FAMILY-OWNED AVILA’S EL RANCHITO CELEBRATES 40 YEARS IN NEWPORT BEACH
Three Generations of the Avila Family Commemorates Four Decades in the Community with a Series of Throwback Thursday’ Events Starting April 2, 2015
Avila’s El Ranchito, the largest family-owned and operated group of Mexican restaurants in Southern California, is excited to celebrate four decades of providingexcellent cuisine and service to the Newport Beach community with a series of Throwback Thursday’ events beginning Thursday, April 2, 2015. All month long, the Newport Beach location on the Balboa Peninsula (2800 Newport Blvd., Newport Beach) will be throwing it back to 1975 and offering lunch and dinner items from the original menu for prices from 40 years ago. ‘We wanted to celebrate El Ranchito’s 40th Anniversary in Newport Beach in a big way, and we thought honoring our roots and humble beginning was the best way to do that, says Sergio Avila, owner of the Newport Beach location and one of the second generation of restaurateurs in the Avila family. ‘We are so excited to be celebrating 40 years in Newport Beach, and look forward to 40 more! Items on the Throwback Thursday’ special menu will rotate every week in April, and example dishes include the Carnitas and Mama Avilas’ Soup, as well as combination plates, all created by Mama Avila -all are priced at under $6. Salvador Avila, the patriarch of the Avila family, came to the United States with his wife, Margarita, and children from Guanajuato, Mexico. Margarita Avila, known as Mama Avila, created the items on El Ranchito’s traditional and comforting menu. The Avilas opened their first El Ranchito restaurant in Huntington Park in 1966. After four decades of hard work, Avila and their children (and grandchildren) now own and operate one of the most well-known and successful Mexican restaurant groups (11 total) in Southern California – and nearly all of the members of the three generations of Avilas in the region a total of 40 are involved in the family business. The Newport Beach location was founded in 1975 by Salvador and Margarita’s son, Sergio Avila, in the original Cannery Village District, which then was a hub for the local fishing industry. In fact, the Avilas established El Ranchito Newport Beach in a former fish market that had been operating since the 1920s.Today, El Ranchito Newport Beach is one of the few remaining restaurants with the original owners in the area, an achievement of which the Avila family is proud. In addition to serving delicious Mexican food with welcoming service, the Avila family also has provided jobs for the Orange County community over the past 40 years. The Avila family continues to support thecommunity by hosting various fundraisers for local philanthropic organizations. For example, each month in 2015, El Ranchito will donate $1 from every featured Margarita ordered to a local charity that its employees support, including CHOC Hospital in March, OrangeWood Women’s Shelter in September, and Hoag Hospital Breast Cancer Center in October, among others.
This family-oriented atmosphere is one of the many reasons for the restaurant’s loyal staff several employees have been at the Newport Beach location since it was founded in 1975. The Avila Family also owns a second Newport Beach location – El Ranchito Corona del Mar. ‘At El Ranchito, our employees are like family, says Maribel Avila, daughter and business partner of owner Sergio Avila. ‘We invite them to our dinners where Mama Avila still consults on what the menu will be, and now we are donating to various charities they support. We are trying to give them everything the Avila family provided for our generation.
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