In late September, 19-year-old Eric Flores and his family launched their new food truck, Taqueria Chelita, in Cordova. 

Flores’ parents are immigrants from Estado de Mexico, one of the Mexican states, and it’s been the family’s dream to open their own place since they moved to Memphis 12 years ago. But they are hardly alone as Latin American-inspired restaurants and food trucks materialize around the city. 

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Mexican restaurateurs who have already established themselves in town are expanding, and immigrant families are finding it a better time than ever to open a business.

Guac Fresh Mex opened in the Medical District in October. A fourth location of the extended Los Comales family of Memphis Mexican restaurants also opened in October at 345 Madison Ave. Taco Cat, a popular food truck, was opening its first brick-and-mortar location on Germantown Parkway in November. Tekila Modern Mexican, which first opened in Southaven’s Silo Square, is opening its first Memphis location in the Nineteenth Century Club building on Union Avenue. And Manuel Martínez, 46, the owner of the popular Maciel’s Tortas and Tacos, plans to open a new restaurant, with more of an emphasis on tacos, early next spring. 

Martínez is originally from Morelia in Michoacán, Mexico, and moved to Memphis 15 years ago after his brother encouraged him to do so. After several bouts in construction and restaurants, Martínez decided to open Maciel’s first location Downtown in 2015.

“It’s really cool, man. I never thought I’d find a place that felt like home,” Martínez said of Memphis.

He noted the kindness of people and the weather as similarities Memphis shares with Morelia, as well as the amount of Mexican restaurants.

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“There’s a taco truck on every corner,” he said. “One thing to know about the Hispanic community is that we like to grow, and the way we know to grow ourselves is to invest in something.”

Food as an entry point

Memphis is a city known more commonly for its barbecue and chicken wings. But there is perhaps an opportunity for more. 

Between 2010 and 2020, Memphis’ Hispanic and Latino population grew from 41,994 to 47,896 — the largest growth of any local demographic — according to the U.S. Census. Today, Hispanic and Latino people are estimated to make up 7.7% of Memphis’ total population. As that number has climbed, so has the number of Mexican and other Latin American-inspired restaurants in the city.

“When you start talking about culture, food is the first entry people feel the most comfortable exploring,” said Mauricio Calvo, executive director of nonprofit organization Latino Memphis. “These outlets are economic drivers. Most of these restaurateurs weren’t chefs in their own countries. They need to make it here and we love food, so that’s how it starts.” 

“Most of these restaurateurs weren’t chefs in their own countries. They need to make it here and we love food, so that’s how it starts.”

Mauricio Calvo
executive director, Latino Memphis

As the non-Latino white population has steadily declined in Memphis over the past 20 years, the Hispanic and Latino population has boomed. According to Southern Foodways Alliance, an institute within the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi, white flight out of Memphis made room for immigrant communities to flourish in Berclair, Hickory Hill and Nutbush. It’s also led to a burgeoning economy of Hispanic and Latino businesses on Summer Avenue.

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Today, those businesses are expanding past Summer Avenue, to neighborhoods across the city. It’s evidence, according to Calvo, that Latino immigrants are finding prosperity in Memphis.

When asked why Memphis specifically has become such a cultural enclave for the Hispanic and Latino communities, Calvo thinks the reason is as much social as it is economic.

“In a very Memphis way, the African-American community recognizes their own struggles and have been very empathetic to immigrants,” Calvo said.

“The South is also very religious,” he continued, noting that some Memphians’ conservatism might be overpowered by their Christian compulsion to love thy neighbor. “This only spices things up around here, in terms of food.”

A family and a truck

For some new business owners, food trucks provide a viable alternative to brick-and-mortar restaurants. Calvo also thinks the food truck experience resonates and is particularly alluring to the contemporary foodie crowd. 

“I was looking at a Campbell’s commercial from years ago that said, ‘We assure you no human hand has touched your food.’ But now, you would never be excited about Campbell’s soup,” Calvo said. “People want farm-to-table; they want a little dirt. So, they get excited about (food trucks).”

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Flores and his family recently opened Taqueria Chelita beside an Exxon gas station at 1375 N. Germantown Parkway. Flores was born in South Carolina; his family moved in 2011 and have worked in hospitality and catering since they came to Memphis. 

“My parents have a passion for cooking Mexican food because they are proud of where they came from and have the ambition to show their work,” Flores said.

Everything his mother makes from scratch comes from his grandmother’s recipes. 

Flores, who speaks both English and Spanish fluently, mans the ordering window with his older brother while his mother does prep and his father and younger brother cook. He said business has been good and people have been returning, but the biggest challenge has been to keep Taqueria Chelita’s food and hours consistent, especially in the face of competition. As of now, Taqueria Chelita is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m, and until 11 p.m. on the weekends.

“It’s getting competitive. There used to be two or three Mexican restaurants. Now there are, like, five to seven in this area,” Flores said.

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Happy Mexican, a local chain, recently opened a fourth location down the street from Taqueria Chelita.

Flores and his family all work 12 or more hours per day to keep their food truck running, but they’re optimistic about the future of the business. Like Taco Cat and El Mero before them, they hope to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant as soon as they can somewhere in town.

“As long as you’re working for yourself, you’re more motivated to work. I don’t really feel tired,” Flores said. “There’s no better way than working with your family.”