The original location of La Perla Cocina Mexicana has closed in San Diego's Pacific Beach.
Founded by Guillermo Rodriguez-Ocampo and family in 2011, just a stone throw from the beach on Emerald Street in San Diego's Pacific Beach, La Perla Cocina Mexicana & Burrito Factory now has several branches and was once named by The Daily Meal as having one of the 35 best burritos in America. The restaurant was also featured in the Netflix documentary called Taco Chronicles.
In 2022, the original location of La Perla at 745 Emerald Street in Pacific Beach was sold to new owners who renamed it La Perla De Michoacan, modifying the menu to have a stronger focus on Mexican seafood dishes. The restaurant appeared to have struggled under new management and had trouble competing with Oscar's Mexican Seafood, which sits directly across the street.
The Rodriguez-Ocampo family still operates La Perla locations at 1880 Grand Avenue in Pacific Beach and 1224 Rosecrans Street in Point Loma, as well as La Perlita at 3735 Mission Boulevard in Mission Beach. This past December, La Perla founder Guillermo Rodriguez Ocampo passed away at the age of 63. His restaurants continue to be operated by his wife and son.
For more information about the original La Perla Cocina Mexicana, follow the company on Instagram.
