Casa Sanchez's Mission building could soon become a San Francisco landmark 

Casa Sanchez's Mission building could soon become a San Francisco landmark Casa Sanchez at 2778 24th Street in SF. | Photo: Courtesy of Google Maps
Matt Charnock
Published on January 10, 2022

Perhaps best known for its packaged chips and salsas, Casa Sanchez became San Francisco’s 100th legacy business back in 2017 — and its longtime location at 2778 24th Street might soon be recognized as a City landmark, cementing the institution’s cultural significance.

Founded in 1923, Casa Sanchez started as a tamale shop located at 1523 Steiner Street. Nearly a hundred years ago, the small business carried enchiladas, tamales, sauces, and other goods… that were all delivered in Ford Model A cars across SF. Fast forward nearly a century later, and Casa Sanchez is owned and operated by a fourth generation of the Sanchez family — with the upcoming generation expected to carry the business on into the future, as well. 

And after a hearing by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ Land Use and Transportation Committee Monday afternoon, the effort to see Casa Sanchez become a historic San Francisco landmark has moved forward. The agenda item — 211233 — for the landmark motion was voted on today, and all committee members in attendance voted to move the item forward. It’s expected to have another round of public comment and be heard in the presence of the entire SF Board of Supervisors on January 26 before a final vote is held.

The business moved to the Mission District in the 1960s, where it also dropped its original name, R. Sanchez & Co., for a new one: Casa Sanchez. That 2778 24th Street location would grow to become not only a treasured taqueria but a commercial manufacturing site for producing salsas and various other products. (Fun fact: Casa Sanchez was the first company in the country to sell fresh packaged salsa — and to this day, its products are commonly found in grocery stores and bodegas around the Bay Area.)

Casa Sanchez currently owns and operates additional locations in the Bay Area for the production of its products, but the original Mission District commercial building still houses a taqueria and small production facility. 

If Casa Sanchez becomes a historic SF landmark, it would stand as one of just a few Mexican-American institutions to garner such a City-designated historical significance anywhere in the county.