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August 14, 2002
Willow Glen, California Since 1992 |
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Photograph by Dustin Cohen
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The Basics: Laticia Chapa prepares burritos
at El Dorado Taqueria, on the corner of
Meridian and Hamilton avenues.
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Taqueria El Dorado owners blend food, fun and
service
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Staci L. Jameson
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Three years ago the owners of Taqueria El
Dorado opened the restaurant's doors to the
public with one goal—to turn Willow Glen
residents on to authentic Mexican food.
And with the lines of people constantly
gathering at the taqueria, they appear to
have succeeded.
What's more, Pedro Chapa, Jose Rodriguez,
Louis Bardalles and Manuel Villa—along with
their wives and families—say they are still
having fun serving the customers.
Taqueria El Dorado, 1594 Meridian Ave., at
the intersection of Hamilton and Meridian
avenues, is Chapa's first restaurant. He
moved here from Mexico 34 years ago.
"It's a lot of hard work, but my partners and
I think that our customers are worth it,"
Chapa says. " We make sure that when the
customer comes in they have a clean
restaurant to eat in and service that pleases
them."
The customers of Taqueria El Dorado seem as
loyal to the owners as the owners are to
them.
"For our third anniversary, one of our
regular customers took a picture and put it
on a plaque as a gift to us," Chapa says. "It
was a very nice thing to do for us."
The restaurant has many regulars, and, Chapa
says, because the menu remains constant, the
customers know the quality will also be the
same.
The only thing that ever changes on the menu
is the tortillas—which are made on the
premises on Saturdays and Sundays.
The restaurant's menu offers a wide variety
of Mexican foods, and the portions are large
enough to satisfy most any appetite. All of
the dinner platters at the restaurant are
served with rice and beans. Most of the items
on the menu can also be ordered a la carte.
"I think that our house specialty would have
to be the carne asada dinner platter. That's
steak served with rice, beans and tortillas,"
Chapa says.
Another popular item is the super burrito
Ahogado—a very large burrito covered in an
enchilada sauce and then finished off with
cheese on top. For those who can't eat the
"super" there are regular-sized portions as
well.
Along with the dinner menu, the restaurant
has a breakfast and lunch menu that is
available to its customers throughout the
day.
"If a customer comes in at 6 p.m. and wants a
breakfast burrito, we'll make it for them.
And if they want the barbacoa dinner platter
at 9 a.m., we'll make that for them, too,"
Chapa says. "You have to accommodate your
customers—what they want, when they want it
and the best quality. That's what they'll
come back for."
Vegetarian and children's dishes are also
available.
"We have a lot of families that come in, and
the kids enjoy Mexican food. We have some
Mexican soft drinks that most kids have never
tried, and that's fun for them," Chapa says.
The restaurant also offers a catering
service.
"We cook the food, we deliver it and, if the
customer makes the arrangements, we can also
do the serving. Not long ago one of the local
Mexican radio stations rented our entire
restaurant for their company party," Chapa
says. "That was a big success and everyone
enjoyed the food."
As an added convenience to the customer,
every item on the menu is available for
take-out as well.
Taqueria El Dorado, 1594 Meridian Ave., is
open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The restaurant is closed on major holidays.
For take-out orders, call 408.264.3232.
Orders can also be faxed to 408.978.5043.
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