Dining
BY RACHEL LELAND
Las Anita’s Mexican Restaurant, which Carlos Zuniga opened with his two brothers in 2001, survived the challenges many restaurants su ered during the COVID-19 pandemic, but just six years later, it was forced to shut down due to a signi cant drop in customers. However, with strong community support, the restaurant reopened on Feb. 6, just six days after it closed its doors. The full story Zuniga said he wanted to continue serving the community, but the dip in revenue made it unpro table to keep the business open. The week before he closed the restaurant on Jan. 31, Zuniga had a candid conversation with his employees about the future of Las Anitas. “I talked to everyone here in my kitchen, all my employees, and I said … ‘It depends on how this week [goes] if we continue,’” Zuniga said. Zuniga said his restaurant had long supported local school programs and youth sports teams such as baseball, basketball, swimming and cheer. Zuniga announced the restaurant would close and on the last Saturday before closing, a crowd of people showed up to dine and asked him not to close the restaurant. “All the community came and said, ‘Please, we want you to stay,’” Zuniga said, estimating that the restaurant had 40 to 60 tables that day. Members of Zuniga’s church visited on the last day and, seeing the large number of customers, o ered to connect Zuniga with investors to keep the business open. Zuniga attributed the restaurant’s nancial challenges to competition with new restaurants in the area, slowdowns due to construction and loyal customers moving away. The details Las Anita’s Mexican Restaurant has two murals depicting pastoral scenes of Mexico, including one of a cathedral overlooking the small city of San Miguel de Allende. The mural on the oppo- site wall shows passengers boarding a bus in the mountains. The bus depicted is the one Zuniga’s father owned and drove for 20 years, transporting passengers along winding roads that connected Beloved Mexican restaurant in Seabrook reopens
Las Anita’s Mexican Restaurant serves Mexican dishes, such as ground beef enchiladas and pollo rumba.
PHOTOS BY RACHEL LELAND COMMUNITY IMPACT
Carlos Zuniga opened Las Anita’s Mexican Restaurant in 2001 with his two brothers.
Las Anita’s Mexican Restaurant features two murals depicting scenes from the Mexican state of Guanajuato.
small hillside towns. Zuniga’s father immigrated to the United States to work in California, while Zuniga and his two brothers moved to Texas to open the restaurant. Though his brothers have left to pursue other careers, the menu at Las Anitas includes several nods to family recipes, such as the charro beans and the mole sauce, which is made with a paste that the cooks elevate with special ingredients.
E . N A S A P K W
N
4624 E. NASA Parkway, Seabrook www.lasanitasrestaurant.com
25
BAY AREA EDITION
Powered by FlippingBook