El Chico (restaurant) facts for kids
El Chico is a popular restaurant chain found in the southern parts of the United States. The very first restaurant opened its doors in 1940. It was located in Oak Lawn, a neighborhood in Dallas, Texas. Today, there are many El Chico restaurants. They serve a variety of tasty Tex-Mex dishes. Tex-Mex food is a delicious mix of Mexican and American cooking styles.
The Story of El Chico Restaurants
The El Chico restaurant chain began with a simple idea. A woman named Adelaida "Mama" Cuellar made amazing homemade tamales. She sold these delicious tamales at a county fair in 1926. People loved her food so much!
Just two years later, Mama Cuellar opened her own small restaurant. It was called Cuellar's Cafe and was located in Kaufman, Texas. Later, her sons opened another cafe in Dallas. They used all of Mama's special recipes.
One unique El Chico restaurant was located at the Six Flags Over Texas amusement park. This park was owned by Angus G. Wynne, who was Mama Cuellar's husband's employer.
A person named Joe V. Carvajal was very important to El Chico's success. He helped many El Chico restaurants grow in the 1960s and 1970s. He also introduced a new dessert to Tex-Mex and American food. This dessert was the sopapilla. Sopapillas are yummy, puffy fried pastries, often served with honey.
