Company you work for and your position title
El Charro Cocina & Cantina, partner
Educational background
I was born in Nashville TN but practically, I was only there the first 72 hours of being born. While my mother was in her final trimester, my dad traveled up and down Interstate 40 from Nashville to Oxford, working on opening up his first-ever restaurant, El Charro, on Jackson Avenue. I was raised here in Oxford, MS, where I attended the Oxford School District. Upon graduating form Oxford High School, I attended Nrothwest Community College, followed by L’ecole Culinaire in Memphis, TN. This expanded my knowledge of the gastronomy side of running a business. Of course, they aren’t teaching you how to make queso and salsa, but they are measuring every cubed carrot!
What inspired you to take your career path?
Being a second-generation restauranteur, it seemed like the natural path to take. My parents, being from a small town in Jalisco, made this legacy my siblings and I wish to continue. It is an honor to continue expanding their name in the Oxford community as they successfully did throughout Tennessee and Mississippi.
What is the favorite part of your workday?
From being at El Charro as a kid to Casa Mexicana in 2015 to the new El Charro, I have only seen one thing: hard work! However, the most critical aspect of any business, in my opinion, is to have a good work dynamic. While I spend most of the hours of my day at the restaurant, my wife is holding the fort down back at home; kudos to her. Having a healthy, well-rounded environment around you is vital, from work to home. Our staff becomes like family, and we take each one from server to back of the house as one of our own. Our favorite part of the end of the night is the “debrief,” where we talk about how our shift was, personal life stories, and, most importantly, share laughs. I honestly always look forward to what we call the closing time dynamic – there’s nothing like it.
