Vista’s music-first brewery is dark again. The Roadies Brewing, which closed at the end of August and then reopened on October 1 with new partners, has closed a second time after the investment behind the comeback never arrived. According to San Diego Beer News, which reported the story on October 16, the brewery’s final day of service was Sunday, October 18.

The comeback had looked real. Owners Diane and Sean Hilz had partnered with Mexico City Cuisine, a catering company in the same Vista business park, and Metrico Hospitality Group, which runs an event venue in Bonsall. The plan was ambitious: Mexico City Cuisine owner Leo Garcia would turn his catering kitchen into a full-service restaurant feeding the taproom through QR-code ordering, which would let the brewery add lunch hours, while Metrico planned to pour only Roadies beer at its events and launch a distribution company to get the beer into retail accounts and festivals.

The problem, per the owners’ account reported by San Diego Beer News, was that the money never came. At an October 15 meeting, the Hilzes learned the prospective investors could not secure the additional funding needed to move forward, and Garcia was similarly short on funds for the investment he had committed to. That left the brewery operating for 16 days on the expectation of cash that was not coming.

The human cost is what stings most. The Hilzes had rehired former staff for the second chapter and brought on a new head brewer, a veteran from Stone Brewing, who had already put in time at what was supposed to be his new workplace. The couple told San Diego Beer News they felt embarrassed for themselves and for the brewery’s legacy, and sorry for the “emotional roller-coaster” their customers have ridden over the past two months.

The Roadies was never just another taproom. It opened in August 2024 at 1495 Poinsettia Avenue, Unit 148, in Vista, built around a stage and sound system for live music. The theme came from the Hilz family’s years volunteering behind the scenes for their daughter’s high school marching band and color guard, where parent volunteers were known as the roadies. That identity, beer plus live performance plus community, is what made the first farewell in August feel like a genuine loss for Vista.

For now, no new investment deal or reopening has been confirmed. The Roadies’ story has now had two last calls in less than two months, and after this one, it would be wise not to print the grand-reopening banners just yet. What Vista lost is a room where local music and local beer shared the same stage, and that is a harder thing to replace than a tap list.

Source: San Diego Beer News, “Investors back out on brewery they vowed to save,” October 16, 2026.