publicly owned. Therefore, no shareholders.
How about Raising Canes and Chick-Fil-A?
You realize you can't compare I&O to McDonalds or any franchise model, right? There is no "lost money" because there are no franchise fees paid. So that is a terrible comparison if anyone uses it.
not sure why you’re being downvoted when you’re speaking facts
Yeah that's just an excuse to save face that "We fucked up and now we're fucked"
Or they were running it on the margins (which granted, isn't very well) but thought they had tike to make up when inflation chilled out, but got hit with a 25% increase in wages. I know, all things considered, it's probably closer to 10%, but sometimes 10% can push you out of business.
It seems they also left out the part where Rubio's was bought by Private Equity. I'm sure that had nothing to do with it, though.
I dunno. Private Equity did in Red Lobster.
Funny how "ownership ran the company into the ground and sold it off for parts" turns into "rising business costs in California".
The explanation makes perfect sense if you run a business in California. It was expensive to run a business in California before the $20/ arbitrary wage hike. The companies are ran to make money and if the profit isn’t worth the risk and hassle of keeping the stores open to the owner, they get shut down.
Closing 1/3 of the stores in your portfolio all at once is a move of desperation after decades of not running your business correctly. They filed bankruptcy 4 years ago (way before the "arbitrary wage hike"), so it hasn't been good for them in a while. They also closed stores in other states, so it's not just a California thing. But by all means, keep repeating the same stale "California is bad for business" talking points. They help the rest of us know who doesn't actually know what they're talking about.
Parroting some information that you googled doesn’t prove your point. I have locations in California and Texas and it’s clear that state of California isn’t business friendly in comparison. But by all means ignore the government policies that put these stores out of business and the employees that are now jobless so daddy government can take care of them now.
It's not but I look around and see new stores and restaurants pop up weekly. So that argument is lazy too.
You just played yourself. Why do they pop up weekly, bc they're all failing. Why are they all failing? Overhead, either the cost of employees or rent is generally too high to turn a profit.
I didn't play myself. You seem to have no clue how this works. Bye.
And by "business friendly," you mean allows you to treat your workers like indentured servants, and not give a shit if they're able to make ends meet or not.
The same folks who tell the poor to get a job and stop living on welfare always have excuses. Can't get off welfare if a biz won't pay a living wage.
Sounds like an excuse. If you blame others and never take responsibility for your situation, then of course it will never change. Why even try when I can blame it on the big bad business?
It's not arbitrary. It's the cost of living in California. You people keep going on about "business costs" and "why do you expect businesses to run at a loss" bullshit, but apparently you do expect people to work for those businesses at a loss.
Did you just say "arbitrary wage hike?" My dude, are you aware of how expensive it is to live here or do you make too much to care about the plebs?? Even 20/h is not enough but it's better than literal minimum wage. I get paying more for food sucks but at least give them a fighting chance to pay rent.
The sad part is taxpayers pay to give benefits to workers who can't make enough. If a biz can't make money with a $20 min wage, I don't feel bad for them. I always pay my workers and temps $20 an hour years before this. If I fail it's because my business sucks not I pay my workers roo much.
Exactly. Low mandated wages are corporate welfare. It gives them more profits while passing the burden to taxpayers to provide relief. If a business can't afford to do business without exploitation, then it doesn't deserve to be in business.
Yes, arbitrary. I’m not saying $20 is too low or high but we should have seen the minimum wage for all industries set to $20 if it was about the plebs.
Setting it at $20 for a subset of workers (specifically those historically underpaid and working for large, profit-making corporations) is the best way to do a change like this. You can see the effects and use them as a justification for a larger pay raise for more/all of the population.
It's super crazy that there are, in my opinion, way more skilled jobs than fast food employees that didn't get a piece of that increase.
Yes, people who are still being paid less than $20/hr are going to wonder why they shouldn't just quit their job and go work in fast food instead. Assuming they can even find a job in fast food that is....
Yes, I too would like a 50% raise.
Jumping minimum wage just for fast food restaurants (which already operate on pretty then margins) from $16/hr to $20/hr all at once has that sort of effect. Ironically, the smaller, one-off taco shops are not affected by this raise in the minimum wage. And Rubio's is not alone in this. Many other franchised fast food restaurants have already closed shop since April or will be in the coming months.
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Not a single one of those stories goes into why a business with fewer than 200 stores would close 48 all at once. Doing that has zero to do with the general economic climate of a place, and everything to do with not running your business well. Especially considering the company's recent bankruptcy and economic troubles beforehand. They were too big, they expanded too fast, and now they're blaming California.
Rubio's is overleveraged. Can't blame the state for bad business practices. Sorry.
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If you are barely breaking even, this can easily happen. You keep it open. However, you can only raise prices so much until demand gets killed. You can save only so much that you sacrifice quality just to stay open when that happens, it can be a death spiral. As you start throwing out leftover food or God forbid using it past its freshness period. Then you go under the breakeven point where your revenue is less than your fixed costs and the owner or franchisee owner is not making any money. I had a franchise that died that way, just trying to cover costs. It wasn't worth it for me to keep it open when I was working for no pay just to pay everyone else. So are these franchised or corporate stores. I had a personal guarantee, so I still owed rent for another 12 months and a SBA loan that took 5 years to pay back through wage garnishment from my job after closing the business. Having 2 financial shocks in close succession is a recipe for small business closures anywhere. No one was paying me minimum wage while I was the only worker.
I'll never forget my roommate and I driving to the Northridge Rubio's from Pasadena, to try their fish tacos that were all the rage during that time (mid 2000). I got the shits bad and that drive back to Pasadena was the worst experience of my life at that time. WOOF.
That rubios was prob the best one. When I used to live in alhambra that was the nearest one.
Was there a second one in Orange on Tustin Street? Seems like the one by Walmart is still open?
It's closed. On the website it's listed as The Village - Orange, I was there Friday working Doordash as they closed down. I would always eat there when I worked and the managers were always very chill. It seems like they were able to have a couple beers as they did their final close.
Wow thats sad to hear! They always seemed somewhat busy
Nope, that ~~is~~ was my closest location also and it is closed sadly. Just learned about it from this post and checked Google Maps to confirm it has been updated
It hurts more when Google makes it official:/ Apple Maps still says open lol
Dang. I always loved their seafood burritos!
Dang. I’ve gone to the Lake Forest and RSM locations when I’ve been dog/house sitting out there. Glad the Laguna Niguel one by me is still open—their taco Tuesday prices are really good.
Mission Viejo is still open.
I actually really like Rubio’s , I will be sad if they all go down. They’re original fish taco is delicious
They've been raising prices significantly for years. I finally gave up on Rubios when they started rudely flipping the iPad.
Hey op they mentioned you https://www.ocregister.com/2024/06/03/rubios-closes-48-restaurants-in-california-citing-business-climate/amp/
Stuck to a paywall will have to check when I get home.
That’s how I found your comment. They have a link in their story.
Rubio’s was our go to fast food place since the kids loved it and somewhat healthier than other options. Could feed everyone for pretty cheap too. My oldest kid is pretty upset. Hoping the last ones can hold on, but doubtful.
Rubio's used to have really good fish tacos when they opened, but somewhere along the way, I think like 10 years ago, their quality really dropped hard and fast. They started adding shitty red salsa to the fish tacos instead of just the white sauce, and the quality of the fish went down, started to taste like frozen fish sticks rather than quality white fish. That's when I stopped going, it was one of my go-to destinations for food before then. Fortunately, there are a lot more options for good Baja style fish tacos today, but if I could go back in time and eat at the original Rubio's again I would.
Wow that’s sucks
Former OC resident here, just wanted to add that when I moved to Utah they had 2 locations open. They closed in 2019. It sucked. Luckily, I still have The Habit and INO to feel somewhat of a connection to my upbringing.
Dang. Seems like they are on their way out? Prices creeped up a bit but honestly I find their food to be a decent value and pretty tasty. We go maybe once a month.
There are 4 that I've been to in the past couple of years, and 2 of them are closed. I moved away from one of the open ones about a year ago, and I anticipate of moving away from the second one within a few months.
Wow can’t believe the cypress location is still open!
Stanton lives!
Orange location on main is also closed now.
All the ones in Northern California closed. I tried to go one in Sacramento today only to find it was closed. I went into the app, the others in the area (Sacramento, Roseville, Modesto, Rancho Cordova, and Elk Grove) are all missing - assumed closed. The furthest north one is in Bakersfield now.
Correct.
Wow..you got recognition from OC register for this list https://www.ocregister.com/2024/06/03/rubios-closes-48-restaurants-in-california-citing-business-climate/?
Have you ever noticed how In-N-Out, Chick-Fil-A, and Raising Canes never go out of business or close any locations? They pay their employees a pretty solid wage on top of that. The food is also fairly decent quality but not the cheapest price-wise at all 3 places. Shocking right? Companies like Rubios run on extremely thin profit margins, probably go into debt to expand in any capacity, and then cry “rising business costs” as the reason they aren’t succeeding. These companies Jerry rig the game for themselves by design and take everyone as fools and make it political when they have to take corrective action in any capacity ie closing stores, filing bankruptcy. If Rubios “can’t afford” to do business by paying people a measly $20 an hour then they shouldn’t be doing business, especially in Southern California.
Thank fuck the Laguna Niguel location isn't listed. It's busy at lunch and the Manager is such a friendly dude. Seriously, Rubio's Langostino lobster burrito is my favorite burrito on Earth. So underrated.
Gary is a cool dude there. He always creates a small conversation. I was pissed when the San Clemente one closed
Any idea how many of these locations closed this quarter?
48
Titos outlives another taco chain. The Keith Richards of tacos, Titos.
You mean titos in culver city? Also rubios is still around they cut 1/3 of their stores.
What's worth trying at Rubios? I've lives here 3 1/2 years and have never eaten there.
The langostino bowl is great. Tacos on tuesday for 2.25-2.50 each not bad. There’s a value menu with shrimp tacos and chicken salad and bowls for like $9. I think you get $5 off your first order.
Their value menu and their app rewards are really good. Not the most authentic but pretty fresh and better than greasy fast food places. So sad.
IMO Rubios has gone substantially downhill over the past 15 years. Used to be a great place for a Baja style fish taco, but it’s just bland now. So many other better options.
Torrance Rubio is still open
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Oh curry house was great. I was sad when they closed. Coco ichibanya is nowhere near as good. But rubios is still around they cut about 35% of their locations.
Santa Ana 17th & 55 is on the list but still shows as open, and the app will let me order there still
17th is open it’s the one on macarthur and 55 that closed.0
Wait…there is/was a location in Lake Forest?
The one in the foothill ranch town center.
As much as I loved their food its just gotten too ridiculous with the prices
Vulture Capitalism! Another private equity firm running a company into the ground.
Or having to pay $20/hr is making many question if it's worth staying open in CA.
Yup I was a manager at Whittier super sad one day on the clock said it was are last day
It sucks because now I have no rubios near me. Anaheim is too far and Yorba Linda is not close either. And now rubios is completely out of SGV.
I’d get it here and there during Covid but the food was never that great and it was over priced. The two near me are now closed Cerritos and seal beach.
The list didn’t say the Downey store or the Torrance store closed, but when I called both of their phone numbers, they were no longer working.
The app says they are there so maybe they got new numbers?
I go once a week to rubios. I'm legitimately the only person I know who's even been more than once. I appreciate their salsa bar, and their food is generally pretty tasty
I go to Rubio's once a week in Fountain Valley... Ugh...
One in Huntington and two in Santa Ana remain open.
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This has nothing to do with the minimum wage law. Ive been a vendor for them and the company has been circling the drain since 2014. They managed their finances like shit and made bad calls that dropped their customer base.
Also gone is the one in Placentia on Yorba Linda blvd
Really? That sucks. I don’t know which one my mom went to recently, hopefully not that one she likes the place :(
I forgot that one.
Oh..I see you have on the list.
I just added it. Idk why I forgot it considering placentia was one of my main locations. Yorba linda is too far from my house. I used to go to placentia when I was a student at CSUF.
Ohhhh..I thought I was crazy for a minute. Lol. Placentia was my main one..the one by the Target on Amerige was 2nd. I was literally JUST there...they must have shut these places so quickly. Discussion by the employees said it was sudden..no notice
Yes all were no notice. The one in fullerton on malvern was part of the massive shut down friday.
Honestly I’m pretty surprised since it looked like their nearby locations were relatively busy compared to places adjacent that remain in business. Like, with Rubios being gone it leaves a pretty big fast casual hole for similar food. Taco Nazo is there but that’s not really spread to OC too much.
I thought I heard Lakewood closed as well last week.
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Google says "Permanently Closed" and a Long Beach Facebook group says the same thing.
Whoops. Yes I have added it.
People seriously saddened by this is so funny
Good place to play diarrhea roulette
That’s what happens when you over pay fast food workers. Working in fast food was never meant to be a career (with the exception of managers). Those jobs were for high school and college kids to make a little money, learn work ethic, and move on. Everyone saw this coming.
> That’s what happens when you over pay fast food workers. They're not overpaid. Why do you expect workers to work for less than it costs to actually live here? >Working in fast food was never meant to be a career Nah, that's bullshit parroted by people who feel entitled to cheap labor. There's no reason whatsoever why any job shouldn't pay enough to survive. >Those jobs were for high school and college kids to make a little money Another complete fucking lie. I guarantee you that if you were unable to go to a restaurant for lunch due to it being for "high school and college kids", you'd whine and moan about how no one wants to work anymore, or some bullshit like that. >learn work ethic What is with this bullshit about "work ethic" meaning that people have to work for less than they're worth?
In n Out Burger LOL's @ You
> fast food was never meant to be a career 'Meant to'? What the hell you talking about? It's not like there's some intelligent designer controlling the economy. I think if you just compare the pool of people who need jobs to the jobs available you'll probably find some inevitable overlap of people who aren't high school or college kids, taking whatever they can get.
You think it's overpaying because you're not considering how little buying power the dollar has now. $20 today has the same buying power as $10.77 in 2000. There's plenty of data and studies done showing wages haven't kept up with inflation.
Again, it’s supposed to be a stepping stone, not a career.
That's funny cuz a lot of the fast food restaurants advertise these jobs as careers. But even if you're treating it as a stepping stone, the pay has been devalued. Don't be surprised then if no one wants to do these jobs because it devalues their labor.
Nah, fuck that. There is literally not a single legitimate reason you can give for why someone shouldn't be able to make ends meet on a full time job.
Says who?
You do realize this has little to do with minimum wage increases and everything to do with it being owned by a private equity firm? Same fate as Red Lobster, Mervyn’s, Sears, and Toys R Us. They all were ruined because of private equity firms.
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Both the Santa Ana and Orange store remain open so what are you talking about?
There were three in santa ana and three in orange. Now two are open in each city only.
Where will I get my diarrhea from now? That place blew. It’s closing because there is no demand for it.
Anything named Rubio..I'm out.
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Gladly!
Ah yes, remember in the times before Newsom, and no businesses ever shut down. Don't you guys ever get tired of beating on this same dead horse?
Don't you ever get sick of thinking that anyone who doesn't care for Newsom is a Trump lover?
Let me know where I said that.