Appetite for Latin American fare grows

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This article was published 02/03/2022 (1663 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There is no shortage of “comida” when you enter a Latin American restaurant in Brandon. Several families from Central and South America have moved to Brandon over the last decade, using the opportunity to open eateries where they can showcase dishes from their home countries.

Westman entrepreneur Carlos Munoz is preparing to welcome new customers to Mariachi Mexican Tacos & Cantina on March 7, a passion project he is excited to share.

“The idea is to have 100 per cent authentic Mexican food,” Munoz said.

“From street food to more gourmet dishes, tacos, soups, entrees, appetizers, desserts, we will feature different food from different regions of Mexico. People will have the experience to try that.”

Munoz, who came from central Mexico, and his wife Diana, who lived in northern Mexico, have lived in Canada for 14 years, including nine in Brandon.

The couple owns the Woodfire Deli in Souris, manages the lease at Twisters Ice Cream Shoppe in Brandon, and also runs the Mariachi Mexican Tacos food truck, which continues to offer catering services to the public.

After selling the Forbidden Flavours coffee shop in The Town Centre a few months ago to focus on restaurant planning, this latest venture is a cut above the rest for Munoz. He said he is eager to give back to the community through food and was even able to hire a whole family from Mexico to work for them.

“We have a sous chef from Mexico with over 10 years of experience working with Mexican food. All the dishes and recipes are made by him and you won’t be disappointed. We’re going to be a full team of Mexicans around,” Munoz said with a laugh.

“Whatever comes in the future, who knows?”

Munoz said when customers step into the restaurant, they will feel like they are in Mexico. He arranged for a full trailer of 20 palettes to bring in dishes, plates, tables and glassware, all from Mexico. The process took over a month. In addition, the restaurant plans to feature a karaoke night with live music on weekends. Patrons will also be greeted by a Mexican singer during lunchtime.

Munoz is excited to offer more than 15 different kinds of tacos at the restaurant, with chicken, beef, pork and vegetarian options, all marinated in different sauces. He said to be on the lookout for their soup options including “pozole,” a stew featuring green and red tomatoes, and a combination of dried peppers. For dessert, Munoz is bringing in imported vanilla, chocolate and “cajeta” (caramel) from Mexico to start offering homemade gelato. Of course, churros will be available for those who fancy the gourmet treat.

“We’re going to serve it in an authentic ice cream and churro cart at your table, in a smaller size of the real thing,” Munoz said.

Located at 1505 First St., the fully licensed restaurant will be open seven days a week from 11 a.m. until 10 p.m.

Across the city, Ana Beltran and her husband Helder Riano have been offering serious Latin American flavours since 2015 when they opened Sabor Latino. The husband and wife, both originally from Colombia, came to Canada in 2009 and 2008, respectively, but didn’t know each other in Brandon until 2014.

“We were dating here, and we wanted to do something together,” Beltran said.

“We were talking and I always had a dream to open up a restaurant. Helder has always supported me, and we were saving money until we got enough.”

Sabor Latino has built a large clientele for their menu featuring a fusion of Latin American dishes.

“It’s not just Mexican or Colombian or Salvadoran, it’s a little fusion between recipes and stuff like that,” Beltran said.

“Each recipe, we create our own style.”

The owner said her top sellers continue to be their tortilla soup, birria tacos and anything with a source of protein.

“Because I am Colombian, we love the meat!” Beltran said.

“We have our carne asada, we can do my favourite dishes with casaba [melons], a little salad and rice. Some people don’t know we do those dishes. We can even do ribs and chicken on a fire grill.”

Beltran and Riano also manage two food trucks, the “Mexican King and Queen,” during the summer months in Westman, which they plan to operate again this year. Getting to where they are today was a process that did not happen overnight.

Beltran started working at an A&W years ago, and her husband worked at Maple Leaf. After selling food in different festivals and reaching out to connections at city hall and Westman Immigrant Services, Beltran tried everything she could to make this dream a reality.

“It’s not easy, but it’s not impossible,” Beltran said.

“We didn’t have a lot of money in our pockets, we were just saving.”

Much like Beltran and Riano, Munoz described the process of opening restaurants as being in it for the long haul.

“It’s a long life experience, it’s nothing that came the next day,” Munoz said.

“We came with a couple of bags to Canada, looking for opportunities. We finished our university in Mexico, our master’s degree in Mexico and then decided to move. We still had to start from scratch.”

Munoz said he and his wife managed two Dairy Queen locations in Regina prior to moving to Brandon.

At Sabor Latino, Beltran said they love the growing support from the increasing Latino community in Brandon and recognized how longtime Westman residents have shown great support to what they serve.

“They love our flavour, they love our culture, they give us the opportunity to show what we do, and we like it,” Beltran said.

“They appreciate us like friends.”

For the couple, who got married in 2020, Beltran said the process of starting a new restaurant is like watching a child grow up.

“You see how the baby was growing pretty well, and now it’s not a baby anymore, it’s a young restaurant,” Beltran said.

Munoz said he and his wife have learned a lot from their start and were very surprised to see the multicultural community growing in Brandon.

“It has been 14 years of this adventure, and we’re very proud because it’s hard work.”

» jbernacki@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @JosephBernacki