Welcome to the May/June 2024 issue of el Restaurante!
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Editor’s Note
It’s been a busy couple of months here at el Restaurante. Publisher Ed Avis and I traveled to three weddings in six weeks (two in California and one in Wisconsin), all while scheduling interviews, writing stories, selling ads, and planning our booth Read more
Do You Make Great Salsa? Get Rewarded for It!
Great salsas are part of great dining experiences in Mexican restaurants. If you make especially good salsa, we want to know about it! For the second consecutive year, we are partnering with Sammic to uncover great salsa recipes through the el Restau Read more
Where are They Now? Move to ownership, storm damage change lives of el Restaurante Manager of the Year Winners
The hardest working people in your restaurant are probably the managers, and el Restaurante’s Manager of the Year program has honored hundreds of the best managers of Mexican/Latin restaurants since it started in 2016. We thought it would be interest Read more
Growing a Plant-Based Menu: A Q&A with Chef Nina Curtis
The 2024 Global Restaurant Trends Forecast from Technomic offers an update on the state of plant-based cuisine — and what is reveals is what many restaurateurs already realize, judging from the number of plant-based dishes and plant-based restaurants Read more
Two Concepts, Two Approaches to Plant-Based Menus
The way Mexican restaurants approach plant-based options depends on many factors — guests’ preferences, price considerations, and the overall concept among them. Read more
Five Questions: Pedro “Pete” Mora, Fajita Pete’s
When Pedro “Pete” Mora opened his first restaurant in 2002, the then-23-year-old believed a full-service Mexican concept with a full bar and 60 tables would be the route to success. What he learned from that business — Poblano’s in Meyerland, Texas — Read more
Hispanic Cheese Continues Its Climb
Hispanic cheeses always have been go-to ingredients for many Mexican restaurants. With the popularity of these quesos growing, and with so many types to choose from, how can you decide which ones to add to your kitchen’s inventory? Read more
Tacodeli: Building Retail Sales of Restaurant Products
Tacodeli, which has 12 locations in Texas, is a restaurant brand that sells its salsas, dips and tortillas in Whole Foods stores, and just announced that grocery chain HEB will also be selling the products. Jeff Day, president of Tacodeli’s retail b Read more
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Get Ready for Robots
The robots are coming! That might sound like a nightmare, but for many Mexican restaurant owners, using a robot to tackle tasks is more like a dream solution to employment problems. Read more
Craig Richardson / Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo
At the Bar: To-Go Alcohol Sales Keep Mexican Restaurant Cash Registers Ringing
A regular customer of Pérez Mexican Restaurant & Cantina in Shelbyville, Missouri does something that was simply impossible a few years ago: They order a full gallon of margaritas to go. Read more
MayJune 2024 Marketplace
Read about the new tabletop corn molino from Tortilla Masters; mole from MegaMex; Chicken Chorizo from V&V Supremo; Cinnamon Churro Cheesecake from PFG; and more. Read more
May/June 2024 Recipes
Enjoy these recipes for Black Rice Burrito Bowl, Soyrizo Tacos, Cauliflower Ceviche, and Poblano Corn Flatbread with California Crema Read more
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My Favorite Recipe: Chef Scott Koshnoodi, Parklife Taqueria
Michelin-trained Chef Scott Koshnoodi recently launched a new Persian-, Texan-, and Mexican-inspired food and beverage program at Parklife Taqueria in Brooklyn. Pull- ing from his Persian-Texan roots (Koshnoodi fled Iran at a young age to join his fa Read more
