Francisco y Gloria Barreiro
Francisco y Gloria Barreiro
By Jorge Rennella
"My biggest concern is that Mexican people are afraid of going out and do not leave their homes to go to restaurants; they cannot work easily; and have less work and less money. All this does causes people to patronize our business less than before," says Francisco Barreiro, owner and founder of Lupitas Restaurant & Taqueria in Dallas, Texas.
Barreiro was interviewed as part of the research for the 2017 el Restaurante Independent Mexican Restaurant report, which will be published in the Oct/Nov/Dec issue.
Barreiro arrived in Mexico in 1974, from Bueu, a small town in the Province of Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain.
"It was not very good times in Spain because of bad economy and politics. Franco was in power; I was young and looking for a life worthy and better than the one offered me by Franco's Spain," he says. "Before leaving for Mexico I had already gone to work as a bricklayer to France, where I was a year and a half. After a short time I decided to leave the country and go to Mexico, seeking a better standard of living.”
Barreiro met his wife Gloria in Mexico, and they have two children, Gloria Maria and Francisco Emanuel.
His first job in Ecatepec was as a salesman and installer of furniture and kitchens, which he did for about three years. Next he traveled to Tizayuca, Hidalgo, where he continued to sell furniture.
"After Tizayuca I moved to Pachuca, Hidalgo, where I started my first restaurant and lived there for four years."
In 1984 he came to Texas to visit his wife's sister. "We had my sister-in-law who already lived in Dallas. We stayed for a while and returned to Mexico again," says Barreiro. "The economic devaluations in Mexico in 1985 made me emigrate to the United States," he explains, explaining that at that time the devaluation was such that 25 pesos were equivalent to one dollar, and in a short time doubled to 50 pesos for one dollar, which pushed him to seek stability and better life. He ended up back in Dallas.
Sadly, his business has stopped growing. "People for fear of being deported do not go out much to the streets and do not go to restaurants like before, plus many are making less because they have less work, or no longer risk working two and up to three shifts for fear of be detained; because of the economic shortage others prefer to go to McDonald's, which is cheaper."
Look for more information about Barreiro’s restaurant and others in the upcoming edition of el Restaurante.