Casa De Bandini at The Forum in Carlsbad is a women-owned Mexican restaurant that relocated from its original 1980 Old Town San Diego location to The Forum shopping center in 2009. Griddle-pressed flour and corn tortillas are produced continuously in a dedicated tortilleria fitted with a hand-hammered copper hood, and the cantina stocks over 60 tequilas rotated monthly alongside the cupcake and cookie programs at neighboring SusieCakes inside the same Forum complex. The signature Carnitas a la Michoacán slow-roasts pork in the traditional style until fork-tender, served with frijoles de la olla and house-made salsas. Live mariachi entertainment rotates through the 300-seat dining room, which features original stained-glass doors, antique chandeliers, and hand-painted talavera floor tiles sourced from Mexico. Zapotec upholstery fabrics hand-woven and dyed in Oaxaca cover the seating, and the outdoor patio surrounds a large Mexican fountain landscaped with tropical gardens — a setting regularly featured on stops by Carlsbad Food Tours. The kitchen's mole poblano blends over a dozen dried chiles, chocolate, and spices into a sauce ladled over chicken and paired with handmade tamales wrapped in corn husks.