MEET OUR 2020 MANAGERS OF THE YEAR

Meet Our WINNERS! The 2020 el Restaurante/Jarritos MANAGERS OF THE YEAR

PUBLISHER’S NOTE: Managers are essential to Mexican restaurants’ success, and that has never been more true than during this bizarre year. That’s why el Restaurante and Jarritos are so pleased to honor the best managers at Mexican/Latin restaurants in the United States. We hope you enjoy—and are inspired by—the stories of these winners. – By Ed Avis

Mary Buxton FIRST PLACE: Mary Buxton, El Toro Mexican Restaurant, Palestine, Texas

When COVID crashed into the world six months ago, nobody knew quite what to do. But Mary Buxton, general manager of El Toro Mexican Restaurant in Palestine, Texas, knew that her first move had to be to reassure staff that El Toro put their well-being first.

“People were scared and frustrated,” remembers Buxton, who had been at El Toro only about a year when the pandemic hit. “The main thing was to keep them comfortable and let them know that whatever they felt was the right thing to do we would support them.”

“Mary is an exceptional manager,” wrote John Mayes, El Toro’s vice president of operations, in his nomination of Buxton. “She has a very motherly and caring love for her staff in the FOH and BOH and carries a huge amount of respect and admiration.”

In those first days of COVID, Buxton held an all-staff meeting and told employees they could remain on staff or stay home with their families. About 10 to 15 percent of her 75 employees decided to stay home, but the rest continued working. Eventually most of those who didn’t stay decided to return, and they were welcomed back. Keeping the staff employed was not difficult, because Buxton quickly ramped up the restaurant’s to-go business and initiated delivery service, which they had not had before.

“Our to-go area was just in a little room, so we expanded it to the dining room. We used the dining room as a giant staging system,” she explains. “Coordination was important. We had to make sure each person knew what they were responsible for, so we wouldn’t have a bunch of chickens running around.”

Next the restaurant added delivery service. Buxton explains that staff who were willing to deliver orders were asked to do double duty— they were also packers or took phone orders—because delivery requests were not steady enough to keep drivers constantly busy.

Buxton’s ability to handle the rapidly evolving situation was further demonstrated when dining rooms reopened in July. She had to organize the safety measures required to keep everyone well, while managing a new flow of dining room customers and maintaining the constant to-go and delivery business.

“We were hit right away with people who wanted to come inside,” she says. “It’s really a cool dynamic since we’ve been open for inside dining, we’ve actually seen an increase in sales from last year. We had some huge losses in March, April and May, but we’ve been able to see the gap close.”

Buxton, who enjoyed a long career at Carrabba’s Italian Grill before joining El Toro, says her attitude towards staff pays off in overall restaurant success: “When you take care of your own people first, everything else falls in line. The numbers fall in line because staff don’t want to waste food; labor costs fall in line because they don’t waste time; and customers are happy because staff want to make them happy.”

SECOND PLACE: Alejandro Velasquez, Cyclone Anaya’s Tex-Mex Cantina, Austin, Texas

The staff of Cyclone Anaya’s Tex-Mex Cantina in Austin were expecting a big St. Patrick’s Day weekend in mid-March and had $70,000 worth of food ready to prepare. Then on Friday, March 17, the whole situation changed: The city ordered all bars and restaurants to close due to COVID.

“We closed on Friday midday, and we were like, ‘What are we going to do with all this product?’” remembers Alejandro “Alex” Velasquez, operations manager of the restaurant. That brief moment of indecision for Velasquez was followed by months of innovation and long hours that put Cyclone Anaya’s on a strong footing.

“Instead of Alejandro succumbing to the pressure of the pandemic, he rose to the challenge and immediately looked for other avenues to keep the business going,” wrote Ricardo Valencia, owner of the restaurant, in his nomination of Velasquez. “He took every opportunity to enhance our business and it shows. He has been an integral part of our success during this pandemic.”

Velasquez, who has worked at the restaurant for eight years and has been in his current position for three, quickly pivoted the restaurant to off-premise service. He and his staff created some new packaging ideas, with input from their distributor, Sysco, that streamlined the take-out business. And when the governor announced that restaurants could offer alcohol to-go, Velasquez and his crew developed half-gallon and gallon to-go margaritas.

“As the state opened up to serve, Alejandro found ways to utilize the outside seating,” Valencia remembers. “He also was able to convince the landlords to allow us to add additional seating to our patio

Alejandro Velasquez

area, so we could have more business. He also added a DJ on weekends to offer entertainment to guests, since bars are closed.”

Of course, there were many challenging moments. Velasquez remembers one day when the kitchen manager called and said he had a kidney stone and could not come in. They had already trimmed staff because of COVID, so losing his kitchen manager could have been a crisis.

“It was just me and one manager in the kitchen,” he remembers. “I said, ‘Don’t worry,’ and started to put the kitchen together. I was reading the recipes and everything. That just shows

how important it is to know how everything in the kitchen works. We made it through.”

Today the restaurant is open at 75 percent indoor capacity, but off-premise remains strong. “We used to do $1,500 to $2,000 to-go sales each week, and now it’s $7,000,” he says.

Velasquez is quick to credit his team for the restaurant’s success during this crisis, and he believes an essential management skill is being a good educator.

“Everything you know doesn’t have value if you don’t release that and teach the people around you,” he says. “At the end, the more they know, the easier it is for everybody.”

Jaime Castor

THIRD PLACE (TIE): Jaime Castor, Takito Street Lincoln Park, Chicago

When Jaime Castor first met Mario Ponce, owner of the three Takito restaurants in Chicago, he had little restaurant experience and virtually no English-speaking ability. But Ponce saw something promising in the young man who wanted to work, so he offered him a job as a busser. Today, about seven years after that meeting, Castor is the general manager of the newest Takito location, Takito Street Lincoln Park.

“Jaime Castor is a perfect example of how hard work, genuine enthusiasm/passion and drive turns someone into a senior manager in a restaurant group,” Ponce wrote in his nomination of Castor. “Today he is fluent in English, possesses a beautiful smile and is authentic in his enthusiasm and positive attitude.”

When Castor met Ponce, he was hungry for a new opportunity and wanted to set a good example for his three children. “I was telling myself, ‘I’m going to bust my ass until I get somewhere,’” Castor recalls. “So, I started working on my English and working as a busser. I was also watching the bartenders, how they move and how they speak, and a few years later I was able to be a bartender and server.”

But that wasn’t enough. Castor left Takito to become a prep cook at another restaurant, where he worked his way up to kitchen manager. A year later he encountered Ponce again.

“Mario saw that I had new skills to offer, and he said, ‘Do you want to be a bar manager?’” Castor says. He took that job, and when Ponce decided to open his third location, he tapped Castor as the general manager.

“He is the face of Takito Street Lincoln Park,” Ponce says. “The large restaurant has quickly become an area favorite and generates high sales and generous profits.”

Castor’s contributions to the company extend beyond that location. He creates drink recipes for all locations—his signature cocktail is a mix of Kahlua, mezcal, cherry liqueur and tobacco bitters called “Coffee and Cigarettes” —and he programs the music for all locations.

His advice for other managers who want to succeed: “I say forget the word ‘manager’; you want to be a leader. You want people to work with you, not for you. I show all my coworkers how hard I work, and I expect them to do the same for me—and they do.”

THIRD PLACE (TIE): Jesús Ceja, Big Taco Mexican Restaurant, Alice, Texas

Successful restaurant managers and owners often become friends to their customers and the community. That’s the case with Jesús Ceja, better known as Don Chuy, the owner/manager of Big Taco Mexican Restaurant in Alice, Texas.

Ceja came to the United States from Mexico 38 years ago. He had learned the art of the taqueria in Mexico City, and spent his first 19 years in America working for taquerias in Texas. Then he launched Big Taco.

According to his daughter Guadalupe Ceja, he “goes above and beyond to support the Hispanic community in

Jesus Ceja this small South Texas town. He started as manager when the small taco shop catered to the booming oil field industry, feeding oil field workers in the early hours of the morning. After the recession severely impacted the economy of the community, he shifted his prices and found ways to keep the business afloat to continue serving his loyal customers.”

Today, Big Taco customers count on Ceja for authentic Mexican cuisine and a cheerful greeting.

“He always makes the customers feel like a friend, making sure to give a wave or hello to everyone who walks in,” Guadalupe says. “Everyone who walks in the door asks if ‘Chuy’ is around because all of the customers enjoy seeing his big, friendly smile.”

The good vibes customers feel aren’t from Ceja alone— every employee is encouraged to bring a happy attitude.

“Customers always should get a happy greeting and a smile,” Ceja says. “In short, they should be treated as family.” Expecting staff to be cheerful requires them to be well cared for. Having worked his way up from the bottom, Ceja knows what they’re going through and always treats them with respect. In his 19 years at Big Taco, he has never fired an employee.

HONORABLE MENTION

The quotes are from the nominating forms submitted for each winner.

Alan De Santiago, La Frontera Restaurant and Mariscos 7 Mares, Jacksonville, Texas. “It was really hard at the beginning of COVID but he was positive and always working hard.”

Carlos Garcia, Plaza Garcia, Kirkland, Washington. “Un hombre trabajador honesto y responsable”.

Emmanuel Garcia, Casa Chapala Mexican Cuisine and Tequila Bar, Austin, Texas. “He listens to the staf and implements their ideas to make their jobs more rewarding, and bends over backwards to ensure guests enjoy every visit to our restaurant.” Paolo Ochoa, La Playa Mexican Café, • Harlingen, Texas. “Una de las cosas que me ha impresionado es que con esta prueba que hemos pasado desde que empezo el Covid 19 ha sido una persona consistente en su trabajo y no se me ha despegado para nada.” Luis Sinchi, Los Tapatios II, Vestal, New York. “During these trying times of Covid-19 he has worked 70+ hours every week since March just to make sure the restaurant would be able to survive these crazy times we live in now.”

Victor Ramos, Molino’s Mexican Cuisine, Wichita, Kansas. “Es un manager comprometido con la organizacion…un orgulloso padre trabajador, amoroso y alguien extremadamente comprometido con la compania.”

Victor Sanchez, Casa Mexicana, Bellevue, Ohio. “Victor comes in every day with a smile on his face. He never complains about his job and goes above and beyond to make his employees happy and healthy.” Donaciano de la Rosa Vãsquez, El Maguey, Indianapolis. “Muy responsable, ejemplar, efciente, me gustó mucho que nos apoyara al cien por ciento durante la pandemia.”

Antonio Zarate, Que Bueno Mexican Grill, Denver. “Antonio spends his entire daily shift coaching and teaching, ensuring everyone around him is given appropriate attention and room to grow.”

Jason Harris, Felipe’s Mexican Taqueria, New Orleans. “I am most impressed with Jason’s ability to develop some of our strong hourly leaders into Managers.”

Michael Lishack, Elephant and the Dove, Clay, New York. “He is completely focused on guest satisfaction from the moment they walk in the door until he personally thanks them for visiting us.”

Jose Luis, Plaza Santa Fe, Woodinville, Washington. “We are honored to have him work for us every day from morning to evening with a great attitude to come in and work hard.”

Federico Mendiola, Frontera Grill, Chicopee, Massachusetts. “He is a great leader with the staf back and front, and he cares about quality and excellent service.”

Jorge Munoz, Felipe’s Taqueria, New Orleans. “Jorge is an extremely afable individual, who you not only respect, but genuinely care about.”