New restaurant brings flavors of Tijuana to San Rafael
For six decades, an unassuming low-slung building on the San Rafael Creek was home to Pier 15, a beloved restaurant and bar with hard-earned character that drew a wide cross-section of regulars from the neighborhood and beyond to the industrial corridor.
The restaurant didn’t survive the pandemic despite community efforts to keep it going. But six years later, after extensive renovations, the waterfront space has reopened as El Tucán Tacos and Beer, swapping Benedicts and bloody marys for Tijuana-style tacos and micheladas.
“Back in 2020, we came across the listing for the building and liquor license and saw it as an opportunity to expand our brand and bring our cuisine to Marin, where we felt there was a shortage of this style of Mexican food,” said co-owner and Richmond native Alfred Padilla.
He, along with his brother Edgar and friend and business partner Victor Ceja Orozco, opened the original location in Richmond in 2019 and a second outpost in San Francisco’s Castro District in 2024.
Handmade tortillas, fire-grilled meats and a simple combination of onion, cilantro and guacamole, hallmarks of the Tijuana-style taco, had fans lining up from the start.
“When we first opened seven years ago, this cuisine was hard to find,” Padilla said.
He brought in Tijuana chef Daniel Ríos, who contributed many of the recipes, while weaving in a few from his family, including salsas he credits to his mother and wife.
Adobada tacos, with pork marinated in red chile adobo and cooked on a vertical spit, and birria, slow-braised shredded beef simmered in a chile-infused broth, are traditional Tijuana preparations featured on the menu. Birria appears folded into tacos, spooned over a crisp tortilla “pizza” or served in consommé with ramen.
More familiar fillings include grilled chicken, carne asada, carnitas, chorizo and shrimp. Proteins show up in tacos, burritos, quesadillas, tortas and bowls, piled onto seasoned fries or nachos, layered with melted cheese into mulitas or dipped in rich birria broth and pressed crisp in red tacos. Fried fish and shrimp tacos, inspired by the Baja border region, are also on the menu.
For those who want to test their limits, a side of off-menu habanero sauce is available by request.
If dining in-house, complimentary tortilla chips are served with a verde, roasted tomato and spicy roja salsa sampler, plus lime juice and salt-pickled curtido made with red onion, pineapple, cucumber, radish and habanero.
The core menu is consistent across the three locations, with a few San Rafael-only extras including appetizers like mango shrimp ceviche and queso fundido with chorizo; premium grilled rib-eye, arrachera (skirt steak) or mahi mahi tacos; and a full bar.
The team worked closely with a bar manager friend to develop a lineup of 12 specialty cocktails, such as the Tarzan with Bulleit Bourbon, muddled mint, agave nectar and bitters; a mezcal mule with ginger beer and lime; and fruit-infused margaritas. Sippers can choose from 30 tequilas and 30 mezcals. Eight Mexican imports and local brews are on tap with 12 more by the bottle.
Padilla describes the project as “a 99% remodel,” which included new plumbing, electrical systems and restrooms. The long, narrow space is divided into three distinct zones, with a newly extended bar, high-top tables and multiple screens for sports viewing in the front, seating through the center and a dining room in the rear that opens to a canal-facing deck set to reopen in a couple of weeks. The interior is styled with warm wood tables and finishes, polished concrete floors, woven pendant lights and colorful murals. It accommodates close to 100 diners, with space for 30 more at communal picnic tables outside.
“We bought the restaurant with the goal of opening within a year, not knowing it would end up taking five,” Padilla said.
He cited water intrusion from the canal, requiring them to construct a seawall, and the extended permitting process as the biggest challenges.
“We’re really excited to be in the community,” Padilla said. “We’ve been open for three weeks and feel the love and appreciation and can’t wait to keep going.”
El Tucán is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays at 15 Harbor St. in San Rafael. To order from the takeout menu, go to tacoseltucan.com.
Leanne Battelle is a freelance food writer and restaurant columnist. Email her at ij.lbattelle@gmail.com with news and recommendations and follow on Instagram @therealdealmarin for more on local food and updates on the launch of The Real Deal Marin restaurant search guide.