La Tolteca Tortilla Factory (1946-) and Restaurant (1954-2006)

La Tolteca was founded in 1946 by Federico and Bertha Ciriza Claveria. Federico and Bertha, both born in Mexico and brought to the United States with their families at a young age, moved to Santa Barbara to open a tortilla factory, La Tolteca, on 614 East Haley Street. Its name derived from the Aztec term for “metropolis.” Bertha’s uncle, Manuel Donato Ciriza, supported their effort – Manuel already owned other tortilla production sites in the Los Angeles area and wanted to expand into the central coast region. The factory initially supplied other restaurants and stores, but in 1954 they opened an on-site restaurant. By that time, a network of family-owned factories and restaurants had been established in southern California and the greater southwestern United States.

By the 1980s La Tolteca brought in over $1 million in annual sales and supplied over 40 restaurants in the region, employing 40 full-time employees and producing about 720,000 tortillas each week. It was recognized with the Certificate of Achievement by the Valley Grain Products, Inc in 1986 and, in 1988, the Santa Barbara Chamber of Commerce Recognition Award. Federico Claveria died June 5, 1994. The restaurant remained in the Claveria family until its closing in 2006, 60 years after its opening. La Tolteca Tortilla Factory is still in operation in Santa Barbara today.