RESTAURANT OWNER RUBEN DELGADO JR. TALKS FOSTERING COMMUNITY AND EMBRACING AUTHENTICITY AT “MARISCOS LA PLAYA”
WRITTEN BY: ALEXANDER HERNANDEZ GONZALEZ
From his father’s mechanic shop in Little Village to his grandmother’s home in Pilsen, Ruben Delgado Jr., has experienced diverse walks of life in Chicago. Throughout his upbringing, family was always a constant presence, no matter where he was. Being raised alongside his sisters and guided by his mother, not only taught him that ambition is important, but also that you should never judge a book by its cover. People are often defined as a “product of their environment,” but Delgado has always been able to look beyond that.
He was eager to make his own path, and explore outside the family tradition of mechanics. While at Illinois State University he saw a gap in the market for authentic Mexican food in the city of Bloomington. With guidance from school chefs, he gained a deep understanding of the food and hospitality industry. Upon returning to Chicago, his father encouraged him to open his own restaurant in "La Villita." In October 18 2018, Marisocs La Playa officially opened it’s doors.
Ever since then, the BYOB restaurant has attracted hundreds of locals and visitors for their Nayarit-style dishes and seafood. Gente Fina spoke to Delgado about his journey in the restaurant industry, how he expresses himself through fashion and the importance of supporting local, Latino businesses.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
GENTE FINA: HOW DID YOU GET INTO THE MARISCOS INDUSTRY?
DELGADO: It all started because my dad, who is from Teloloapan, Guerrero, is a huge mariscos fan and frequents Acapulco quite often. In Acapulco, there are certain restaurants right off the beach [where] my dad could bring his bottle, his bike, his speaker and his snacks and set up shop on the beach. There's a señor that brings you fresh seafood from the ocean. And he'll come back out with fresh oysters, clams and whatever is available for the day.
Coming back to Chicago, growing up, my dad would always be working. He would only have one day off every other two weeks. One thing we would always do is have our family dinners on Sundays. One day, he hits us all with “we're not gonna eat [Mexican food], we're gonna go eat seafood today.” We were pissed. So we got to the spot, sat down, ordered the food and even when the food came out, we're still like “No, we don't want this.”
Once we finally ate, it was over with. We didn't want to eat anything else. It became a tradition because we were so used to eating [Mexican food], then we just started eating seafood. That's where the initial love, appreciation [and] admiration for seafood came from. It reminds me of my dad, having time to be there with him, sit down to talk and just enjoy each other's company.
GENTE FINA: TELL ME ABOUT THE PROCESS OF STARTING UP “MARISCOS LA PLAYA”
DELGADO: [At ISU], I learned that I really enjoyed business, talking to people and providing something that somebody wanted. I was working at the dining room center as the head inventory [staffer]. I saw that there was a market for Mexican food because there were no legit Mexican restaurants in the radius of where I was at. I was like, “You know what? I'm gonna talk to the chefs. We're gonna figure this out, see how much it's gonna cost, get equipment, create a little menu and I'm gonna start slanging tacos.”
I ended up dropping out my junior year at ISU, with aspirations to still run my own food business or general business in the future. With plans to move back to Chicago, my father and I decided that we wanted to open a business together, but were not set on which business. Ultimately, my father brought up the idea of a Mariscos restaurant in La Villita!
I came back and checked out [spots] with him, and he found the spot right there in [Little Village] and agreed. I always wanted it to be a local little village cafeteria for everybody. Come together, talk about this, talk about that and just have a safe place for all of us that we can feel at home and at ease [while] just be ourselves.
GENTE FINA: AS YOU KNOW, MARISCOS ARE HANDS DOWN ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR FOOD CATEGORIES LATINOS LOVE. HOW DO YOU FEEL THAT YOU REPRESENT THE CULTURE?
DELGADO: In all honesty, I feel like I'm going off-tradition. We created our own culture within the mariscos world, our own type of understanding and respect for seafood. I’m just trying to do something different, make people feel good [and] feel at home.
Hospitality is how people always know if the food is good, [especially] if it's just real. That's what I always grew up feeling like [in my] mom's house. That's something I offer to the community as well, you know. I try to just be in my own lane. Create our own vibe, create our own energy [and] create our own following.
GENTE FINA: HOW DO YOU EMBRACE YOUR ROOTS IN YOUR EVERYDAY LIFE, BOTH IN AND OUT THE MARISCOS?
DELGADO: I embrace my roots everyday by listening to Mexican and Latino music, learning about our history, purchasing from Mexican and Latino owned brands and cooking and learning about our cuisine.
Aside from that, really just being there when I can for friends and family. It's tough to own a restaurant because it needs my attention almost 24/7. But, us as Mexicans, we ride for each other and stay loyal to our palabra.
GENTE FINA: HOW DO YOU EXPRESS YOURSELF THROUGH FASHION IN A PLACE LIKE A MARISCOS?
DELGADO: I always remember seeing my uncles and parents dress the cleanest. What you wear says a lot about you. I've always just really admired fashion and how you can create your own character, style and own lane. I understood the value of what you wear, what you put on and what message you're trying to give off.
I love to rock a lot of local clothing brands from Chicago, especially since we're big on supporting Latinos and Mexicans trying to make it out or trying to make it in Chicago.
Aside from the clothing, I love rocking braids or having my hair out. My favorite chef, Marco Pierre White, inspired me to let the mane grow wild and free. It represents me and who I am to my core.
GENTE FINA: WHY SHOULD PEOPLE SUPPORT YOUR BUSINESS?
DELGADO: I would say it's important to support businesses like ours because it's honestly the future at this time in life for us as Latinos and Mexicans. We are at the forefront of music, food, influence and power. I definitely think it's important and it shows us that it's possible while giving us a sense of hope.
When the youth or other Latinos see me, whether it's on social media or on this blog, I aspire to inspire them to believe in themselves.
I've always said no matter where I am, I always put on for the hood, for La Villita because as much negativity as you see on the news, there's just as much positivity and amazing people pushing to change the narrative that the news will never show!
GENTE FINA: WHAT IS NEXT FOR YOU? ANYTHING EXCITING COMING UP IN THE FUTURE?
DELGADO: I want to revive the “Si Sabo” podcast. I'm gonna have other influencers and others that I know in the neighborhood. [It will be] more of a one on one conversation and create that safe space so we can all come together, learn from one another and teach one another.
I’m planning to release a clothing line and call it Gem-in-i. There's a gem in all of us But, that's something else I want to do maybe down the road.
Continuing my “Noches Intimas” private dinners, which is my love letter to this amazing city that raised me, is a main priority. It’s a modern twist on the traditional seafood with new and playful tastes, smells and experiences. The mission of “Noches Intimas” is to aspire to inspire, to show the youth and community that you can be from the hood. You could look like me, talk like me and you can still do great things and push the narrative and the envelope.
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ALEXANDER HERNANDEZ GONZALEZ IS A JOURNALIST BORN AND RAISED IN AURORA, COLORADO. GROWING UP, HE WAS FASCINATED WITH HOW LATINOS CAN BE REPRESENTED IN THE FASHION INDUSTRY. WITH EXPERIENCE IN EDITORIAL, PRINT AND MULTIMEDIA JOURNALISM, ALEXANDER IS ACTIVELY UPLIFTING UNDERREPRESENTED VOICES THROUGH THE ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT SECTOR, THROUGH THE FASHION BEAT.
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