Photo: Araceli Martinez Ortega / Impremedia
In 1923, when the couple Alejandro and Rosa Bórquez opened a Mexican food restaurant near the Los Angeles Coliseum, perhaps they never imagined that 100 years later their grandchildren and great-grandchildren will celebrate the first centenary of the business in 2023.
And wow, the El Cholo restaurant is here to stay in Los Angeles. Ron Salisbury, 90, along with his son Brendan, maintain the tradition of continuing to offer Mexican cuisine dishes with a flavor of tradition.
On its website, El Cholo presents the history of the restaurant. They evoke the couple Alejandro and Rosa Bórquez, originally from the state of Sonora, in Mexico, when in 1923 they decided to open the first family restaurant in Los Angeles, called Sonora Café, which would later change its name to El Cholo.
Related: ‘El Cholo’: a century of serving Mexican food in Los Angeles
Aurelia, daughter of Alejandro and Rosa, married George Salsbury and they were the ones who established the restaurant, in Moneta and Santa Bárbara (now Broadway and Martin Luther King).and in the first location they barely had a long counter and five wooden booths.
Among the clients of El Cholo there was Hollywood star Gary Cooper, who enjoyed eating flour tortillas with strawberry jam.
The name of the restaurant arose from a customer who came in for dinner, and while waiting he drew the figure of a man with a huge hat and called him El Cholo, which was what the Spanish settlers in California called their peonswhich Alejandro Bórquez liked and decided to change the name of Sonora Café to El Cholo Café.
The original restaurant is located at 1121 S. Western Avenue, but currently El Cholo has six other branches, in downtown Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Anaheim Hills, Corona del Mar, La Habra and Salt Lake City. in utah.
El Cholo offers Mexican appetizers like molcajete-style guacamole, quesadillas, nachos, and taquitos; even chicken enchiladas with blue corn tortillas, seafood enchiladas, burritos, carne asada, fajitas and the newest addition to the menu: mole enchiladas.
Who loves mole? ❤️
In honor of our 100th year we added Mole Chicken Enchiladas to our menu! 🔥 Made with slow braised shredded chicken, jack cheese, roasted chile and chocolate Mole. Come in and warm yourself up with the rich and authentic flavors of our NEW Mole Enchiladas! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/Vk82ZHRpwv– El Cholo Restaurants (@elcholo1923) March 14, 2023
And to accompany the appetizers and meals, nothing better than a good selection of tequilas, served as margaritas or in caballitos.
Over the decades though prices have changed compared to 1923the Salsbury family maintains the commitment to preserve the tradition of El Cholo in the quality of its food.
As recognition, the city of Los Angeles will name the intersection of Western Avenue and 11th Street after the restaurant’s founders.
In addition, to celebrate the first 100 years of El Cholo, it is intended to raise $1 million dollars to help in pediatric cancer research and the funds will be donated to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Children’s Hospital Orange County.
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