Tecate’s Festival El Pan de la Catrina Unveiled for 2025

Tecate, Mexico — May 3, 2025 — The organizing committee for Tecate’s Festival El Pan de la Catrina announced this week that the 2025 edition of the annual event will take place October 30 through November 2 in the Baja California border town, tucked into the foothills just an hour east of San Diego. The four-day celebration will feature a lineup of dinners, cultural gatherings, culinary competitions, and more. It honors Día de Muertos, Mexico’s yearly remembrance of those who’ve passed on. It’s a time when tradition holds that departed souls return to walk among the living, welcomed with altars, offerings, and festive gatherings.

“Tecate has always had a lot of activities around Día de Muertos,” chef Marcelo Hisaki shared during a recent kickoff dinner for media and tour operators at restaurant Asao at hotel Santuario Diegueño in Tecate. “Local bakeries offer their version of pan de muerto—a sweet bread scented with orange zest and anise. Restaurants host themed dinners with guest chefs from Oaxaca. And you’ll see enormous Catrinas in the parks. Over the years, it’s taken on more structure.”

Tecate during Dia de Muertos (photo: W. Scott Koenig)

The town is well-known for its panaderías, with El Mejor Pan de Tecate—established in 1969—remaining its most iconic. At the kickoff event, El Mejor was joined by Cielo Alta Repostería and Panadería La Reina Victoria, each showcasing their unique interpretations of pan de muerto, traditionally baked to honor and welcome the spirits of the departed.

Día de Muertos events will be held throughout the city, with gatherings planned at Benito Juárez Park and CEART, Tecate’s main cultural center. Visitors can expect artisans, live music, traditional dance, and food and drink offerings from local restaurants, wineries, and craft breweries.

This year’s festival will also spotlight chefs, artisans, and performers from the Mexican state of Michoacán, a region deeply rooted to Día de Muertos customs. Participating chefs will collaborate on holiday-themed dinners at Tecate restaurants including Hisaki’s Michelin-recognized Restaurante Amores, local favorite El Lugar de Nos, Ensamble 43, and others.

The kickoff event at Asao offered guests a preview of the flavors to come. Holiday-inspired dishes were served in the hotel’s private dining room, where a long communal table was dressed in Día de Muertos décor. Hisaki presented a local bluefin tuna crudo, delicately arranged to resemble a marigold—Mexico’s traditional flor de muerto—accented with crema and a crisp, lacy tuile. Pastry chef Alma Sepúlveda of Cielo Alta Repostería surprised guests with a candle-shaped cake, complete with a flickering wick, evoking the candlelit vigils held in cemeteries across Mexico during the holiday.

Chefs Marcelo Hisaki and Reyna Venegas at the event kickoff event at hotel Asao, Tecate (photo: W. Scott Koenig)

The event’s organizing committee — a collaboration of Tecate’s tourism, marketing, and culinary leaders — anticipates welcoming more than 20,000 visitors this year. “Tecate is a traditional Mexican town with so much to offer,” Hisaki remarked. Notably, Tecate holds the distinction of being Baja California’s only Pueblo Mágico, an honor bestowed by the Mexican government in recognition of its rich indigenous legacy and enduring cultural traditions. “We’re honored to share our culture and culinary artistry through these events,” he continued, “and warmly invite our friends from Southern California and beyond to join in the celebration.”

For updates and event details, follow the 2025 Festival El Pan de la Catrina on Facebook at: facebook.com/ElPanDeLaCatrina