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BUSINESS
TheMesaTribune.com
THE MESA TRIBUNE | SEPTEMBER 5, 2021
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Salvadoreno prizes cuisine with �lavor BY MELODY BIRKETT Tribune Contributor
Karlos Ramirez said his Salvadoreno Restaurant in Mesa focuses on flavor rather than spiciness. (Melody Birkett/
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he Salvadoreno Restaurant in Mesa Southern has been serving up traditional Salvadoran food since 2002. Originally owned by his parents, Karlos Ramirez has owned it for the last 11 years and will soon be opening a new location near Baseline and Hardy roads in Tempe. Other family members own several other locations, with the same name throughout the Valley along with one in California. The big difference between Salvadoran food and other cuisines is the �lavor, he said. “We’re not focused on everything being spicy,” said Ramirez. “We do have some spicy things but our main focus is �lavor. Some items with a Mexican �lare include the fajita trio with steak, chicken and shrimp and tacos. “A lot of people compare Salvadoran
Tribune Contributor)
food to Caribbean Latin food, Puerto Rican food, Dominican Republic, Cuban, and even South American food once they try it. We do get mistaken for Caribbean Mexican but
Mesa restaurant “elevates” tacos and hot dogs in style BY MELODY BIRKETT Tribune Contributor
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aymond Jimenez opened Tacos & Hot Dogs Los Mayitos in Mesa in April 2021 with an eye toward elevating diners’ taco and hotdog experiences. The restaurant serves up more Sonoranstyle food but Jimenez said the birria (Mexican stewed meat) recipes are from the family in Tijuana. “It’s not spicy but it has a lot of �lavors,” said Jimenez. “We have quesabirriam which people love. It’s basically a tortilla dipped into a thick red sauce with our special cheese and meat. We start early in the morning around 4 am to start cooking it up. It takes about six to seven hours.” American favorites with a twist include hot dogs, hamburgers and French fries. No seafood is served but chicken, beef and pork. “We elevated it a little bit but people seem
to like the twists we’ve done with things,” said Jimenez. “As far as our Sonoran hot dogs, we have one with chili (ChileDOGO) and we have a pregnant dog (Dogo Ebarazado) stuffed with cheese and wrapped in bacon. People love that one.” For those with less-than-elevated tastes, the restaurant near Gilbert and Broadway roads will accommodate customers’ tastes. “We can do anything custom-made because everything is fresh,” said Jimenez. “We don’t have anything pre-made. We don’t freeze anything. Everything is handmade and made the day of.” His mother-in-law and wife do a lot of the
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Raymond Jimenez says people like his unique spins on classic comfort food like tacos and hotdogs. (Melody Birkett/Tribune Contributor)
in the end, we’re more focused on the �lavors and seasonings.” Seasonings include chipilin, a leaf in El Salvador. “It’s actually grown in all of Central America,” explained Ramirez. “It has 180 percent vitamin C. We speci�ically put that in our soups. Then we have a tamale we put that in.” Another seasoning the restaurant uses is the �lower Loroco. “It’s an edible �lower in El Salvador, kind of like artichoke,” Ramirez said. “It actually has a similar texture and �lavor. We mix it with the cheese to make our pupusas. It leaves off a little bit of a salty, grainy �lavor. It’s really delicious.” Pupusas are popular in El Salvador, according to Ramirez, and are a big seller at his restaurant. Basically, it’s kind of like our hot dog or
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