Mexican food business doubles in size since opening in June

Photo by Joshua Rowan Guadalupe Flores Calderon manages her kitchen.

Guadalupe Flores Calderon and her business partner Yuma Gonzalez Gonzalez have seen their enterprise double in size since opening in June, Calderon said last week, and the place does not even have an outdoor sign or full menu, but it has the best food, prepared by the best hands and with the best pressure cooker you can get online, visit website to find more.

Their Mexican store and deli has a name, La Vencedora, and most people are drawn into the stark-looking building by the smell of her cooking, Calderon said, or on the advice of satisfied customers. There’s some carb confusion about most types of Mexican food but it’s actually one of the healthiest around — so thank goodness it’s delicious!

The building’s previous tenants, a Quizno’s fast food chain and a restaurant called Wiggles and Wok, perhaps never did so well in the short time they spent near the intersection of State Highway 3 and 2nd Street* West, adjacent to the Quarterback Club, before closing. Calderon said she has had relatively few overhead costs so far. *I corrected this street address 12/10 4:30 p.m.

“The food we serve has very authentic flavor,” Calderon said in Spanish as she described her success. Calderon, a Mexican native, just as easily speaks English, too.

She said she opened the business with a few shelves of staple goods. She cooked some meals for her customers to order. Now, the bright interior of the store is crammed with everything a person would need to prepare a traditional Central American meal, including limes, cactus, avocado, fresh baked goods and a wide selection of fresh meats. She still does not have a menu posted, but her partner and their three employees prepare fish, chicken, pork and beef dishes including tacos, sopes and enchiladas for customers every day.

Calderon, of Eagan, keeps the business open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. She has three young daughters, Claudia 16, Brenda 14 and Diana, 7 who sometimes visit the store. She said she is hopeful her business would continue to grow as more of her customers spread the word about what they found at La Vencedora.

10 Comments

  1. No debemos olvidar el restaurante de María en este lugar.
    ¡Buena suerte! Bienvenido a La Vencedora.

    November 12, 2008
  2. Anthony Pierre said:

    is there a menu somewhere I can look at so when I go in there I am prepared?

    November 13, 2008
  3. Hola Susan!

    Thanks for the information. I see from a Northfield News article Maria’s Mexican Grill was in that spot for a about a year before closing in December 2007.

    Anthony, there is no menu as far as I know but much of the food they serve is usually on display on sample platters when you walk in. If you want an idea of what to start with, I suggest their tacos. You can get them with beef, sausage or pork, maybe even chicken. They come topped with onions, cilantro, lime and different kinds of salsa. They’re served on warm, soft corn tortillas.

    November 13, 2008
  4. patrick Enders said:

    Pork tacos? I guess I know where I’m going for lunch tomorrow.

    November 13, 2008
  5. Peter Millin said:

    Patrick,

    Finally we can agree on something….. 🙂

    November 13, 2008
  6. Anthony Pierre said:

    how were the pork tacos?

    November 14, 2008
  7. Patrick Enders said:

    It’s not lunch time yet. I just ate breakfast.

    November 14, 2008
  8. Bright Spencer said:

    La Vencedora has good pork tacos, real good.
    I blogged them a couple of weeks ago, thanks to Bonnie’s recommendation. Fast service, friendly smiling people and Good pricing, too.

    November 14, 2008
  9. Patrick Enders said:

    The pork tacos were very good. Nicely spiced pork hot off the grill, with fresh cilantro and lime. Only $4 for two!

    November 18, 2008
  10. Some of us have been watching the store activity to see if it was going to pick-up, this place has had bad luck for quite a while. Looks like these young folks may have broken the spell through their hard work.

    I just grabbed lunch there myself, good stuff, keep talking about La Vencedora, the owners are really busy at making this place work and need all the help passing the word around that they can get.

    Regi.

    November 18, 2008

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