Stephen Montoya
Fort Worthian Victor H. Cervantes is admittedly new to the restaurant business. What he isn’t new to though is being in the kitchen. Cervantes, originally from Mexico, says he learned a lot about how a business works by watching his own mother nicknamed Concha, prep tamales for the holidays out of his family’s home. But this isn’t the only legacy he is honoring at his new restaurant named Hugo’s 5 De Mayo Bar and Grill located at 1521 North Main Street. Besides being inspired by his mother, Cervantes says he bought this spot to honor the former Chuyito’s Texican Burgers and Cantina owner and a few employees that were all his friends growing up. In fact, this new spot has a mural dedicated to them on the southeast wall of this eatery in the outdoor patio area.
“I would always look over at this property and wonder what would become of it when I would drive by,” Cervantes says. “Next thing you know I was calling the realtor to get things started.” After going through the process to open this new business a few months back, Cervantes says he has been trying out a few new menu items to see if it fits with his clientele’s palettes. This nudge, he says, is, in essence, a nod to his mother.
Stephen Montoya
“I may be new to this style of business, but I know my way around Mexican Food,” he says emphatically. The way Cervantes puts it, his mom, who was an in-home entrepreneur, sold tamales out of his family’s kitchen during the fall to make extra money.
“It was beautiful the way we were raised because when she would prep for a tamale sale, she would put everything on the kitchen table like on an assembly line and make a huge amount of food,” he says.
Before she would sell a single tamale, Cervantes says, his mom would stack a bunch of them in a giant canister and feed him, his siblings, and his cousins down the road as an expression of her love. “She always made sure we were fed first,” he says. “We didn’t have a lot of money when I was growing up — what got us through was my mom’s cooking.”
It’s this fond memory along with his loyalty to his late friends, that Cervantes says has given him the inspiration to try new things. And over the next year, that is exactly what he has in mind.
Currently, Hugo’s menu consists of fan favorites like street tacos, birria tacos, chicken wings, hamburgers, and loaded nachos. But the real goal, he says is to add some of the cuisine his mother taught him and his sisters, who work in the kitchen, how to cook and sell.
“I knew opening up this restaurant that I was going to get a lot of its established customers coming in,” he says. “I know they are used to the wings and hamburgers, but if you give me a year, it’s going to have 75% to 90% of Mom’s stuff.” This includes homemade menudo, frijoles rancheros, and tamales, he verifies. But this isn’t to say that Cervantes isn’t proud of his current menu which boasts a great Tex-Mex Burger made with a beef patty covered with ham and avocado served with a side of garnish.
Stephen Montoya
“The ham is a style that, when you go to Mexico where we are from, is always coupled with the burger,” he says. “The ham is what really makes the whole thing come together.”
As for this new establishment’s name, it has more to do with a popular dance hall in Mexico than it does with the holiday.
“The 5 De Mayo was a popular dance hall in Mexico that would host some really good entertainers back in the 50s and 60s,” Cervantes says. “It was owned by my uncle and everybody, including my mom worked in it.” Cervantes verified that his grandmother had a small food truck outside of the hall, which is where his mom learned her culinary skills.
“I look back now and realize how lucky we were to learn from my Mom,” he says. “I want this place to honor that tradition and, in some way,, keep the memory of my friends alive.”
