by Allan Wall
Tijuana is a Mexican border city on the far west end of Mexico, across the border from San Diego, California. In fact, Tijuana and San Diego and other cities actually form a transborder metroplex of five and a half million people. Check out this satellite photo to see what I mean:
This proximity allows Americans living on the U.S. side to drive over to Tijuana and eat in a restaurant. But fewer Americans are doing so now, according to a recent article on Border Report:
The restaurant industry in Tijuana continues to see bankrupt establishments and fewer sales due to a lack of customers from north of the border. Visits are said to be down by as much as 30 percent since the start of the year, according to Giovanny Angulo, head of the restaurant division of Tijuana’s Chamber of Commerce. He says the lack of tourists is forcing many restaurants to shut down and lay people off. “We don’t have a specific number of restaurants that have closed because not all of them are part of our organization, but I speak with restaurateurs every day and we have noticed this trend,” Angulo said. “Sales we are seeing now are about what we saw two years ago, there’s been no growth.”
Tijuana restaurant founded by Cesare Cardini, inventor of the Caesar Salad.
Source: Omar Martinez
Why is this occurring?
Angulo blames two main factors: The belief Tijuana remains a dangerous place to visit and the long waits to cross the border, something people would rather avoid. “Here in Tijuana, the main difference from other cities, is that we are very dependent on economic boosts from people in the United States, right now is not a good moment in time.”
Mexico is a popular destination for American travelers. In 2023, 36.71 million Americans traveled to Mexico. That was an increase over the previous year’s total of 33.54 million.
That could change though, if high levels of violence continue in Mexico. Which should be a warning to Mexican officials that they need to decrease the violence.
As for Tijuana, it does have a high homicide rate. A Mexican NGO called the Consejo Ciudadano para la Seguridad Pública y la Justicia Penal, A.C. (Citizen Council for Public Security and Penal Justice) annually releases a list of the world’s 50 most violent cities.
On the group’s 2023 list, Tijuana was rated the 6th most violent city in the world with 91.76 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants.
So it’s not just people’s imagination that Tijuana is dangerous, although as everywhere, your safety is affected by your location in the city and other factors.
In Tijuana, restaurants are trying to deal with the situation: Angulo added that restaurant owners have been trying to promote themselves by staging several food festivals. The Caesar Salad Festival recently commemorated the 100th anniversary of the salad’s invention at a Tijuana restaurant, and the Paella Festival is planned for the end of September.
That’s all fine and dandy, but if Tijuana is seen by more Americans as a dangerous place to visit, it won’t matter what kinds of food festivals are staged there.
Source: Mexico News Report
