Chef Mario Hern谩ndez Alonso

Chef Mario Hern谩ndez Alonso

When the folks from the focused their attention on Mexico last year, they found a tiny taqueria in Mexico City that turned out to be a culinary gold mine.

had been an institution in the Colonia San Rafael, serving a limited variety of beef tacos wrapped in handmade tortillas.

The small menu that founder/chef Juan Hern谩ndez Gonz谩lez created when he opened the taqueria in 1968 has remained unchanged under his son, Mario Hern谩ndez Alonso.

That simplicity and purity of ingredients earned El Califa de Le贸n a Michelin star and a footnote in foodie history.

For the first time in the nearly 100 years that the Michelin Guide has been awarding restaurants its coveted Michelin Star, a taqueria had the honor.

On Sept. 4, Chef Hern谩ndez Alonso will bring his taqueria to Tucson for an 11-day pop-up residency in the long-closed restaurant space at聽 The space was formerly home for more than a decade to The Fat Greek, which was later rechristened Pelio Greek Taverna & Catering. before Fullylove's, a comfort food restaurant, took the space in 2021.

That restaurant closed two summers ago, and the building has remained empty since.

The pop-up was coordinated by Brian Krupski, founder and CEO of , a safety-driven mobile platform advertised as a "digital concierge for Mexico travel services and safety resources." The app, created in Phoenix, includes features that help minimize risks while traveling in Mexico.

This is GrinGo's second 蜜聊直播 pop-up. A similar event was held in Tempe in May.

Krupski said the event, being held from 3 to 9 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays from Sept. 4-14, celebrates a newly signed Memorandum of Understanding between GrinGO and Mexico City. The goal is to highlight Mexico City tourism, where taco tours rank among the city鈥檚 most popular cultural experiences, Krupski said.

The culinary pop-up is co-hosted with the , across the street at .

鈥淔or 56 years, El Califa de Le贸n in Mexico City has been considered a coveted taqueria and best kept local secret. We鈥檙e excited to bring the taste of Mexico City back to 蜜聊直播,鈥 Krupski said in a written statement. 鈥淭his collaboration with El Califa de Le贸n and the Agave House gives 蜜聊直播ns another rare opportunity to experience one of the best tacos in the world 鈥 without leaving the state 鈥 right here in the heart of Tucson.鈥

For more information, visit聽.

GrinGO is available at the Apple Store and Google Play.


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Contact reporter Cathalena E. Burch at cburch@tucson.com. On Bluesky @Starburch