Rubio’s Coastal Grill, a San Diego-based restaurant chain known for its fish tacos, filed for bankruptcy protection in Delaware on Wednesday.
On Friday, the company abruptly closed 48 locations, including 13 in San Diego, while keeping 86 restaurants open in California, Arizona, and Nevada.
Rubio’s blamed the closings on “the rising cost of doing business in California.”
The company has over $100 million in debt, according to a bankruptcy petition filed Wednesday.
Rubio’s previously filed for bankruptcy in 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic caused it to shutter 26 underperforming restaurants and exit the Colorado and Florida markets.
The company as founded by Ralph Rubio, a San Diego State University graduate, with the first restaurant opening in Mission Beach in 1983.
Reuters contributed to this article.