Today we’d like to introduce you to Ana Beaven
Hi Ana , thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in CDMX.
I fell in love with authentic Mexican food at a very young age because of my grandmother, who I consider the best cook I have ever known.
With retail experience and passion for design, I ventured into opening an authentic Mexican restaurant that served more than food. Mexican culture and holidays were a big part of the conception of “Cuchara”. It has become one of Houston’s favorites for the last 12 years.
Noticing the need to expand the kitchen to catch up with the growing catering business, “Cucharita” was born. It is a cozy bakery, breakfast and lunch place with fresh juices, coffees and cocktails.
Just like Cuchara, it represents Mexico at its best, in a more romantic and old school way.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest challenge before opening Cuchara was sourcing all our ingredients. It took a lot of effort and skill to convince vendors to carry things that were literally unknown to them. After being a challenge, it became our biggest pride.
The biggest struggle for both restaurants has been dealing with the City bureaucracy. Everything from permits to their constant harassment over every possible issue makes me mad and discouraged. There are so many things that have no logic at all and we still have to comply. It’s annoying!
As you know, we’re big fans of Cuchara Restaurant. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
We are an authentic Mexican restaurant that proudly has an all-female cooks and prep staff in our kitchen.
The idea behind that was the passion that a woman puts into everything they do in the kitchen and that no matter where you are from, every time you go home, you crave mom and grandma’s food. You never go home searching for “chef’s food”.
That’s what sets up apart from others; the fact that we cook with motherly love! All our cooks are moms from Mexico. None of them went to school to be chefs but some are on the process of getting certified as traditional Mexican cooks, which is the highest honor for a female cook in Mexico.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Taking the risk of opening an authentic Mexican restaurant in the land of Tex Mex was not an easy decision to make. People are so used to free “chips and salsa” that it took a while for some to understand that our freshly made salsas didn’t come from a cheap pouch and our tortilla fritters are 100% Mexican corn unlike Tex Mex where flour is added to lessen cost. Impossible to give them for free!
Pricing:
- Lunch around $25
- Dinner around $45
- Cocktails around $12
- Cucharita’s sweet bread around $6
- Breakfast at Cucharita about $20
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cuchararestaurant.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cuchararestaurant/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CucharaRestaurant/
- Twitter: https://x.com/Cucharahouston
- Other: https://www.instagram.com/cucharitabakery/
