Mexican Restaurant To Open in Square

By EUGENIA B. SCHRAA

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

Three years ago, Joel “Joe” Espinoza wrote his final paper for a Harvard Extension School economic class about Mexican restaurants in New England, concluding that there is a potentially lucrative market for authentic fare in the region.

Short on cash, Espinoza decided to test his theory. And so he put his masters degree work in political science on hold, sold his Mercedes and put the money into opening Real Taco in Downtown Boston.

Two and a half years later, Real Taco has done so well that he is now ready to open in Harvard Square. By September, the old Bruegger’s Bagels location on Mt. Auburn St. will be filled with the aromas of nachos, refried beans and jalapeños.

“It’s a terrific place,” says John DiGiovanni, president of Trinity Properties, which leases the space. DiGiovanni adds that he had turned down more lucrative offers for the space from cell phone shops.

Espinoza says Real Taco will offer quality food for an affordable price.

“This is like what you’d get at an upscale restaurant, but it only costs $2.95,” exclaims Espinoza, holding up a spicy chicken taco just cooked up in his Boston restaurant. “We don’t even charge for extras.”

In the Square, the 32-year-old Espinoza is after the student population, which he plans to court with cheap prices—the lunch menu will range from $2.95 to $5.95—and late hours: Real Taco will close at midnight Sunday through Wednesday, and at 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.

Espinoza says the design will conjure up images of lazy hot days south of the border—even in the Massachusetts winter. There will be a small outdoor section, which will be heated with enormous space heaters when the temperatures drop. Real Taco will also have seating space in the central plaza of the Garage.

Espinoza says he also wants his restaurant to be convenient. It will have an express line at the front, and a Real Taco credit card will be available for swift purchases.

There may one day be beer, wine and sangria, but not for at least six months.

For those perpetually hungry for Mexican food, there will be breakfast every day starting at 7 a.m., when ham, egg and chorizo sausage burritos will be served, along with café de olla, which is the only kind of coffee Espinoza drinks.

Espinoza hasn’t forgotten about dessert either, which will be served during dinner hours. A few of the dishes available will be a Mexican pudding called arroz con leche, flan, and cookies filled with cajeta, a caramel spread made from goat’s milk.

Espinoza takes considerable pride in the authenticity of his recipes, ingredients and cooking methods. Scoffing at rivals such as Casa Mexico, Anna’s Taqueria, Boca Grande and especially Border Cafe, where he once worked as a waiter, he says New Englanders have no idea what real Mexican food is like.

“It is one of the four great cuisines in the world,” he says, citing French, Chinese and Italian as the other three.

In the storeroom of his downtown restaurant, he opens the fridge and shows off all its contents.

He brings forth Arrezio mozzarella (“I tried 100 different kinds before I knew that this was the best!”), maíz flown in from Texas, 12 different varieties of chili peppers (kept in black bags to maintain their spiciness) and chicken, beef and pork still fresh and refrigerated (never frozen, as he claims other restaurants do).

Espinoza says he can’t bear to think any aspect of his restaurant is less than perfect.

“Whatever I do, I want to be number one at it,” he says.

In fact, his next ambition is to take a bite out of Taco Bell.

“Right now, they have no competition,” he says. “I know it’s crazy, but that’s what I want to do.”

But even that ambition pales in comparison to his true life’s passion: He wants to “change Mexico from the roots.”

“It is not too much to say that I want to revolutionize the government,” he said.

Espinoza left Mexico City in 1994 after the assassination of reformist presidential candidate Luis D. Colosio, under whom Espinoza was director of private affairs.

“I was faced with a choice,” he says. “I could either continue to work in Mexico for a government that is corrupt and that I don’t support, or I could make a break in my life.”

He acquired a 27-year resident alien permit and came to Cambridge to continue his education at the Extension School.

“I want to have enough resources to finish my doctorate and get involved in politics again in Mexico,” he says. “But I don’t want to have to take dirty money for my campaign.”

He plans to write his Ph.D. about poverty in Mexico, where today about 27 percent of the population lives under the poverty line, according to CIA statistics.

Espinoza says his family back in the Mexican state of Sinaloa are upset with him for having put his most important goals on hold for tacos.

“They say I’m crazy and that I’m going to fail,” he says.

But so far, things have gone according to plan for Espinoza, who says he opened Real Taco “because I want to work like a slave for five years, and live like a king for 15.”

Because the Cambridge restaurant is near his home, he will be managing it himself, where on top of everything else he plans to institute a make-your-own-salsa hour and, eventually, weekend cooking classes.

“There are a lot of misconceptions about Mexican food that I want to set right,” he says.

He especially hates people thinking that Tex-Mex foods such as fajitas and cooked bell peppers are Mexican.

At least some of his current customers have decided which is better.

Over a plate of piping hot chicken nachos at the downtown shop, José Velasquez, a native Mexican, explains his loyalty to Real Taco.

“This is the only place that tastes like home,” Velasquez says.

—Staff writer Eugenia B. Schraa can be reached at schraa@fas.harvard.edu.