Located in Bay Ridge Brooklyn is a small Mexican food restaurant that pops out with its teal exterior walls and bright blue frames. There is a main door used for entrance and exit but also a larger door that owners Luis and Veronica Felipe open in the summer time to allow the crisp air to roam through the restaurant. Inside the restaurant are more bright colors. The left wall is painted a bright blue but the right wall is painted an outstanding orange. Small novelty items such as sombreros and dolls fill the store as it provides the Mexican culture that surrounds the store. When Veronica is cooking, the savory smell of the meat grilling completely takes over the restaurant and teases my nose as if I wasn’t already hungry enough.
This little store is called Coszcal de Allende formerly known as Panchos. Luis and Veronica Felipe opened the restaurant in January of 2009. They had two other restaurants in Manhattan that they had to close down previous to this restaurant because of rise of the daunting rent prices. The Felipes could not afford to stay open and in 2005 and closed the two restaurants in Manhattan. After taking 5 years off of the restaurant business, Luis realized he wanted to open a restaurant again.
“We missed the restaurant business.” said Luis. “We found a spot in Brooklyn and decided to try again.”
Five years after their re-launch, Coszcal de Allende is doing well. They provide customers in the neighborhood with authentic Mexican cuisines but people will travel from other neighborhoods to enjoy Coszcal de Allende.
“Since we opened the bar recently, people have been coming from all over to eat here.” said Fabiola, daughter of the owners. “People from Park Slope and Sunset Park come over here through word of mouth to eat our food and drink at our bar.”
The previous unique name of their store, Panchos comes from the famous José Doroteo Arango Arámbula, better known by his nickname Pancho Villa. He was one of the most renowned Mexican Revolutionary generals. Pancho Villa fought for Mexican independence in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The Felipes wanted their restaurant to represent a strong and courageous man who fought for their country.
Recently, they changed their name to something that wouldn’t confuse the guest as much. People often mistook the name for a poncho that people wore in the rain. The Felipes changed the name to Coszcal de Allende.
“Coszcal means jewels in Aztec dialect and we’re from San Miguel de Allende, Mexico,” said Fabiola. “So jewels of Allende is the name we can up with.”
The Felipes are really proud of their culture and exemplify it in their business. They treat their customers with extreme kindness and use only authentic ingredients in their food. Their menu is completely in Spanish but don’t worry, if my four years of high school Spanish has taught me anything, it’s that pollo mean chicken and burritos is the same in English than it is Spanish. But don’t worry, the friendly wait staff are prepared to answer any and all of their customers’ questions.
When asked how their small business is able to survive against the big corporations and the recent recession, Fabiola responded by telling me how they run their business.
“We’ve always been a family business.” said Fabiola. “Everyone has their own little job. My dad is the handy man and fixes anything that broken. My mom is the chef and cooks all the food in the kitchen. I sometimes help her but now am mainly the bar tender but also do all the creative thinking.”
Everyone works hard and does their job to provide the best food and experience for their customers. Customers can view their menu on their website and call, order online for delivery or pickup or simply make a quick stop to the cute store to enjoy the authentic food. Chipotle doesn’t even put up a fight against Coszcal de Allende.