‘Save El Azteca’: Supporters band together to bring back the beloved Provo restaurant
When it comes to authentic Mexican cuisine in Provo, El Azteca has been a go-to local fixture for the last 53 years. Originally opened in 1962, a recent announcement on Facebook let the restaurant’s fans know the location will be closing its doors permanently at the end of September.
The Smokey-Citrus Chicken Salad, left, and other popular entrees from El Azteca Mexican Taco Shop in Provo, Monday, May 9, 2011.
In September, Provo’s El Azteca closed its doors permanently, leaving fans and friends alike dismayed at the sudden departure of their favorite Mexican restaurant. It’s didn’t take long for those supporters to band together, though, launching an effort to bring back the beloved restaurant in any form possible.
“Local food establishments are an important part of a city’s culture and identity, and it’s sad when one that has been part of the community for so long goes away,” said Jeff Whitlock, a longtime fan of the restaurant, and one of the ones spearheading the effort to bring it back. “You can get Panda Express in any city in the United States, but you could only get El Azteca in Provo.”
As some background, El Azteca was a Provo fixture for 53 years, with the business run by and handed down to members of the same family. Though a second El Azteca restaurant remains open in Orem, according to the Provo restaurant owner, Carlos Rubio, it’s run by different family members and is an entirely separate business with its own menu and recipes.
“I think it’s literally the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make in my life,” Rubio said after the announcement to close the Provo location was made. “It’s killing me, but I have to be realistic.”
According to Rubio, despite community support, the income of the restaurant was just not high enough to make it self-sufficient any longer.
“I had to sort of put the family aspect of it and the history aspect of it behind me and look at it only as a business, and as a business, it’s just not making it on its own,” Rubio said, in a September interview.
The income issue is just one problem El Azteca fans are working to solve to hopefully help the business re-open its doors.
“There is a grass-roots movement afoot to ‘Save El Azteca,'” Natalie Whitlock, another restaurant supporter, said in an email to the Daily Herald. “My son, Jeff Whitlock, spoke with the owner Carlos Rubio. He said that even though he made the agonizing decision to close after having the business in his family for 53 years, he still wants to run El Azteca and thinks about re-opening daily.”
According to Natalie the goal is two-fold and quite simple. First, to help Rubio find a smaller and less-expensive retail space, and second, to gather enough support that the restaurant will have a strong customer base to make it profitable if it were to reopen.
Those wanting to join the effort have been flocking to the ”Save El Azteca” Facebook group, where members have been tossing around ideas ranging from an El Azteca food truck to bottling and selling some of the restaurant’s more popular sauces.
“I’m guessing that the longer we take to succeed in this effort, the less likely we are to be successful (Carlos will move on), so let’s rally and get this done!” Jeff Whitlock shared on the Facebook group in November.
Though the holiday season and the travel schedules of many locals have put a sort of hold on the effort, Jeff said he plans to pushing things again in January.
“(El Azteca) was our favorite restaurant in Provo,” Whitlock said, referring to himself and his wife. “We had our Valentine’s Day dinner there this year. It was also one of the places we would take people visiting from outside the city — that’s how my Mom came to know about it.”
Many in Provo echo his sentiment, as evidenced by 100 members joining the “Save El Azteca” Facebook group within the first two hours of it being shared.
“I think lots of folks out there in Utah County would love to not only hear about this, but help out!” Whitlock’s mother, Natalie, said in her email.
For those wanting more information on the “Save El Azteca” effort or hoping to show their support for Rubio, the Save El Azteca page can be found at this link: http://on.fb.me/1khtirU.