With the arrival of Raul Casillas as the new Creative Chef at Puesto in January, the team is debuting a new menu on Wednesday, March 26th. This new menu features various creations from Casillas that highlight his love of Mexican cuisine and culture.
Puesto is a beloved family-owned, San Diego-born brand known for their delicious Mexican dishes, tacos made from non-GMO blue corn tortillas, scratch-made sauces, and welcoming atmosphere that has grown to eight restaurants plus three stadium locations throughout Southern California.
Having worked in established Michelin-starred kitchens including L’atelier in Las Vegas and Oceanside’s Valle, led by 2025 JBF Semifinalist Chef Roberto Alcocer, Casillas brings decades of experience to Puesto.
READ MORE: How Puesto is Bringing Authentic Mexican Tacos to Stadiums Across the U.S.
“The new menu is an exciting glimpse into the many facets of Mexican cuisine and is an ode to Spring and the land and sea. This menu is for people to enjoy some true and unique flavors of Mexico as well as many of its techniques,” Casillas shares.
New items include:
- Ceviche Zarandeado made with Zarandeado Bluefin tuna, chipotle aioli, pickled onions, serrano and served with blue corn tostadas. The inspiration comes from the Mexican states of Nayarit and Sinaloa, traditionally served as a grilled fish with salsa huichol and achiote. Casillas has interpreted these flavors in an aguachile.
- Crudo Verde features Kampachi, a rich, flavorful, and delicate fish from the bountiful coast of Ensenada, accompanied by the bright flavors of mint, citrus, hoja santa and green serrano spice.
- Asparagus Taco showcases the best of Spring ingredients. Centered around al dente grilled asparagus, this taco brings a bold smoky flavor. The asparagus is set on a guisado of zucchini and asparagus and wrapped in a handmade hoja santa tortilla, then dressed with a Pipian Verde (pumpkin seed mole) and topped with pumpkin and sesame seeds.
- CDMX Ribeye Taco includes a generous slice of Rib eye steak seared to perfection on the plancha, accompanied by vibrant encurtidos (pickled onion, carrot, and jalapeño) and Puesto’s very own louis avocado sauce. The taco is topped with ash salsa of serrano, guajillo and ancho, with a touch of vinegar, magi and soy creating the perfect harmony of smokey, spicy, umami, and acidic flavors.
- Corn Flan is a delicious dessert made with an unctuous corn custard, paired with atole, a traditional prehispanic drink typically served hot during the holiday season. This roasted pineapple atole brings brightness and acidity, balancing the richness of the flan. For a unique texture and fun, popcorn is seasoned with salt, sugar, and totomoxtle, Nahuatl for dried corn husk, and topped on the flan.
Vice President of Bar & Spirits, Beau du Bois and his team also developed some new spring cocktails for the menu such as the Poblano Paloma made with Ocho blanco tequila, Aperol, poblano, lime and Fever Tree grapefruit soda; Clarified Guava with El Tequileño reposado tequila, guava, canela and orgeat (clarified with milk); Mole Old-Fashioned made with Buffalo Trace Bourbon, mole negro, pineapple & canela cordial and bitters; and the Cantaloupe Mojito made with Puesto’s aged white rum blend by Ed Hamilton, Probitas white blended rum, cantaloupe, lime, mint and club soda.
Casillas was appointed as the Puesto’s new creative chef in January 2025. Casillas represents a new era of Mexican-American chefs, bringing the beauty and diversity of Mexico’s regional cuisines into the mainstream. With decades of experience cooking alongside world-renowned chefs, Casillas’ passion for Mexican cuisine has deepened as he’s developed the skills to create dishes with depth and nuance, transforming humble ingredients into luxurious experiences. Casillas grew up in the border town of San Diego, CA spending time in San Ysidro, Mexicali, and Tijuana. His love for cooking originated in his grandmother’s kitchen over bubbling pots of her refried beans and fresh tortillas on the plancha. Though his original professional aspirations were focused on becoming a doctor, in the end his heart won the contest and he followed his passion to culinary school.
After graduating from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Las Vegas, Casillas went to work at Jose Andres’s restaurant, Jaleo, where he learned the value of storytelling and sharing culture through food and creativity. His next position was at L’atelier in the MGM Grand in Las Vegas by Joel Robuchon. Casillas’ tenure at L’atelier lasted for six years, giving him an extended education in how to operate a Michelin kitchen. After the pandemic, Casillas found himself back in Ensenada where he was introduced to Roberto Alcocer—a chef dedicated to Mexican cuisine, its culture and flavors—and they connected about Alcocer’s new restaurant Valle in Oceanside, CA. Joining Alcocer’s kitchen, Casillas’ love for Mexican cooking and techniques was rekindled and he felt a new sense of belonging at Valle. Working with fresh local ingredients, luxury products and playing with authentic flavors to push Mexican cuisine into the spotlight, Casillas and his team received due recognition in 2022 when Valle received its first Michelin star.
Casillas brings his robust knowledge of Mexican cuisine to his new role as Creative Chef at Puesto. He plans on showcasing his love for Mexican culture by crafting new dishes that emphasize different regions of Mexico such as tetelas, tlacoyos, mixiotes, gorditas and many more. These new menu items will be balanced and delicious leaving guests craving more. Casillas and Puesto will continue to serve guests high-quality tacos by taking the best flavors of Mexico and wrapping them in the beloved handmade, organic, non-GMO blue corn tortillas.
