Eden Rita
El Kapitan, a Mexican restaurant in Rochester, New York, started out as a foodtruck that was going to be dedicated to offering seafood. But when customers asked for something different, its owner, Eden Rita, changed the menu.
Similarly, at the insistence of his customers, Rita opened a bricks-and-mortar location in November. And then came the menu changes again: He planned to offer a menu that was different from that of the foodtruck, but customers wanted the same menu!
Adapting to Life’s Changes
This is not the first time Rita's life has tested his faith. When he was young, he dreamed of being the best lawyer in Mexico, but more than three decades ago he had to emigrate from Puebla, Mexico, to the United States with his mother and adapt to a new life.
At first he worked as a dishwasher but was quickly attracted to business. He learned to be a cashier, take orders, place orders, and cook. He says his greatest passion is being a businessman, and he has achieved that with his storefront restaurant.
“The path to becoming a lawyer wasn’t open to me, but I found in business that I can excel and it’s what comes closest. I like business more than cooking. But because cooking is a challenge, it [makes me] bring out the best in myself. I have come up with good ideas,” he says.
Rita's story is about adapting, moving forward without sticking to fixed ideas, not giving up despite the fact that things do not turn out as imagined.
“I came to the United States in '99, without legal papers, but I was persevering: I paid my taxes, contributed to the country and, after waiting patiently, in 2019, I finally got my residency. This changed my life and I have not missed the enormous opportunity: Now I have a food truck and a restaurant and I plan to continue growing,” he explains. “If people focus, they can always get to what they want in life.”
Rita isn't the only one in the family dedicated to cooking. In 2015, when Rochester didn't have many Mexican restaurants, his he and his siblings were pioneers. They opened Neno’s Gourmet Mexican Street Food, and today it has several locations in Rochester and Brooklyn.
Rita eventually left Neno’s and followed his own business passions to open the El Kapitan truck.
“I wanted to do something different,” he says. “I am a seafood lover and I saw that in Rochester there wasn't much of a supply of this. I bought my foodtruck, a small '64. I wanted to decorate it as a vintage one, but it was too expensive and there was no one to do it. I didn't manage to do exactly what I had in mind, but I decorated it myself, painted it red and it looked great: everyone recognizes it. The city of Rochester is not used to seafood, and I had an economic downturn. But, I know my clientele: they like fried chicken, not spicy.”
Rita says that if things don't work out, you have to adjust. By changing the menu, sales went up and people appreciated his food.
From Foodtruck to Bricks-and-Mortar
Just as they asked him for fried chicken, many customers asked him about a bricks-and-mortar location.
“I saw how it worked for my brothers to have the foodtruck and then open the store. So, if that worked once, I thought it would work with my business and it has. I opened three weeks ago, but so far, it's been very well received,” he says.
Although he has adapted to many changes, he has retained his greatest passion: ceviche. And, as with everything, he adapts it according to the clientele's requests. If they ask for it in tacos instead of a glass, that's how he serves it. Preserving, of course, the best seasoning with lemon, fresh orange, habanero hot sauce, cucumber, oil and salt.
“Again I had to adjust, but the important thing is that people like it,” he says. “My only attachment is to life, where life wants me to go. That's the right path, different from what I might have thought.”
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