SAN RAMON, CA — Rico Rico Taco has officially brought one of Oakland’s most celebrated taco counters through the Caldecott Tunnel and into San Ramon.
The new restaurant is now open at City Center Bishop Ranch, taking over the former C Casa space between West Elm and Fieldwork Brewing Company.
Rico Rico’s arrival had been anticipated since plans surfaced in 2025. An initially projected February opening slipped as permitting and construction continued, but the restaurant finally began welcoming customers during a late-July soft opening.
Now that the doors are open, here is a first look at what San Ramon diners can expect–as well as a look inside!
A Polished Taqueria With an Open-Kitchen Feel
Rico Rico is a fast-casual restaurant. But it’s miles apart from a Chipotle or QDOBA.
The space is bright, colorful and compact, with the activity in the kitchen forming an important part of the experience. That is especially fitting for a restaurant whose signature dish is al pastor carved from a rotating vertical spit.
Its City Center location also gives Rico Rico access to substantial outdoor seating and the development’s central gathering areas.
The proximity to Fieldwork Brewing Company is also convenient for groups that want tacos and locally brewed beer in the same corner of City Center.
Start With the Al Pastor
Rico Rico is known for its Al Pastor.
The pork is cooked on a vertical spit and served with pineapple, onion, cilantro and salsa on a freshly made corn tortilla. It is the dish that helped turn the original Lakeshore Avenue restaurant into an Oakland favorite.
Current taco prices generally range from $5.25 to $5.75–far cheaper than the restaurant that preceded it and and probably one of the best budget options at City Center. Other choices include carne asada, carnitas, chorizo, flame-grilled chicken, shrimp and crispy fried fish.
Diners can also order two tacos with rice and beans for $14 or three tacos with rice and beans for $18.
The fish taco comes with chipotle crema, cabbage, pico de gallo and pickled onions. The shrimp version is topped with chipotle crema and pico de gallo.
Beyond the Tacos
The menu stretches considerably beyond the restaurant’s name.
Burritos cost between $14 and $16 for most fillings, with a bean, cheese and rice version available for $9. Burrito bowls and flour quesadillas occupy roughly the same price range.
One of the more distinctive choices is the $11.50 huarachito. It starts with an oval-shaped fried corn tortilla filled with refried beans, then adds a choice of meat or nopales, along with onion, cilantro, cotija cheese and salsa.
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There is also a corn-masa quesadilla, chile relleno, chicken flautas, sopes and a beet salad with greens, watermelon radish, cranberries, pumpkin seeds, pecans and raspberry vinaigrette.
For families, the menu includes a $7 children’s burrito and a $7 cheese quesadilla served with sour cream.
An Unusually Strong Vegan Menu
On the vegan side, taco fillings include crispy cauliflower, sauteed mushrooms, nopales, soyrizo, vegan carne asada and vegan chicken. Most cost between $5.25 and $5.75.
Those fillings can also be ordered in burritos, bowls and quesadillas. Vegan potato flautas, sopes and huarachitos are available as well.
That range reflects the success of Rico Rico Vegano, the owners’ fully plant-based sister restaurant in Oakland. It also makes the San Ramon restaurant an especially useful addition for families or groups with mixed dietary preferences.
Drinks include horchata, jamaica and other rotating agua frescas, along with Mexican sodas, canned margaritas and palomas, micheladas and beer from neighboring Fieldwork.
Two Oakland Taco Families Come Together
Rico Rico’s Oakland connection has deep roots.
Owners Ricardo and Marisol Montero come from the families behind Tacos El Gordo and Taqueria Sinaloa, two established names in the East Bay’s Mexican food scene.
The couple combined those family traditions when they opened Rico Rico Taco near Oakland’s Lake Merritt in 2018. Their restaurant quickly attracted attention for its fresh-pressed tortillas, spit-roasted pork and modern presentation of familiar taqueria dishes.
Former San Francisco Chronicle restaurant critic Soleil Ho once called Rico Rico’s al pastor a personal Bay Area favorite.
The Monteros later opened Rico Rico Vegano nearby, building an entirely plant-based menu around the same approach to tortillas, salsas and carefully prepared fillings.
San Ramon is Rico Rico’s first expansion outside Oakland.
Rico Rico Taco is located at 6000 Bollinger Canyon Road, Suite 1207, in San Ramon. It is currently open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. This is just a first look–we’ll make sure to stop in and do a detailed review of the food, too!
