Deported paletero opens seafood restaurant in Tijuana

Francisco Duarte, the former South San Diego paletero whose farewell to customers spread widely online after his deportation, has reopened his working life in Tijuana with a seafood restaurant, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune and Telemundo. The new business comes about seven months after Duarte and his wife left the United States following the loss of their immigration case. Telemundo reported on May 7 that Duarte presented the restaurant in Tijuana as the start of a new phase. The Union-Tribune reported on May 23 that the venture gave him a new beginning across the border. ### How did Duarte become known in San Diego? Francisco Duarte spent more than 30 years selling paletas from a pushcart in southern San Diego, where neighbors came to recognize him as a familiar street vendor, according to the Union-Tribune and other local reports. His work centered on communities including National City and nearby South Bay neighborhoods. (sandiegouniontribune.com) A late-September 2025 farewell video drew broad attention after Duarte spoke about losing his immigration fight and leaving the country, according to the Union-Tribune summary and follow-up local coverage. In that period, he gave away ice pops during his final weekend in the United States, SanDiegoVille reported. (sandiegouniontribune.com) ### When was he deported, and what happened to his family? October 23, 2025, was the date Duarte and his wife, Rosenda Pérez, turned themselves in to federal immigration officials after exhausting appeals, according to SanDiegoVille’s account of the case. The family had spent years fighting removal after a 2017 detention outside their National City home, that report said. (sandiegouniontribune.com) Four children remained in the United States after the couple’s move to Tijuana, according to multiple reports on the family. Telemundo said the new restaurant was created in honor of those children, and Yahoo’s repost of the Telemundo segment said Duarte had begun rebuilding after seven months away from the United States. (sandiegoville.com) ### What exactly did he open in Tijuana? May 2026 coverage described Duarte’s new business as a seafood restaurant in Tijuana. Telemundo identified the restaurant as “Los 4 Hermanos,” while other republications of the Union-Tribune story referred to it as “Mariscos Cuatro Hermanos,” a name tied to his four children. (telemundo.com) The Union-Tribune said Duarte marked the opening by cutting a ribbon and making the sign of the cross. Secondary reports based on that story said the restaurant serves Sonoran-style seafood and is near Teniente Guerrero Park in Tijuana, though those details were not independently confirmed in the primary local report available through search results. (telemundo.com) ### Why did he name it after his children? Telemundo reported that Duarte said the restaurant was made in honor of his children. Republications of the Union-Tribune report said he wanted the name to reflect the bond he shares with them when he walks into the restaurant. (msn.com) TikTok text from Noticias Telemundo also quoted Duarte describing the project as “mi sueño mexicano,” or “my Mexican dream,” in a short video excerpt posted after the segment aired. That description appeared in Telemundo-linked social coverage of the opening. ### What comes next for the business? May 23, 2026, is the latest confirmed publication date for reporting on Duarte’s restaurant, with the Union-Tribune saying the business had already opened in Tijuana. (telemundo.com) Telemundo’s May 7 segment showed the restaurant in operation during its launch period. Duarte’s next step, based on those reports, is running the seafood restaurant in Tijuana while remaining close enough for visits from his U.S.-based children. (sandiegouniontribune.com) (tiktok.com)