Mitla Cafe in San Bernardino marks 80th year

The Milta Cafe, one of the oldest Mexican restaurants in the Los Angeles metro area, market its 80th birthday earlier this month.

According to the San Bernardino County Sun, the San Bernardino restaurant marked the milestone with a banquet attended by 200 longtime patrons, family members and musician Poncho Sanchez. Commemorative pins, mugs and shot glasses were made for the event.

Multiple people have worked at the restaurant for decades, including one since 1950. And many families have long links to the restaurant, too. Patti Oquendo is the mother of co-owner Steve Oquendo. Her grandmother founded the Mitla Cafe in 1937.

Here’s an excerpt from the story that helps explains the restaurant’s durability:

Derrick Vasquez, a regular who helped update the restaurant earlier this year, said Friday no restaurant can touch Mitla’s chili relleno – or tacos, for that matter.

But good food isn’t why he keeps coming back.

“Everyone experiences a very homey feeling here,” Vasquez said. “You see people you’ve crossed paths with in life. We were brought here in high school, as children, and then we started bringing our children here.

“It’s like going to mom’s house, to grandma’s house, for dinner.”

One thing the article neglected to mention: The Mitla Cafe sparked the inspiration for the worldwide Taco Bell restaurant chain.

Gustavo Arellano’s excellent book, “Taco USA,” describes the link in detail. But we’ll let Eater Los Angeles explain what happened with Gus Bell:

Bell, as legend holds, watched lines form for the cafe’s signature ten cent tacos dorados, a thinly fried tortilla shell lined with simple meats, shredded cheese and diced tomatoes. The entrepreneur befriended staff and family alike, working his way into the kitchen in order to decipher the secrets behind the beguiling taco that was proving so popular in what was then San Bernardino’s barrio district. Bell wanted in on the blossoming Southern California fast food trend, and he bet successfully that even non-Mexicans would bite on the concept of casual, toned down tacos. […]
You can still get those crispy tacos, by the way, ground beef and all. They bear a striking resemblance to Taco Bell’s own concoction, just as they have for nearly 80 years. But they’re made to order at Mitla, served with a side of community, respect and history.

Having eaten the Mitla Cafe’s tacos, I understand why Gus Bell was so enamored with them.

(Excerpted image of the Mitla Cafe in San Bernardino, California, via Google Street View)

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