TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Anita’s Street Market, a longtime Tucson favorite known for handmade tortillas and burritos, has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation and American Express.
The market, which opened in 1936 as a Chinese grocery before being purchased by the Soto family in the 1980s, faced auction in recent years after financial struggles. Owner Grace Soto said she refused to give up on the business, which has been in her family for generations.
“This building has a lot of history, close to 100 years,” Soto said. “I wasn’t gonna go without a fight.”
The grant is one of 50 awarded nationwide to historic restaurants. Soto said the money will be used for upgrades, including restoring the market’s original brick exterior and creating a backyard space for the community.
Soto hopes to one day pass the market on to her son, continuing a family legacy nearly a century in the making.
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