Greeted with traditional Mexican norteños and a “bienvenidos” from the friendly staff, the Taqueria Los Altos restaurant has solidified itself in Austin as a hole-in-the-wall, authentic Mexican experience. But after city council approval of the new Interstate 35 expansion, the bright orange building that has made a home off the highway for the past 21 years was presented with a notice to vacate in spring of 2023.

“At first it obviously didn’t feel good,” said Jose Aguirre in Spanish, restaurant manager and son of the owner, Armando Aguirre. “We’ve been here more than 20 years, and one never knows. You move to a new place and you don’t know if it will hit the same.” 

After two decades of serving their community, the Los Altos Mexican restaurant, located about a mile from the University, will have to relocate by the end of December in preparation for the I-35 Capital Express Central Project. Known as a local “hidden gem” in the heart of the city, Los Altos made the list of 111 displacements of businesses, residences and one vacant property due to the expansion, as reported by the Tx-DOT environmental impact report. 

“(The city) had been saying for years that they wanted to (expand), but nothing was concrete or official until May or April when they told us officially that they were going to buy the property,” said Aguirre. “They told us that by December 29th we had to leave.”

The expansion project will affect approximately eight miles of Austin, from US 290 East to Ben White Boulevard. As a result, one of the few stand-alone Mexican restaurants available within walking distance from UT will be demolished. With students making up a large portion of the customer demographic, Aguirre says they will miss the prime real estate but feels confident that students will continue to visit their new location regardless.

“I talked to a few students who come to eat here and I asked them, will you still go to the new location,” said Aguirre. “And they said yes, that it’s not that far. Just 10 minutes away. They said they will keep going.”

Anoo Mallepalli, an economic, health and society junior, visited the restaurant when they moved to Austin and described the experience as “life changing,” giving the food a five-star rating.

“I’ve been eating basically fake Mexican food my entire life, and that was one of my very first close to authentic experiences,” said Mallepalli. 

Aguirre and his family have stayed positive throughout the tough relocation process, determined to take a difficult situation and make the best of it. 

“(The future) is clear for us,” said Aguirre. “We’re going to try it over there and give it our best. Unfortunately, this happened, but things happen for a reason. We are ready to continue.”

The new Taqueria Los Altos will open following its closure in December and will be located at 6700 Middle Fiskville Rd.

Editor’s note: This story was originally reported in Spanish. Check out more of our original Spanish reporting on our Texan en Español Reporting page.