Georgetown Edition | January 2022

DINING FEATURE Juan& Lupe’s Kitchen Family-run restaurant oers traditional Mexican fare B efore they opened Juan & Lupe’s Kitchen, there was the taco cart in Mexico, then the pizza place outside of Chicago, and nally a handful of restaurant jobs for the last seven years in and around Georgetown for Juan Andrade and Lupe Rodriguez. “We worked in a couple of places, just learning recipes and about [the area],” Andrade said. “But then we found this place, and now we’re here full time.” Located at 4701 Williams Drive, in between Sun City and I-35, the brick-orange facade of Juan & Lupe’s Kitchen is easy to spot at the front of a multi-building oce complex that also features Simmer Down Cafe. The menu is built on Rodriguez’s own cache of recipes collected through the years, starting in the Mexican state of Morelos, just south of Mexico City. In addition to favorites such as cecina and birria, it also features chorizo and chicken tinga. Most of the proteins are prepared with little to no spice, leaving salsas of jalapeno or arbol chile to add a kick when desired. For instance, the dominant avor in Juan & Lupe’s chorizo is not red pepper, but cinna- mon, giving it a latent sweetness that could appeal to an array of palettes. “These are very unique recipes for [Texas],” Andrade said. “We use cinnamon in the cecina, too, with apple cider vinegar.” In addition to an array of unique llings, Juan & Lupe’s Kitchen also has a more unique tortilla, a blend of corn and wheat our that creates a heartier vessel. “It’s [Rodriguez’s] recipe. We’ve had tacos in dierent places where [the tortilla] is broken, so she thought, ‘Why not add a little our to it?’” Andrade said. “She put it in, and people love it.” The family made the call to open their restaurant in early 2020 as the pandemic was beginning to drag on. It was a dicult decision for the family, but Andrade and Rodriguez have had plenty of help from their three children, Carlos, Adrian and Guadalupe. “People told me, ‘You’re crazy to try right now; wait until everything is open 100%.’” Andrade said. “Without [my children’s] help, I couldn’t do it. But you start when you start or you’ll never start.” The proverbial kitchen at Juan & Lupe’s is tucked into a corner of the dining room. It is a small space, but the family makes the most of it. “This kitchen is tough for everything. We need to come in at 7 in the morning every day to prep,” Andrade said. In addition to the tacos, Juan & Lupe’s Kitchen also serves tortas, a Mexican-style sandwich served on a telera roll, and breakfast tacos on Sunday mornings. BY EDDIE HARBOUR

Juan Andrade and Lupe Rodriguez run Juan & Lupe’s Kitchen with their three children. (Photos by Eddie Harbour/Community Impact Newspaper)

SOMETHING NEW The restaurant’s menu includes many items that American diners may not be unfamiliar with. Here is a look at some staples in Mexican cuisine on the menu.

Shrimp-chorizo taco with pumpkin seeds ($4.45)

The patio at Juan & Lupe’s Kitchen oers outdoor seating.

Cecina taco with charred lettuce ($3.95)

Pastor taco with cilantro and onions ($3.25)

Juan & Lupe’s Kitchen is located at 4701 Williams Drive, Bldg. 2, Georgetown.

Juan&Lupe’s Kitchen 4701 Williams Drive, Bldg. 2, Georgetown 512-819-1258 www.juanlupeskitchen.com Hours: Tue.-Sat. 11 a.m.-8 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m.-3 p.m., closed Mon.

GEORGETOWN EDITION • JANUARY 2022