MIDLAND, Texas — On the corner of South Colorado and West Wall St., you've probably heard about the Cancun Grill.
It's one of the more popular spots to eat in Downtown Midland. But why is that?
Well, in this heart of downtown, it beats of how this popular grill got it's start.
"It was in a smaller version on Big Spring street… we moved here in 2007, but we didn’t move here, we moved to where the kitchen is," Owner Nemecio Torres said. "We worked there for six years, and then in 2013, that’s when we made our expansion.”
By "we", Torres means his brother, who helped him open the Cancun Grill in 2005.
It was always a goal of his to open up his own restaurant.
“Having been in the restaurant business for 21 years already, I’ve always dreamed about having my own restaurant," Torres said. "I talked to my brother and we decided to do it. We started very very small and now, it’s one of the largest restaurants in Midland."
But food isn't just a job for him, it's a passion that has been cooking even before he planted his roots here.
"That’s what drives me, this is my life," Torres said. "I’ve been doing this since I came to the United States since 1983 and this is the only thing that I know how to do.”
All that hard work and passion isn't exclusive to the Cancun Grill.
It is only a part of a large society of Hispanics and Mexican-Americans here in Midland. All of whom represent a culture of hard work, persistence and ultimately, success.
“We came here to work, and more and more I see more successful Mexican-American or Hispanics in the area,” Torres said.
That Hispanic culture is cooked right into the food at the Cancun Grill.
Taking the food that people know and love here in the United States and introducing it to the flavors and spices found only south of the border.
“My food is a new fusion," Torres said. "What I do here is good old American food with our flavors, with Mexican flavors. That’s what Cancun Grill is.”
The most popular item on the menu? Steaks. Up to 170 pounds of meat are sold a week.
Those numbers wouldn’t be so high if it weren’t for the taste of authentic flavors.
“We use a lot of roasted chilis. I don’t use powders, I use roasted chilis, we roast our own chilis in the back. and we use a lot of that in our recipes," Torres said. "When you put roasted chilis in a steak, while you’re eating, you’re smelling all the natural flavors of the chilis. That is the difference between good cuisine and cuisine they like to do the lazy way.”
Because in this heart of downtown, it beats a love of good cuisine, determination and culture.
Those are the real ingredients that make up the success of the Cancun Grill.
“We started with only 12 tables. Now I got 40 some tables in our dining room, and we did it by doing it right," Torres said. "By working hard and trying to stay consistent. Consistency pays off if you do it with your heart.”