Casa Vega is turning 70, and to mark the occasion, the Sherman Oaks institution is rolling prices back to 1956 for one day only, offering its House Combo #1 plate for $2.15 — exactly what it cost when the restaurant first opened its doors. Dine-in customers can grab the deal, which includes crispy tacos with chicken, beef, or ground beef, enchiladas, chile rellenos, tamales, and rice and beans, all for a fraction of what a Los Angeles combo plate runs today.
The all-day 70th anniversary party is set for Thursday, September 10, according to KTLA. There are no reservations available for the event, so customers hoping to snag the throwback pricing are encouraged to walk in and eat at the bar. CEO and owner Christy Vega, who runs the restaurant her father founded, said the deal is meant as a thank-you to the Los Angeles community that has kept Casa Vega going for seven decades.
A Family Story That Started on Olvera Street
Casa Vega's roots stretch back further than its 1956 opening on Ventura Boulevard. Christy Vega's grandparents immigrated to America from Tijuana and opened Cafe Caliente on Olvera Street in 1936, planting the seeds of a family hospitality legacy two decades before her father, Rafael “Ray” Vega, brought his own food to the San Fernando Valley. When it opened, Casa Vega became the first sit-down Mexican restaurant on Ventura Boulevard, pioneering full-service Mexican dining in a suburban corridor where that kind of dining had previously been concentrated in Downtown Los Angeles, according to CBS Los Angeles.
The restaurant's early footprint looked a little different than it does now. Per elrestaurante.com, Casa Vega originally opened two blocks east at Ventura Boulevard and Mary Ellen Avenue in 1956 before relocating to its current address in 1958, and the family even briefly ran a second location across the street, called Casa Vega II, starting in 1977. Ray Vega ran the restaurant for more than 50 years before he died on January 9, 2021, at age 86 from COVID-19 complications, the same outlet reports.
Hollywood's Booth of Choice
Casa Vega's longevity has made it a magnet for celebrity lore. During Hollywood's Golden Age, actor Rock Hudson dined there so often that Table 1 was officially designated “The Rock Hudson booth” in his honor, a distinction the same elrestaurante.com report notes. Decades later, director Quentin Tarantino filmed scenes for his 2019 movie Once Upon a Time in Hollywood inside one of the restaurant's booths, with characters played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt seated at the table — a booth that remains one of the most requested seats in the house.
A New Patio Honors the Founder
In March 2026, Casa Vega opened the Ray Vega Patio, a 3,000-square-foot expansion built across two former parking lots that seats more than 100 people. The space includes an 18-seat bar, a 24-seat central tiled fountain, and a retractable glass roof, giving the restaurant nearly double its original dining footprint. Christy Vega said her father always dreamed of having a patio, and the new addition was named to honor him directly.
The expansion followed another milestone for Vega, who purchased the restaurant's real estate at Ventura Boulevard and Fulton Avenue in 2025, fulfilling her father's long-held goal of owning the land beneath the business. That purchase secures Casa Vega's home on Ventura Boulevard for the long term, at a time when commercial real estate along the corridor has grown increasingly costly.
Civic Honors and Community Ties
The city has also taken notice of the restaurant's staying power. On Cinco de Mayo this year, the intersection of Ventura Boulevard and Fulton Avenue in Sherman Oaks was renamed Vega Square, honoring Rafael “Ray” Vega and his family. Christy Vega said her family is humbled and honored to be a major part of Los Angeles.
The restaurant's civic profile extends beyond ceremonial honors. In 2022, the James Beard Foundation named Casa Vega a recipient of its America's Classics Award, which recognizes locally owned restaurants with timeless appeal that reflect their community's character. The foundation also highlighted Casa Vega's partnership with the local nonprofit No Us Without You, which provides food supplies and financial assistance to undocumented hospitality workers across Los Angeles.
Christy Vega joined the family business full-time in 1999 after graduating college and took over operational management in 2012 when her father retired from day-to-day duties, though the two continued working alongside each other for years afterward. Now, as Casa Vega marks seven decades on Ventura Boulevard, that second-generation stewardship is on full display — from the $2.15 throwback plate to the patio built in her father's name.
