Goleta Mainstay Del Pueblo Café in Danger of Closing

The owners of Del Pueblo Café, who took over the family-run business nearly two years ago, are asking the community to help keep the restaurant open after skyrocketing rents and growing business costs have put the Goleta Mexican mainstay on the brink of closing its doors for good.

Giselle Cuevas and Victor Camargo took over Del Pueblo Café from Cuevas’s uncle in November 2023 (the business was originally opened by her grandparents Alejandro and Esperanza Arreola in 1997), and for the past several months, the young couple has been working seven days a week keeping the restaurant running, despite a backlog of bills and a change in building ownership that have made the day-to-day operations an uphill battle.

Even in the face of the financial challenges, Cuevas and Camargo instilled a new sense of energy into the longtime local spot, updating the menus, focusing on high-quality authentic recipes, and hosting community fundraising events to support the Central Coast immigrant community.

On October 4, Cuevas and Camargo posted a message on Del Pueblo Café’s Instagram account, in which the owners opened up about their financial struggles and asked the community to donate to their GoFundMe page to help pay a large past-due sum to prevent being forced to close.

“We don’t usually ask for help, and it took a lot for us to finally do so… but we’ve reached a difficult point,” Cuevas wrote in the statement. “Due to the current economic situation, we’ve fallen behind on bills dating back to January. We were made aware of these balances a few months ago and have been doing everything we can to catch up but our efforts weren’t enough.”

Magnolia Shopping Center, where Del Pueblo is located, was purchased by Blackstone Real Estate in a $4 billion deal that included 93 shopping centers across the country. Magnolia Shopping Center was reportedly sold for $65 million at the time.

Cuevas and Camargo said the rent at Del Pueblo has “tip-toed” higher since Blackstone acquired the property to nearly $9,000 a month now, according to the GoFundMe page. Cuevas said she’s worried what the new rent price will be in November when they are due for another increase. This increase in costs has added strain to other areas of the business.

“Victor and I have been doing our best to cut costs wherever possible, often prioritizing the restaurant above ourselves,” Cuevas said. “We haven’t been taking home any income since we began our journey with the restaurant in order to keep what means the world to us: Del Pueblo Café.”

Cuevas said Del Pueblo Café was given an ultimatum to pay thousands of dollars in past-due fees by Friday, October 10, or risk closing indefinitely. 

The social media post was reshared widely over the weekend, and by Monday the GoFundMe page raised more than $4,000 from community donations. Other small businesses have also offered discounts or free services to community members who donate or share a photo eating at Del Pueblo Café.

“Any help, support, or simply sharing our story means the world to us,” Cuevas said. “Thank you all so much for standing by us through everything.”

Click here to donate to Del Pueblo Café.