eating out
Lucha
Libre
Putting the
“Smackdown”
on mexican cuiSine
by david vera
What do gold lamé, disco balls and the Wolf Man
have in common? Certainly more than what you’re
pondering. Fortunately for purveyors of gourmet
tacos and similar local delicacies, Lucha Libre houses
these and many more unlikely pairings and delivers
flavorful bliss every time. Jose Luis Rojano, co-owner
of this groundbreaking eatery, took the time to
explain the method behind the lucha madness.
“We call ourselves a gourmet taco shop,” declared
Rojano. “By ‘gourmet’ we simply mean better quality
ingredients. We try to keep our prices as reasonable
as possible. But that’s actually one of the complaints
we get from customers. They tell us, ‘You’ve got to
start charging a little bit more. We want to see you
guys stick around for a while!’”
Daisy Torres dines with two “luchadores.”
Two years ago, Rojano and his brothers wanted
to offer the community something different from
the stale Mariachi and sarape formula. Jose Luis
explains, “We wanted to let the people of San Diego
see another side of Mexican culture. The wrestling
theme was a fun thing to do. It piques everybody’s
interest. We play these old wrestler movies on the TV
like Santo and the Blue Demon vs. Dracula and the
Wolf Man—it’s hilarious!”
You’ll find no norteño music playing here, instead
the volume is bumped up on old-school jams with a
disco ball ready to be fired on. Friday and Saturday
Queso Taco Veg Out Taco
nights see the after-party crowd dining until 2:30
a.m. You might even witness a celebrity sighting on
the spiral mask—has actually become a good friend what they want to eat. I think the theme gets them in
your way to the bathroom!
of ours. We actually did a charity event last weekend here—with the craziness and the zebra-print chairs.
“We’ve had big names like Blue Demon (represent-
and we brought him along so people could take Then they eat the food and they’re like, ‘Dude we
ed by the large picture dominating the back wall). He
pictures with him for $5 charity donations. All these have to come back.’”
actually heard of the place and just walked in. He kind
girls were all over him…and the guys too!” Any amount of time spent in the restaurant will
of looked weird because he was just looking around;
According to Rojano, new customers can be spot- wrench all attention to the glittering, grandiose
and then he busts out with this business card that
ted as soon as they walk in. “They start looking around centerpiece of the room: The Champion’s Booth.
said Blue Demon. We also had an autograph signing
going, ‘What’s up with this place?’ Our regulars just What does it take to dine in this gilded seat? “You
with Rey Mysterio from WWE. Psychodelico—with
go straight up to the counter. They know exactly have to wrestle me,” claimed Jose Luis with a straight
66 RAGE monthly | OctOber 2009
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96