El Cuchillo Burger and Pepitos is found on Boulevard Tomas Fernandez in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua. It's quickly creating a buzz as it approaches it's grand re-opening in October. El Cuchillo is not your typical fast-food burger joint. Everything is made in-house and with very fresh ingredients. It's the perfect place to go to when you are craving both a burger and a nice cold drink. I recently got the chance to talk to Alex Vargas, the new owner of this specific El Cuchillo location. There are currently two locations in Juarez and one in Chihuahua. Alex is very excited for this grand re-opening and he has lot's of great new ideas for this location. I am sure excited about it and I think everyone will enjoy. He mentioned how there is a bar and patio outside, which he hopes people will make the best use out of and a enjoy a nice drink from their menu. He wants it to be a cool environment where people of all ages can go to! Alex also mentioned how he has many projects in mind for the restaurant including brunches and a collaboration with El Rey Restaurant and Bar in front of El Chuchillo so people can bar hop in a safe and fun way! El Cuchillo is honestly at a fantastic location and the menu is delicious! Just look at the pictures down below! I hope people can go try it out and have a good time! Make sure to follow El Cuchillo on Instagram to see what they have going on! @elcuchilloburgers
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I wanted something to represent me and my roots."Boxha Coffee House is located on the corner of 2430 North Mesa perfectly located near the University of Texas at El Paso. Boxha Coffee House is literally a little house that been remodeled in what it is now. Upon entering one can see the a small Mayan-inspired mural on the left and a nice sitting area on the right and the ordering station at the center. The rest of the "house" is split into three other rooms that have each been uniquely decorated. It includes books, a neon sign and paintings. It truly is the perfect place to have a coffee, brunch or even a glass a wine with some friends or while studying! It is also the "Instagram perfect" coffee joint. This place already has specialties like their brunch items, their chocolate tamale dessert and their cold brew! Centered on community, Boxha has been open for about a month now and it's now starting to grow to a point where small events can be hosted there. That includes occasional live music, beer and wine yoga classes, pop-ups and even art classes. I had the opportunity to have a conversation with Pedro Pablo Valdez, owner of Boxha to talk about what the name is and why he decided to open a coffee shop. Pedro started off by saying, "we are local but I am brining in this idea where anyone can come in. We offer lots of things. What we are trying to do is bringing in people closer as a community. A place where EVERYBODY is welcomed and nobody is going to be judged. We are trying to do do all these classes (yoga, art, ect) because not only do we want for the community to come, but they can learn from us as well." It's his way of saying that he created this space so people would not be afraid to learn and feel comfortable at the same time. I then asked him why he decide to name the coffee house "Boxha" and his decision to make it the way it is. "I started two years ago with the idea, but I am going to start off with the name. Boxha, which is pronounced "Botch-ha" means coffee in Mayan and I wanted to open up a coffee shop with this concept. I wanted to do something modern like the decoration and the neon sign, but also something vintage and clean which is why I have the couches and why I chose white walls." Pedro also added that this building or house that Boxha is was built in 1906 and it has been remodeled to be what it is now. He added that he wanted to bring European concepts as well which is why he has wine and tapas on the menu, but his main focus is the Mayan theme for the coffee house because he is Mexican. "I tried to do something that is meaningful. You know, I am fully Mexican and I wanted something with the Mexican culture, which explains the Mayan theme. The name came first and then the logo came next. We also created this image of the "God of Coffee", which is something we invented for Boxha." After a quick conversation on other topics, Pedro then went on to talking about the food menu at Boxha. "We have an everyday menu that we have available Monday through Friday and then we have a brunch menu for Sunday, which is from 8am to 1pm." He mentioned that the menu has a variety of boards that have either ham, fruit or cheese or all. Their are also several items on the that are for vegetarians and vegans like their açaí bowls, salads and more! "One of our most popular items is the chocolate tamale, but we also have other dessert options like our muffins." He then touched on all the coffee and caffeine options available including their specialty: cold brew. Pedro also mentioned what makes their brunch menu so special which is their pancake selection that includes regular pancakes, almond-flour pancakes and cajeta pancakes. Not only that, but the chilaquiles options as well! Yum! Go follow Boxha Coffee house on Instagram @boxhacoffeehouse to keep up with what they have going on! Thank you! Right across the El Paso Public Library lies a quaint restaurant called DELIght. After eating there, I can confirm that it truly is a delight to eat there. It's quiet, the ambient is great, the staff is nice, and the food is delicious. After ordering a salmon salad and sitting on one of the high tables at the restaurant, I noticed the menu had a lot of different options, which is fantastic! There were soups, salads, sandwiches, burgers, shawarma's, and so much more. There is a little bit of everything for everyone! I recently spoke with Jose Gonzalez, the owner, so he could tell me about the restaurant and his vision for it. Jose started talking about how great he finds his job and that he has been working along with his head chef, Carlos Arzola, ever since opening up. Jose was quick to add that besides the different options on the menu, they all have a twist to them. "The aoli's are made in-house. Nothing here is from the "outside"." He added that his aoli's, seasonings, and all the dishes are made there at the restaurant. I asked Jose where the inspiration for the name of the restaurant came from and he said that when he was in college he had to do projects for future restaurants and things of that sort and that he came up with DELIght, which he liked and it stuck with him. He then went to saying that he started a project for a deli, which he wanted to try out and that he soon realized that there weren't any deli's downtown. "I wanted to try this because I noticed we didn't have deli's downtown. We used to have Kipp's and they closed down, so I thought "hey a new sandwich place will be great here". We even added Mediterranean food to the sandwich place." As a follow up, I asked him why he decided to add Mediterranean food and he said that, "I and the head chef used to work at Mediterranean restaurants so we picked up a few things here and there. Me, myself, I am pastry chef so I learned to do mostly pastry stuff." All these past jobs and experiences are what add that uniqueness to the menu and restaurant. "We also have home-made ice-cream, which is off the menu because it depends if we have it or not. We have a couple things here and there, which are specialty items as well. Carlos, our head chef, keeps adding great stuff to the menu. It depends what day we do it. We also have taquitos sometimes and they are not your regular kind. We sometimes make them out of lamb or duck." He added that the restaurant menu is changed every 6-8 months and it's no wonder why there is such a great variety in the food! The chefs have different backgrounds and it works exceptionally with the restaurant because it adds that flair and twist to the restaurant and it brings a "regular" dish to the next level. It's also cool that the menu is changed because it keeps it interesting for the chefs and for one as a consumer. Additionally, DELIght has specialty menus twice a month. They have a Salvadorian dinner which happens on a Saturday depending on when they announce it and they also have a wine night, which is a five-course dinner that's $65 per person and each course comes with a different wine. All those event's are announced on DELIght's facebook. Towards the end of the interview, as a fun fact, Jose added that back in the day the spot where the restaurant is located used to be a Walgreens pharmacy where they treated patients. "This building goes back to the 1920's. When we first got the building there were posters all over the wall of events that happened way back in the day. Sadly, we had to get rid of them because the brick looks super nice." A big thank you to DELIght for letting us do this article! Check them out and try their delicious food. Follow them on Facebook as: Delight Instagram: @delight_restaurant 502 N. Oregon El Paso, TX With community as one of the pillars of this establishment, it is no wonder why people have responded so well. Savage Goods is a new restaurant that has been open for about a month and it is full of wonderful options! From coffee to beer to desserts, it's the perfect place to come and chill or even do homework. Not only that, but it is family-friendly and the ambient is just lovely. It doesn't even feel like it's a restaurant in El Paso. When I went to Savage Goods, I felt like I was at a little restaurant in L.A. It also helps that the establishment is close to downtown El Paso and that it's in-between old/rustic-looking buildings giving it yet another "out-of-town" vibe. It definitely contrasts with the minimalistic interior of Savage Goods.
From day one that Savage Goods opened, there was "a line out of the door almost all day". What a great way to start off! I recently caught up with Michelle, where she gave me a little background story on what Savage Goods is and what makes it so special. After asking her what the goals for Savage Goods were and why they took this particular approach she said, "there were several driving forces there. One of our biggest values is community. While we love our foods and coffee, we want it to be a gathering space. We felt like we couldn't do that with just coffee. We wanted our food aspect, but we also wanted beer and wine. In the evening people like to wine down and go to the bar and have something to drink and gather there. That was important to us, so it became this full concept." She added that if it were just a bakery then they would target the morning crowd and if it were a bar then their target would mostly be the evening crowd. They want for people from all ages to gather at any time of the day and have a good time. "We did the Farmer's Market for four years. We had the food which is a big component, but we wanted a gathering space as well." They definitely achieved that. Most of the Savage Goods menu is plant based and the decision behind was that they wanted to be able to have options for everyone. For example if a group of friends go out to eat and one of them can't eat meat then the options are very limited. "They sometimes end up ordering a side salad or pizza with no cheese and it's a bummer. We don't want that. Food is a gathering piece and that was a driving force behind our menu. We have a lot of phenomenal options for people that can't eat meat or wheat." The menu is full of options for different times of the day as well. With community being a driving force/pillar of Savage Goods, simplicity and beauty are the other two. "We didn't want to over design it and we wanted this place to sort of evolve to where it needs to be." Michelle mentioned that they wanted it simple, clean, inviting and even versatile. She said the the furniture can all be moved and arranged in different ways for different occasions. For example having a big dance party or a live band in there. She said that that is what they envision for Savage Goods. They want to be able to use it in as many ways as possible. They hope to be able to host their own events in the future and also to be able to rent out the place for events for it is closed Saturday evenings and Sundays. Future events that Savage Goods wants to do are pizza nights and even Salsa nights with music and dancing. How fun! A big thank you to Michelle and Savage Goods! Go follow them on Instagram: @savagegoods Looking for some treats that will finally satisfy your sweet tooth? Let me tell you about this little treasure called Amapola Pastry Shop that will soon become the pastry shop of your dreams. Don't believe me? One try of Chef Weber's mouth watering desserts and you will fall in love. You can go find her treats at Amapola Pastry Shop located in Paseo de la Victoria #2118 in Ciudad Juarez. Chef Weber has been involved in the culinary world for quite some time, and after much debate about what she wanted to dedicate her time to, she finally decided to forge her path in the pastry world. If you ask her where her inspiration and drive comes from, she will be quick to tell you that her family has been a very important component in her journey. She learned her love for the kitchen from her father, and with the help of both her parents she has been able to open her own shop and do something she feels passionate about. You might be asking yourself, what makes Amapola Pastry Shop so different? Let me tell you, all of the different little details that this pastry shop perfects make this place unique, and quite frankly amazing. Chef Weber really talks about her love for her family, and how from there she has been able to continue with her passion. You can most definitely feel how this love for her desserts and her family translates into every single bite, and you will be left wanting more. Another really important detail is that Chef Weber makes sure every single dessert is freshly made daily. There is nothing that will be frozen or refrigerated from previous days. She stresses the importance of providing customers with the best quality of her product, and this means baking everything daily. The quality of the freshly made goods and the love that she puts into every single dessert take these deserts to the next level. Not only are you getting a freshly made, extremely delicious dessert, but you are also getting these goodies at an amazing price. Chef Weber makes sure to provide her customers with reasonable prices for these amazing treats! It's hard to find pastry shops around town, and when you do, you normally find outrageous prices, but at Amapola you can be sure that you will be getting your money's worth. If you're planning a trip soon (and really why wouldn't you?!) I highly recommend you try Amapola's specialty, the Lemon Bird. This lemon mousse goodness is to die for, and perfect for the summer heat giving you a very refreshing and satisfying aftertaste. You can also go and try a variation of cheesecakes, which let me tell you are all equally yummy! Honestly, it's definitely worth it to try every single item on the menu! If I've finally convinced you (and if I haven't just take a look at the yummy desserts!) go visit Chef Weber at Amapola Pastry Shop and fall head over heals with all her amazing treats! |
AuthorEstefania Archives
September 2018
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