New restaurant to open in Old Town this October
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Sergio and Veronica Mena are in the final stages of setting up their new restaurant in Old Town, “Ezra’s Taste of Home”.
Veronica, the mastermind cook behind the menu is no stranger to the restaurant business.
“I grew up being in restaurants all of the time,” Veronica said. “Cooking, helping them with their catering, serving — that’s pretty much how we got into the restaurant business.”
Although Veronica grew up with plenty of experience, it wasn’t her upbringing that sparked the idea for this new spot.
After a tragic event struck Veronica and her husband Sergio during the pandemic, they found a new motivation — it’s also the reason behind the name of the restaurant.
“The whole reason for our restaurant, we lost our son Ezra,” Veronica said. “So this is kind of a tribute to our son to keep his name alive.”
During the pandemic, Veronica and Sergio dealt with the stress of losing Ezra at birth along with the financial burden that COVID caused for many families.
“When our son passed, we had a really difficult time financially because it was the time of COVID so our hustle side came out and we started selling food out of our home,”Veronica said.
The Mena’s gained business from word-of-mouth and posting on their Facebook page. After business picked up from home, they saw a chance for a new opportunity in Old Town.
“Ezra’s Taste of Home” plans to be unique with authentic homemade Mexican food, late-night hours, a full bar, a Dia de Los Muertos theme, and other unique additions.
“We’re actually building an ofrenda, for whoever comes to our restaurant,” Veronica said. “If they have a loved one they want to place, they’re more than welcome.”
“An ofrenda is a place where you are going to be able to put your loved ones,” Sergio said. “And still honor them and show treatment to them.”
As Veronica and Sergio’s excitement builds, they say Ezra would have loved this place too.
“I think he would have loved this whole restaurant,” Veronica said.