TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – Legendary Tucson restaurant chain El Guero Canelo is up for sale.
According to a posting on LoopNet.com, the three locations are available along with an office building.
The deal includes the three restaurants in Tucson — 2480 North Oracle Road, 5201 South 12th Avenue, and 5802 East 22nd Street — as well as an office space at 2470 North Oracle.
The listing frames the sale as an investment opportunity rather than an ordinary sale. It does not specify a price for the buildings, but it appears the buyer would be expected to keep it going.
(Source: El Guero Canelo / Facebook)
Daniel Contreras founded the business in 1993 as a food cart and has grown into a beloved Tucson staple for its Sonoran hot dogs, burros, caramelos, and churros.
El Guero Canelo was honored by the James Beard Foundation and earned international media exposure.
In 2024, Contreras spent more than a month in the hospital following an accident. Talks of a possible retirement had been ongoing following that hospitalization.
13 News reached out to management to try to connect with Contreras, but we have not received a response. This story will be updated with any response received.
Some customers told 13 News that the possible sale caught them off guard.
Koby Feldman, a customer who grew up in Sonoita, said the food was the closest to what he experienced during his childhood.
“This is a staple of Tucson,” Feldam said, “Sonoran dog is our main food that draws people to Tucson to try, ‘cause they’ve never had Sonoran dogs, and without this place, there wouldn’t be a Sonoran dog.”
Another customer, Johnathan Michael Siqueiros, said the consistency of the cuisine has kept him coming back for decades.
“The craft and the, the, the passion they put behind their service and serving their clientele. That’s what keeps me coming back,” Michael Siqueiros said.
Lexann Downey-Lewis, a customer, said her family would come to the restaurant every Tuesday and Sonoran dog Wednesday.
“Whenever I come here, I do as I did today. I got my food. I take a picture, and I send it in text to my son saying, ‘I wish you guys were here,’” Downey-Lewis said.
Downey-Lewis said that before a trip to the airport, she had six Sonoran dogs deconstructed so she could bring them to her son in Seattle.
“Before I went to the airport, I got six Sonoran dogs deconstructed. I had them put the weenies in one bag and the buns in a b- I brought my own bags,” Downey-Lewis said. “And I surprised them, and they were elated to have two meals worth of Sonoran dogs.”
Feldman said he hopes any new owner continues the restaurant’s traditions.
“I hope that if it does get sold, that whoever takes over next carries on the tradition of what this place is about,” Feldman said.
As these customers say in an ever-changing restaurant landscape, they value the feeling of “home”.
“We need something that’s really Tucson, where it’s good food and good people. I mean, that’s really important, and I just pray that it doesn’t change,” Downey-Lewis said.
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Dining and Cooking