The Birria Spot temporarily closed
The Birria Spot on Highway 29 suddenly closed down in mid-February, leaving many wondering what happened to the restaurant. Several weeks later, it’s still closed. No one is inside, calls to the restaurant don’t go through and no cars or work vans are parked in front.
Owner Michael Lara purchased the property at 3845 Broadway St. in 2023, opening up The Birria Spot one year later in 2024. Lara and his brother, William Lara, operate the business along with a food truck in Vallejo, Taqueria Baja Cali, which opened in 2018.
The Birria Spot replaced long-standing diner The Canyon Cafe, which was opened in 1992 by Ali Tadjbakhsh, the same year American Canyon was incorporated as a city.
Lara’s sister, Cindy Lara, told the Current that she “was helping run [The Birria Spot] in the beginning,” but is no longer as involved. Speaking on behalf of her brother, Cindy Lara said, “There was a plumbing issue. Work started a week or two ago, and it seems like it’s all squared away.” She said the restaurant would be ready to open again “soon.”
On Feb. 23, however, the state of California’s Labor Commissioner issued a judgment stating that Lara’s company, Baja Cali, Inc., had failed to cover employees with workers’ compensation insurance at The Birria Spot, according to an investigation by the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement.
The judgement, which was filed in Napa Superior Court, included a penalty of $1,500 per employee or $13,359.08, twice what would have been paid to cover workers’ compensation.
The filing also ordered Baja Cali, Inc. to “stop using any employee labor” until workers’ compensation insurance has been secured, with a 15-calendar day deadline, unless the judgment is appealed.
Requests for comment on the Labor Commissioner’s judgment were not returned.
Additional reporting by Kerana Todorov
