[00:00:10.600]
Hey everybody. Welcome to the Patty G show. I’m your host Patty G. We are here with Jim from Mestizos. Third-generation restaurant owner and super excited to hear his story about staying on that block itself. Acadian through thick and thin through high water through everything that’s happened. Over the last 17 years, Within his restaurant business, I’m just super excited to hear about everything. He’s got going on and ultimately how he’s been so successful over these years. But before we get to that, when we get a big wonderful, shout out to the amazing folks that make this show possible each. And every week we’ve got Gov’t Taco, Falaya Real Estate Currency Bank, the bank for business owners, Lake Men’s Health Center, Horizon Financial Group, Mercedes-Benz a Baton Rouge, and you know our outfits always brought to you by McLavy LTD.

[00:00:56.900]
Thank you all so very much. And without further Ado, Jim welcome to the show. Thank you for having me. I’m excited to have you on. Yeah, excited Missy Torito, put us in touch with each other at their birthday party. That was a fun, a fun celebration and also a fun time to meet you man. Yeah so yeah you take it for granted. Like I was just having this conversation earlier that you know it’s I’m a restaurant owner but we get to celebrate life with people and so whether it’s in the restaurant or catering off-site, you know, we’re like It part of people’s lives and I know we’re going to talk about three generations. I’ve been working a restaurant my entire life and 53. And I have 45 years of restaurant experience under my belt. So I’ve been working since I was 8.

[00:01:40.400]
That’s impressive. Yeah. I’ve done my time. A lot of times in this industry. And it’s not an easy industry. No. It’s ah, it’s challenging. It’s different. It’s always evolving. Um. You know, it’s. Ah. You have to have a passion for it. And always tell people as a restaurant owner, it’s not a job. It’s a total lifestyle because you live and breathe your restaurant. And you know, even when you’re closed. I mean, you’re you know, you’re doing repairs or you’re working on the restaurant. I mean, it’s it’s ah, it’s a twenty four, seven job and the most part. Yeah. Twenty four, seven, three, sixty, five. Regardless. So you’re out regardless. Yes. So for those that aren’t aware, who are you. I began. What is it that you do at Mestizos? I so my name is Jim already Alice. And I’m a third generation restaurant tour on the owner chef creator of Mestizo restaurant. It’s almost rare that you will not see me in my restaurant. If I’m not in my restaurant, I’m usually working in off-site for something for the business, but.

[00:02:40.200]
It’s something. I’ve been doing my entire life. I really do enjoy it. It is tiring in taxing and believe me there’s a team to rebuild me. I make a joke on the Six Million Dollar Mexicans, because I have massage therapist. I have sports people working on me.

[00:02:57.200]
I have chiropractor, it’s a lot to repair me, too. You know, from what I do every day, but mestizos.

[00:03:04.100]
We’re about to celebrate our 24th, anniversary all together, but we’ve been on Acadian for Years and I pride myself that mestizos specializes in Louisiana, Mexican Cuisine. And it’s my family story. So if you don’t know, mestizos a Spanish word, that means of mixed blood two cultures, which is what all Mexicans are. We’re blending of two cultures and so I read this

[00:03:30.500]
Word in a history book in college and kind of stuck to me. And I remember folding the page and I remember saying if I ever open a restaurant, I’m going to call it mestizo and not knowing that years later I would, and so that created mestizo. But I profits that most of the other Mexican restaurants in Baton Rouge are doing Tex-Mex. I do Mex Louisiana, Mexican Cuisine. So there’s a lot more Seafood infused in my Cuisine. Also, I kind of it’s kind of something I’ve been working on the idea, but in theory I think my menu tells the Fuller story of what Mexican Cuisine is because Tex-Mex is really a derivative

[00:04:11.900]
Um. And it’s not really, um, it’s something that’s more of Americanized and so true Mexican cuisine for me. It is street-food, but it’s also gourmet is formed table. It’s vegetarian is fresh. It’s topless. It’s complex. It’s simple. And so. Ah. If you haven’t been to my restaurant, it’s you can even look the the menu up online. It’s it’s a very creative, different menu. Um. It’s a journey. I’ve been working on this menu every year. I’m just doing the edits now. My twenty fourth menu. Um. I like to evolve the menu. I like to tell a fun story. I’d like to challenge people a little bit to kind of think a little differently when they dine in my restaurant. Um.

[00:04:53.200]
And it’s really fun for me because I get to I’m a very creative person at heart. And so the fact that I get to go and cook and create, you know, I’m even involved, you know, I’m known to drink wine. So I do like wine a lot, but I’ve been involved in even some of the cocktail Creations in the bar. And so it’s again. There’s a lot of positive fun I guess from the outside people saw as must be. So nice to be this restaurant owner, you get to eat and drink whatever you want all day. Is a no, it’s not like that, but It is it is fun to be the creative force behind something that I take a lot of pride in. Yeah, it’s it’s always fun and games from the outside and P.C know you own a restaurant, you always get all this. Get this. Can you get that? But then when your

[00:05:36.200]
Sitting there at 11:30, waiting for that last guest to leave? Where, where, where they had? Yeah. Where, where are they looking in? Saying we still there. It’s 11:30. They really closed up yet. You know, you gotta be there from open to close and make sure that things run smoothly. Yeah, so y’all been open for 24 years, 24 years. So, how did you get to that point? You said in college, you found the word kind of take us through that.

[00:05:59.600]
Well, I’m worried. I’m a third-generation restaurateur to back up the till my full family story. My grandfather came over over from Mexico and the whole family set up shop in late. I’m sorry, Fort Worth Texas. And then my grandfather in the late 30s, decided to move to Lake Charles, Louisiana. That’s what all the plants were being started taking over that area of south Louisiana, and he opened the first Mexican restaurant in Lake Charles, it was called El Rio. His first four kids all went on to have

[00:06:31.100]
Restaurants. So at one point, my aunt had Lake Charles and have another aunt, who had a restaurant in Lafayette. And then there was two in Baton Rouge and my father would he after he graduated college left late, Charles sought to go work with his sister for a little bit of Latvia. He was ready to get out late. Charles. And he was doing cooking at the restaurant. And um, so he’s a cook and my mother. Who’s the cage and half of my equation comes in and plan for a job? And I hoped it was offended by this. But my Dad always tells a story that my mother came in. He really likes women with big hands. And he says, your mom came in and and very tight white sweater, and she had really big hands, and he goes on new Emilia was in love with her. And so they courted very quickly got married. And then they moved to Baton Rouge actually moved to Denver springs, which is where he first got his first start.

[00:07:26.200]
You know, my mom did Harris was a hairdresser and then my dad opened his first restaurant and it was on Florida Boulevard but he had no tables and then a few letters. He had moved to it was a counter service, all to go that he whom all together, all to go and then he moved to another spot in the he had two tables and I don’t wanna name names, but I had this guy who came and told me the story like 15 years ago, he said, ask her. Dad about milk and I said milk. He said yeah, go ask her dad. Well, back in that time denim was a dry county or dry Parish I should say. Okay. And so people come to my dad and you know he was like

[00:08:07.700]
Hey mr. Carlos, I love glass of milk. So Dad would go in the back and milk was code for a canned beer in a styrofoam cup with a lid. And if you order skim milk, it was a margarita in. This is our cleanup. And so, when I asked my dad about this story say, what the hell, who told you the story and I said, yes, I said, how do I not know this when he goes you don’t know everything. I had to get your ass out dim Springs. Get you to Baton Rouge for God’s sake and so then they moved to Baton Rouge and opened up in Florida on. Broadmoor. And so he was there for a few years and then my dad, his last restaurant location was on the court on Florida and Airline he opened. 77 it was two months before Cortana Mall opened up and it’s people who are my age, no doubt was the Center of Baton Rouge.

[00:08:53.800]
That’s that’s Prime really.

[00:08:55.000]
That was prime prime prime real estate. And so Dad opened 77 and

[00:09:01.000]
I’m yeah, I’m seven years old. And so my first job was a dishwasher at eight in. Ah Mr. Klein P. Love being telling the story. I had three Klein. Peter. Milk crates in my three compartment and I would stand up and do my pots move to the next one. Get up and down. And that’s how I got my start in. Ah. My Dad, always jokes. You made three dollars a night washing dishes. And I was like, okay, but you know, when you’re a kid, three dollars is a lot of money and then moved to a busboy around eleven? And then, um, probably be somewhere around fourteen. I became a server. Um. Let’s say you were walking dishes for three years. Yeah. On weekends. Yeah. We get some weekend. Yeah. Additional weekends. Not during school weeks. I mean, just on the weekends on wash dishes and.

[00:09:47.200]
You know, make some extra cash and you know, it’s funny I applaud my dad because he taught me how to make money and manage money and I think was about. Yeah, I think it’s about 11 years old. They went and opened a little savings account and I’d go ride my bike and drop my money off and this was the old days. We had this little book and they would stamp it. Like if I was depositing, five bucks, $85 a date stamp it and I just remember getting so excited about those little stamps in my book, and I still have that. Little booklet. I saved it, but it’s just a just like $5. It’s been 25 dollars. Been tunneling this date. No certifying it. So that was your receipt. So, it’s like what they give now is the print ticket right back then, they would just a deposit book. It was a little book. Yeah. It was, it was pretty cool. I mean it’s that’s you know the fact that I get to look back and see me and I really worked for those three bucks for five bucks or whatever. And anyway, bye dad.

[00:10:44.000]
I remember, this is kind of the big thing for me when I look back. So, you open a 77 and around 82, was the oil bust of Louisiana and basically Wheezy Anna lost about a fourth. If not a third of its population because the state was so dependent on oil and gas and, and my dad are just remember thinking, oh, wow, what’s going to happen in? So Dad, very smart, plea pivoted and we went from Carlos’s. Second food to Carlos Cajun. Mexican cuisine food. And so he does he incorporate a lot of my mom’s family stuff and that’s where the seafood kind of start getting infused in our in our food.

[00:11:26.100]
And Dad really had the most incredible clientele. I look back at that and ah, he really cultivated this beautiful restaurant that I mean people felt special at. They became part of our family. I mean, it was an extension of our living room. And um, yeah. So so much respect. My Dad retired at eighty. Ah. He’s eighty. Yeah. He he retired to aid. He’s eighty seven. He’s still here with us. But he just is body was tired. And I guess so. After spinning that long and irrational. And he was raised in his dad’s restaurant. So he’s where he’s only start. Fires is five. So he had seventy five years of restaurant experience when he retired. That’s yeah, it’s incredible. And then. So if anybody knows my other family story El Rio grande’s an airline is my uncle. So um, in my uncle is ninety one.

[00:12:17.500]
And he just celebrated his 60th anniversary on Airline Highway in the same location which I think is might be a record. I would have been trying to do some research because I think past time might be the only actively owned restaurant. That’s still in the same location we talk about because I think Frank’s move from one location to another. But anyway, it’s a big deal that in the family. There’s three generations, it’s a family Legacy. And so, I grew up and I went to LSU and I had Had no plans to open a restaurant. I was like, I am getting cut this field. I’ve been raising this. I’ve been doing this my whole life. I’m not doing this. So graduate LSU and marketing moved to New Orleans. And I’m working at the Hilton downtown and they put me in food and beverage and I was like, really want to do the room side and learning that side of the business. But the, the two years I spent, the Hilton was quite interesting for me, because the one thing I learned and took from, that was the answer was never know.

[00:13:17.700]
When something was asked for me to heal that, you never said, no, your answer need to be how quickly can you make it happen? And that’s what they trained and made you, you just ingrained in you if there, if you’re in a situation and you’re understaffed or there’s something’s going on, you call backup resources and people come and we make things happen. And I just remember that was a great life lesson for be. And so at the young age of 25, I had had a midlife crisis. And then life crisis of 25. Well, I guess he’s even working since. Yeah. I mean, I’m do fine with that 17 years in the business right now. I have a breakdown. Some point. Yeah. If you got that many people with a 17-year, long career, they make sure they have a decision changed up and make some Zoom. So, okay, so, that was mind. And I just remember, I don’t know if I’m really happy because the thing for me was I had five bosses above me.

[00:14:11.100]
And being a creative person, I came up with some visions as my ideas and had implemented necessary to higher up. And it would go up. A few levels is that this is a great idea within the big ball shoots it down and then you’re dead in the water. I was. I remember thinking, I don’t think this is my happy place. And I remember looking at the people who are ten years older than me in this in the in the at that time. And they all seem kind of miserable. And I said, so I don’t think I want to be a miserable person in and give all this time energy, fair assessment. And so, um, oh, my twenty fifth birthday I’m at home. I talked to my Dad as I look. I think I’m a resign. My job. And if you’re cool with it, I mean, I’ve I’ve always cooked with my Dad. I said, but I wanna just come and cook in the kitchen. And I’m not guarantee. I’m gonna stay. I just want to figure out. This is what my calling is. Something’s telling me I wanna I might go this route and, um.

[00:15:03.000]
So do I came back and worked exclusively the kitchen and basically learned all my dad’s things and you know, in hindsight you know it’s funny. Do you use the word Chef because I didn’t go to culinary school but some of the better chefs are good chefs. I think of out there that people think of never went to culinary school as well. It becomes something that is part of you that you cook and you can feel and you can kind of tell when things are working and you know and just spend a lot of time. I’m in a kitchen, you start to kind of learn things about how things work, but as it went on, I remember, I applied for some big corporate jobs, I kept getting turned down in my office. I actually have my last rejection letter from Houston’s in New Orleans that rejected me and also had applied for the Cheesecake Factory in California. And I just remember thinking I am college educated, I’m good looking

[00:16:00.600]
And I’m talented. Why the hell are these people hiring me, right? And any just, I remember one day, I mean I’m is I just got that second rejection letter and I remember this a clear day.

[00:16:12.200]
I’m chopping onions in my Dad’s Kitchen and this Clarity came in my head and he said, Jim, you’re going to open a restaurant and I’m going to reveal to you. Why later said, okay.

[00:16:25.900]
All right, God just spoke to me. That’s very odd while I’m cutting onions. So, dad comes in sex. What’s going on son? And I said, well, I think about to open a restaurant and he goes, uh, okay. So I started the process and put my feelers out there. And how do you start the

[00:16:44.100]
Can you walk us through? How do you start the process and beginning to want to open a right? I mean, obviously you wanted to, you know, cutting onions. You’re told rope in a restaurant. Build it and we will come right. So how did you start to go down that? Oh yeah. You kind of completely first off. You have to worry about the money, right? So in awe I laugh at the fact that I opened my first restaurant on Sherwood Forest with a seventy five thousand dollar budget, which is unheard of now, like what year. Nineteen ninety nine still on her. Even with that young time. So seventy five thousand dollars. You’re seventy five. And it was three different loans in my Dad signed for one. I had co-signed on something. I forget what equity ahead on that. And we somehow piecemeal this third part together. And um, I mean, I’m met with everybody I met with the bankers. You know that I’m working with and I did all the scouting myself. I’ve worked everything up and down Sherwood and corsi.

[00:17:40.700]
And that’s kind of the area decided to go with it. Then I lucked into the first location was an old tasty donut on the corner of share, wooden core.

[00:17:49.400]
See, it’s now Dane Tuan is a Thai restaurant.

[00:17:54.700]
And so I meet the owner and he was trying to get out and he had gotten messed over by somebody before.

[00:18:00.400]
So he’s like, I’m not I’m not going to sublease it to you and so I just started feeling kind of beat down and then I had this little Prize thing that happened in my life, I had a son that came out of nowhere and that’s a, you know, different story for different times or different time.

[00:18:21.600]
Got it. I got it. So anyway, at that point, like I gotta get really serious.

[00:18:25.000]
I gotta make things happen. I’m responsible now for another adult. So,

[00:18:30.700]
I remember I went to the on the owners of the building, went to their house and I sat there and I said, look, here’s my cards. This is all I have. I have 75,000 to play with. This is all I have if you will work with me and I get why you’re burn. I’m going to put a 20 thousand dollar deposit down. With the guarantee that I will buy the building and the land from you within two years. If I don’t, then you get to keep the 20,000. Yes, I was at this point, I’m desperate, I’m like, I’m going to make things happen. So 75,000 all alone 75,000 or lower, I put 20,000 down. How much is the building worth? Well, that was a good question because at that point it was they had tried to sell it before. So it was appraised do right at

[00:19:23.900]
So I came in at ten thousand. Good faith deposit down for the anticipation. That I’m a buy that you’re gonna buy it in two two years years for a first location that you never you’ve worked in restaurants all your life, right. You’ve never opened and done the backend of the restaurant business bolt well. So but the only thing that helped me was it already had a commit a commercial kitchen because certain information. Yes. So very little limited. Um. Remodelling done. I mean, I mean, I remember who spray painted those ceiling tiles. I did have to bring take out all the donuts stuff. Um. But I really went in and spit. And I had a lot of used equipment. I’ve been accumulating so in this to this day. I mean, I laughed at this. Ah really. I was in over my head. I was trying to figure it out.

[00:20:16.500]
20,000. I’ma buy this building from you, I’m going to open. I spent about 25 30 thousand and I still had roughly around 20,000 left in the account and but I was the only cook. Wait you finished all the renovations for 25 or 30,000. Yeah yeah I had friends come in at everybody. I remember it or not. I look I look back at the store this Sunday before opened smart. Opened March, 1st 1999, as a Monday. And over that weekend, I had all my old Fraternity Brothers come out they drove in from all over and they let’s figure out what you do. My sister-in-law’s family came in, they were chopping stuff on top of a student work. My brother was there. I beat everybody who had any part of my life so we’re going to help you and I was just, you know, I was so exhausted and so we got it open and it was a lot. It was about a lucky draw and I’ll never forget my very first day.

[00:21:13.000]
Opening for dinner and I’m the only cook. It’s just me and that kitchen by myself. That’s it. I had the and one dishwasher that was all I had wasted.

[00:21:21.900]
Okay. So we need this has painted the scene of the restaurant here. How many people could you see 15 tables 15 tables where they for top 20 tops, okay, at 15 parking spaces. So everybody’s got a carpool horrible. Okay, so so 15 tables for people to 60, 60 60. Yep. Customers at one time, right?

[00:21:44.300]
And you were only dinner, well, we open the first night of service was for dinner because I can get open for lunch yet.

[00:21:49.000]
Gotcha, okay. So only only did we open up.

[00:21:52.500]
Hmm. And I am so mentally exhausted because I have not slept, and up all night. And so, even though my first menu was a redo of my dads, I renamed all the dishes.

[00:22:07.600]
And I will never forget the first ticket coming back and I’m looking at the ticket on the line. I’m like, I don’t even have a visual in my head. So having the study my own menu and I remember looking like, oh, my God, what the hell did I do to myself. So I’m looking at the dish name because that’s what the server wrote. And I’m like, okay, alright, O. K guy. And I remember I was so tired. And that first night was so rough. And um, always remind myself. The first thirty days I was in business. I had my first lawsuit. I had my first workman’s Comp claim and I had a termite infestation. Br. Out on a Saturday morning. And I remembered them the first thirty days of late.

[00:22:51.000]
Is not too late to get out. It won’t cost you that much. Just if you want to get out just just close it. Now it’s this is maybe more than you. You’re ready for sick. Can we talk about any of them? You know first curious about the lawsuit and what happened there. You’re barely not even not even 30 days. What happened? 30 days? It was a it was a gentleman who the backstory was suffered from severe vertigo, okay? And didn’t take his medication and was not Supposed to be drinking and he had three of my large margaritas, and we had not put the carpet down on the floor yet. So I had these booths. Oh, when I tell you, I got creative, I went bought all used equipment, even the front, but it looked nice. They were the restaurant looked really nice but we started tile floor.

[00:23:40.800]
And he was in these big chairs and I just remember, I went and talked to him and he was kind of leaning. And the chair was not really meant to be linked on like that. He was kind of a portly guy. And I guess he was trying to talk to his wife and third Margaritas kicking in, he slipped out of the chair and his knee, hit the tile and dislocated and, you know, try to send them to, you know, you went to the emergency room who join two dudes and now I’m going to take care of, it’s fine. And so, Thank God. I had be Law class in college business, law, and something told me don’t competition it. You got to have him sign to show what he drank and ate. And that became something in the in the lawsuit, that acknowledging, how many Margaritas he had,

[00:24:28.300]
He in the Vertica medicine. It was. It was very complicated. But no, that is genius. Yeah. The signing of the ticket, because normally if something happens in a restaurant, the first thing is, we’re gonna come to me a bit. So sorry. Like that’s. So it’s an admission of guilt at that point around a tick and what he you drank. Three large margarita or large margarita. Is you know, of course we have cameras back then. Yeah. Right. And like, we do now, um, but something just told me that’s gonna be something big. And of course, the papers get served two weeks later. And I’m like, oh, crap, how did they get served. Somebody just walked in and he’s like, I’m gonna take what you know. Here you’ll. Yeah. Yeah. Here you get sued. Oh okay, thanks, alright. And ah. But you know a laugh about it now. But when you’re.

[00:25:11.200]
29 and you just try to meet like and again, I got the little bit of money. I have is all on the line. Like, this is all I have every penny is accounted for everything, this is what I have to start with. So, you know, we look back at that time, it was a.

[00:25:28.500]
I’m glad I went through all of that because it made me who I am today. Then my brother came aboard about nine months later, and God help me on the line and then my sister-in-law came aboard, so he became really a family affair. R. And I mean, I was at that location for seven years and I take a lot of pride, in the fact that we built a really great clientele people were so supportive of me, and I mean, I was just trying to get my feet wet.

[00:25:56.500]
I look back at my first, two menus, the misspelling of words and I’m like,

[00:26:02.000]
I can’t even believe, I wrote out a menu, with misspelled words on it. Like, you know, it’s like you make these little mistakes and then they just they start eating, but you have to learn lessons like that. Like, we’re never going to print without several spell checks ever again. And anyway, year for in that location, I kind of realized that that was not going to be the ideal location for me. Just for what I wanted to accomplish with the restaurant. So we started looking and then I had already bought my home in Mid-City and so one day I’m getting off the interstate it was a Saturday morning. I’m working with a broker already looking for a new location and my location now was a Denny’s.

[00:26:42.100]
And he’d close and see the signs of pull in and went. Oh wow, SA coma. Broker commercial guy. And I’m like, hey, do you have any contacts with Denny’s Corp has actually I do? So few phone calls later next thing I know I’m talking with the owner of the property and he’s like, well, yeah, you know, Danny’s just had resigns. So yeah, you’re going to have to renegotiate the remainder of their lease if you want to take over this property. And he goes, but I have no problem with spying. So I’m talking to the landlord. And as we as we get off the phone, he goes, oh, by the way, he goes, are you Carlos a son. I said, yes, sir. He goes, do you know who you’re talking to. And I said, no, sir, he goes, call your Dad and ask him if he remembers me. So you know the phone. Hey Dad? Who’s this guy? So and so has Jim. Oh my God. You wait on him every freakin Friday when he’s in town. But I promise you know him. So um, is a family that lived in Alexandria and funny enough. I renegotiate the sublease through Denny’s.

[00:27:39.900]
So we get into this and so and just a backup on this show with thing. I did buy the restaurant as I said before you can year and a half into it. And what happened was, we had negotiated that the 20,000 we come off, we cap the price at 200,000, the appraisal came in at 2:15, so I purchased the building at 180. So I immediately had Equity see at 35 to play with, right? One equity.

[00:28:05.000]
And then I stayed there. So, when I sold it I had Good amount of equity. So even when I’m looking to move to to akkadian as this thing’s unraveling, you know, had had this business plan, accordion playing with all my stuff in it and you know, projections this and I was all, you know, I’m ready. And I went to so many banks and I mean I can’t tell you how many banks turned me down even for the redo.

[00:28:33.000]
So,

[00:28:34.000]
The bank that was their reasoning restaurants are considered risky. They’re always risky and especially you know, and I’m still considered a mom-and-pop, one location. So those always kind of scare them until you have a lot of equity or something behind you that they’re just, they’re usually has it on that type of thing. So so we get ready to do. The Acadian thing we did go. She ate Jenny’s sublease. I have an approved budget. I’m ready. And then this little thing called Hurricane. Katrina happen. Little little thing. This little thing called herky-jerky this blip in the radar. Yeah, sure. They remember that occurrence that happened in south Louisiana and you know on top of the not to take light of the devastation that it did to to New Orleans in the surrounding cities. But one of the things was, as we’re going to the process of remodeling, the cost of everything had

[00:29:29.000]
So my little. And I remember them that I don’t mind sharing the story of my little four hundred thousand dollar budget, which I was pre-approved for which everything was set. And we were, if if we would have been dealing with the inflated prices would have been fine. But at the end of the day, we took one hundred and eighty seven thousand of pretty stuff off the menu or although the the remodel. And I signed off on almost eight hundred thousand dollar loan. So my basic loan got doubled just to get me open and he took stuff off at. Yeah. We didn’t. None of the pretty stuff like it was. Here’s what we have. Bare bones going from Sherwood Barebone. Yeah. Now this place, bare barebones. Yeah. Wow. Yeah and, um.

[00:30:16.500]
And I just remember the first 30 days I was open. I looked at the numbers. I’m like, I ain’t going to fail miserably. I don’t know how the hell we’re gonna get through this. We don’t have enough tables. You know, I just opened up during football season and it was like, oh my gosh, the time is wrong, whatever. And, you know, you know, the numbers tell the story, you know, in any business that you’ve just got to look at the numbers and say, okay, this is going to be sustainable. And so remember when we finally make it to the first year that at the location? I did an anniversary party or whatever and I was like, okay we’re going to celebrate. We’re not going to be here next year. And then so two years in said well we’re going to try one more time but I guarantee We’re not gonna make it to your three its location and you know, it’s funny how look back at that mindset. And that’s something I’m really working on right now. Period is the mindset that an entrepreneur carries are being you’ve got to believe in yourself. There are going to be tough times.

[00:31:12.600]
I mean, anybody that knows me knows, I have a very wicked sense of humor, but but I’m really, really tough on myself.

[00:31:18.000]
And I just remember thinking Jim you, you’re gonna have to figure something out. I mean, this is, this is gonna be brutal.

[00:31:24.900]
And so, anyway, somehow even with that’s craziness has was we opened a second location and 0 9 to 11 in pray bill at a second location called Lamas T-Zone. I simplified it and was able to get a very 150,000 alone and did that and You know, it’s interesting the recession kicked in and learned a lot of valuable lessons and you know that little bit of money that I thought was a little bit of money became a lot of money because you know, my restaurant had to pay those bills and put me behind in the so you know, I had to do different things and you know I don’t take I say this because an entrepreneur who’s been through it knows I had to go through a reorganization at one point just to get my business back on track.

[00:32:11.900]
And I was. I remember, I was so distraught and have to make that decision. But it was like, okay, you’ve been paying on this debt now for five years and you’re not getting ahead. So just go through realization process saying, I just want to clear my debt, but just give you some time to get all this situated we did. We paid it off early. Um. And most amazing thing, I mean, it’s it’s one of those things where when you’re going through life and in business it sometimes you do get upside down. And I remember thinking, man, this is going to be tough. But it was the best thing for the restaurant and we were able to get everything paid off. Um. You know. Tell people you know it to be business and then going back to my seventeen years on Acadian. You know, as we’re finishing that up, then this little thing starts in twenty sixteen with the flood start.

[00:33:03.200]
And we went through four floods in five years and, you know, again, you know, I laugh that I mean, God must have really thicken me up along the way to I just never it failure is not an option for me. And perseverance is what I believe in and you know it’s just been an interesting fun Journey. It hasn’t always been easy but I take I like to take time now to just reflect on On the Journey of what it was and to go back to something that was interesting right before the flood of 2016 over that summer, if you remember back was when we had the police shooting. Mmm. And so I remember watching it on the, on that Sunday. I was just so devastated. This happened in Baton Rouge

[00:33:53.200]
And so I just did a little post on Facebook. So Mike, you know, we’re going to I’m calling all my restaurant tourist, call to action. We’re going to make some something happen and we’re not gonna let this be the definition of Baton Rouge and all that kind of crap.

[00:34:04.800]
So, I put that out there and from that was born, the idea 25% on the 25th, which a lot of people got involved with and then some people running for mayor and they got involved and it was just an idea from a post, but came something really big, so that a week later on the 25th. It was a, I don’t know if you remember this. It’s a Citywide movement that people went out and supported and the restaurants are. It wasn’t just restaurants. It was like it was a lot of other business, lot of business participated and at the end of the day, we ran all the money through braaap. They handled all the money and they brought in about 250,000, that went to the family funds of the four officers that were killed and

[00:34:48.100]
So that was that Monday in then I think it was Wednesday morning. I’m sitting outside when my coffee and that little voice came back, said, this is why this is why I told you you can do this. And when it hit me like a ton of bricks, I realised how fortunate I was that God had used his vessel gave me this wonderful life. But it also opened my eyes that you can do and be so much more. Um. You know, I am a restaurant tour at heart, but I’m a Baton Rouge. And this is my I love the city. Um. You know, there’s times where. So I tell people all the time. This is a love hate city. And you know, there’s so many people who who like to spew what they hate about this town. Um I choose to be part of the solutions to the problems in the city. And so you know, I’ve always been very involved in boards, but, um.

[00:35:41.400]
I agree, there’s so many things that just drive me, insane, but I put my time in my resources in my energy into trying to make this, this city better and it might be just that I cook food, you know, but I get to cook food. For people of influence, I get to cook food for people who are trying to make a difference, and I get to have that ear. And so, I’m very fortunate that when I look back now, and this whole thing and I laughed. Now, at all the stuff, but it created in molded me to be the man. I am today and that I take a lot of pride in what I do. And I take a lot of Pride. And, in my business in the culture that I have in the reputation that has and, you know, I’m very fortunate, my dad’s 87, still with me, and we talked, you know, all the time. And I said, Dad, I really hope you’re proud because you gave me a legacy. I’m trying to leave a legacy and I said,

[00:36:37.300]
That not everybody gets to have that in their life, you know. Due to leave something of a legacy is its kind of amazing, you know and my own son probably doesn’t want any part of the restaurant. I have two nephews I’m hoping one of them does and if they don’t, that’s fine. But the fact that, you know, whenever the end happens for mestizo, you know, it was I think people will have great memories and great stories of what they got to share the events that got to share at our restaurant. You know, we did that addition, five years ago, and I remember the first year of the room, we hosted a twentieth of 30th or 40th and 50th a 60 in a 70th birthday. I had a wedding. I had baby showers. I had receptions, I had everything, and I please, this is just my sense of humor. I remember thinking I’ve done everything in this room except for bar mitzvah.

[00:37:32.300]
And I’ve got a synagogue right down the street. And so I need my Jews to step it up and give me a frickin or Ms. Okay. And ah. But that was just a little never happen. No. I still haven’t heard one yet. But ah? What are you studying me like? Yeah. Advertising? Yeah. Hey. Open for more business. But you know the room that you will get to share all these great events with people is is kind of, ah, it’s an amazing thing. And um, you know, we’re there. I mean, even today, ah, one of my really good customers. His father passed away over the weekend. And you know, we’re already like, okay, we’re gonna bring some food. We you know, in the South. What we do? We gotta bring some food. We gotta make sure that okay. And let’s figure out what that we. You know? What they need when they need it in? That’s just who we are, you know. And um, I’m glad that even the whole satellite we to, you know, Mr So-and-so because, you know, it’s a bad time for him. And that’s just who we are. Yeah. I think it’s.

[00:38:25.000]
Especially in its kind of like heightened in south Louisiana, let’s across a lot of the hospitality industry, they’re one of the first ones to jump at the gonna tell ya, how can we help? What can we do? Even if it’s bringing a warm plate of food, that’s what we got this, what we can bring right? And then when covid hit, you know how to shut the doors? I was happy to see the turn of the tables where everybody said the restaurants were always there. Yep. They’re always sponsoring your little league basketball jerseys. They were always the ones. In the back, they’re always sending food somewhere, right? Let’s see what we can do and that’s when the gift card, fun came around. Your people started buying gift cards and getting to go orders and trying to send that money back in because it creates it completed the circle of people here in town saying we want to help and when everybody’s going to help right and we the business is come out and help and then when the business is need help,

[00:39:18.000]
The people show up most of the time and they’re there to say we’re here, we’re supporting you and we’re all going to get through this. And that’s the part that I love about Baton Rouge. Yeah. Isn’t people do come together like that to create and continue to push the scene that we all know is locals what it is. And so it’s how do we then showcase all of that across for everybody else, to see? Because some people may not understand yeah.

[00:39:40.000]
What we do and how we do it here in Baton Rouge, you know, it’s funny, I go back a lot and talk about 20/20 and what a crazy year that was and you think about it? Like you’re saying, you do, we go through a flooding 2016 and that’s local we might go through Katrina and it’s national news.

[00:39:59.400]
But when you go through something where it’s a world shutdown and all of a sudden you realize you only have your local neighbors to rely on like this. Nobody else is. It’s just well. They all can’t come help. They can’t go on. So you gotta stay local and get the people. And you know, ah. A thing back. And when I’m talking to people about that. So I said, if you did not learn anything or if you did not re-evaluate your business, your personal life, your spiritual life, if you did not to reevaluate everything in the twenty twenty, you totally missed an opportunity of a lifetime because it gave you time to reflect. You know, I’ll tell you me. And my partner, we would get up on Saturday and Sunday and do these hour and a half walks and we would just talk. And when you’re talking you when you’re talking and walking you and sometimes the conversation will get uncomfortable.

[00:40:56.000]
You can’t run. He’s got to keep walking. You’re forced to talk about things that I learned so much about my business. And we re-evaluated are ours, we re-evaluated you know what it what are we working for and then all of a sudden you know, Closing one day a week became something very important for the restaurant. And you know, the fact that, you know, now six days a week instead of seven days week my weekly sales increase, I have no more overtime. My staff is happier. People love it. More refreshed in the business continues to grow. I think what an amazing thing, but I had to pause after 2020 and say, okay, what are we really working for here? And it can’t be just about the dollar. It’s got to be about quality of life.

[00:41:39.000]
And so when we started kind of changing that mindset with everybody, you could just see the change in the restaurant. Your basic. Thank God. We won full day to just breathe and you know there we go by the other days off but it’s a solid data, everybody’s all. Yeah. Kind of what he’s working and nobody’s work. Yeah, I mean and that’s you can take a look at people that have been successful in the larger scale in the situation of like Chick-fil-A closed on Sundays. Right? It is for the hospitality in the restaurant industry, especially Quick Service on I heard of to be close a day, right, yet, they are no locations are open on a Sunday. And so taking that like you said your sales, your weekly sales increased, your staff was happier and you’re able to cut some costs on overtime.

[00:42:22.100]
When you ultimately look at it, it’s not how many hours can we work. It’s how many productive hours can work and still be profitable, you know. And so cutting back on that time, your staff is refresh. They’re able to come in and work better. Which means they give a better customer experience. Yeah. Because they’re not dragging through the shift because they’ve been working a double or they’ve been working. You know every day that week and they’re just trying to get till the last customer walks out the door. They’re now refreshed and able to bring that environment and help those memories be made so much better than if they’re coming in. And they’re just dragging the whole shift. Yeah. It’s life change. Yeah. Yeah. And we’re in a better place. I mean, um, have the most in ploys I’ve ever had right now and.

[00:43:05.300]
I encode payroll, and they’re all doing very well. We also pay a lot more than we used to as well, but it’s a different genre now and I think back it’s like really 2020. Thank God that happened in a weird way. Yeah, just to re-evaluate life in general and just take a pause, you know, because I always tell them, it’s not a restaurant, never goes into, you know. Hey let’s let’s try an experiment. See how few of employees? We can operate? With no one does that by choice. You do so covid. Did teach us a lot and funny enough. We were lucky because right before covid-19

[00:43:46.000]
A lot of people that are really wasn’t happy with on the floor and it allowed me to clear out. And then we, we actually started hiring back within the first week, but I pulled back my two strong people that you had to take care of, I got them involved and then when we started to open up, then we changed our mindset about how we’re going to train and bring people on the floor, and that has been, the biggest difference. So, now, we spend the dollars actually fully training Any server before they go on the floor and so that they’re more of a true salesperson and they understand the menu in the food and they go through a rigorous training program and you know, I share the story because I think it’s a compliment to them but when I mean we’re talking about this was I said, isn’t it amazing that you can go to jail examined. ER it’s a corporate restaurant.

[00:44:39.200]
And I go out of my way to always support local. But J Alexander’s, when the few exceptions, I will always consider. I think it’s impossible to have a bad meal. Bad service there if they are just so well trained. So well run. And so that became something we talked about was, how do we okay? I note they’re training programs. So why can’t we implement something like that? Like we should take the time we can now afford to do that. So we see spend those two weeks with rigorous training with test along the way so that when they actually go on the floor, they are ready to sell or talk about the food that they’re about to sell. You know, because my menu is not is not for the basic is not just a enchilada plate of my restaurant. I mean, you’re talking about I’m talking about. I’m having discuss about Melees. I’m having a discussion about high-end tequilas and Moscow’s. I’m having, you know, discussion about what it is about the different regions of Mexico. And why the the food is so unique? So they have to be ready to have those conversations with me.

[00:45:39.200]
Which is tough to have if you’re somebody who does like restaurant hopping almost, you know, like for them to look at the training program and see this is a serious amount of my time. I’m going to have to take to learn this menu to learn this process. The restaurant industry is always known for the high turnover at house. And so for a restaurant or to say, I’m going to invest in the training on the front end to make sure that everybody is up to speed. Everybody knows everything, that’s a serious commitment. And obviously, The proof is in the pudding. Yeah it what your business has become is because of part of that training. Yeah, I’ll say this. We the server’s who started the floor.

[00:46:19.800]
January 1st of this year. We’re with me January 1st of last year, which in for servers, that’s a big deal. That’s a long time. And I would say, over half of those were with me the January before that, as well. So, we’ve done a really great job of retention. And then, like I said, constantly training. We’re trying to always kind of push the envelope a little bit. We talked a lot about just everything that comes in, you know, it is funny because this is something that’s really interesting. Interesting to me. In the sense that, you know, even though the legal age of drinking is 21, it’s not like when I was growing up, you know, we were we had our fake IDs at 15 and right. So, but you put the money on the counter, they’ll serve you a beer serving here, you do whatever. But you know, by the time we went to college at 18, you you still had your

[00:47:07.800]
You know, you are starting to learn with the difference between crown. And you know, makers is or whatever you’re you’re drinking things. And you’re whatever so majority of these kids that are higher, they haven’t really had a drinking experience. And so and I’m not saying this bad thing, but they still have to learn certain things. I remember having a discussion with one of the servers and training us. Um. And he’s like, okay. So it’s white wine and red wine. And I was intrigued by that, and I didn’t understand what he was saying. He didn’t understand that Chardon was a great that, you know, Grecia was a great. He didn’t know the cabs. He know that he just knew white and red. Yeah. And so he just thought sharding was like a name or something. I was like, like, like a style like a style style. Sure. That’s sure. A spot, whatever. And I remember thinking, oh, wow. Okay.

[00:47:54.500]
It’s not their fault because they just haven’t really been exposed to this. So we do have to do a lot of 101, almost remedial sometimes and not every not everyone, I’m going to have full knowledge. But what we’re trying to do is get a culture where there the resources are there in the restaurant for them to learn. And so we’re posting, posting training, doing covering issues, I like to do tastings especially at wine because you know, one of the things I I think like we have a really great wine list of my restaurant and it’s not a lot of wines, but the wires that are, they’re really good and always using well, that’s talk about, it’s like, you know, Mexican food pairs with beer,

[00:48:38.000]
But Mexican Cuisine pairs with wine and Cocktails.

[00:48:41.000]
And so that’s why what we do is we focus on elevating the conversation and I’m not going to say, I’m the only one, but I do say that or I can state that my restaurant, our house Margarita is 100% blue.

[00:48:58.900]
Agave, tequila.

[00:49:00.600]
I don’t think most Mexican restaurants to claim that and most people who know what that means.

[00:49:04.500]
So what does that mean? It means that it’s a pure. Tequila is not a blended tequila. I don’t name any names but there’s this restaurant that claims to have a very great margarita. Margaritas and but their top shelf because it’s on the machine is Pepe Lopez which is a well tequila.

[00:49:30.400]
Well they’re charging higher price than mine. If you’re putting Pepe Lopez and a top shelf, I can only imagine when you’re serving in your house. So you’re not even bragging about one hundred percent little gobby tequila in your top shelf. Which is what you’re supposed to be paying for. But that doesn’t exist there. So I can claim that no. Well we don’t even have a well bar. So what’s what’s a well well would be your discounted vodka? Berbers like something like you’re gonna make cheap cocktails with Swift vs. Vodka. We started absolut. There’s nothing below that in my well. Um. Our bourbon starts at baker’s. Mark and then we go up. We don’t carry low brow spirits in my restaurant.

[00:50:14.800]
I just and that’s something we’ve evolved to in the last few years. It’s about thinking about everything that the customer sees our taste, I don’t you know I don’t need well stuff that’s not who we are. If we’re going to make a cocktail, going to use the best of the ingredients that we can. If we have to charge a little more, I’d rather do that than okay. Let’s bring in, you know, a cut-rate vodka or Rum or tequila to make a cocktail. I said, that’s the what you do. You just frou-frou it up with sweet stuff, and that’s your cocktail. To be that’s not a real conversation. Yeah and I wake up the next morning with a struggle.

[00:50:48.100]
Hang over my life. I’m not going back there at some cheap drinks and it wasn’t a good experience but they’ll go to go back anyway.

[00:50:55.200]
So you know on the I will say on the side of my margarita machine, we put a little sign that says life is too short for an inferior margarita

[00:51:06.200]
And that’s all I’m gonna say about that. I love it. I love it knowing knowing the audience and show them what you can claim. There you go. It’s like it is you know if you want the best I’m not trying to serve you the best I can. Yeah. And that’s taking pride in the product and taking pride in what people are going to consume and having that experience of the consumer mentality over, what’s going to make us? What’s going to have the highest profit margin. You know, there that you got to have that balance. It’s right, you go. How can we make money? But still serve what we want to serve and most time it comes into just what we got to bump that price up a little bit. So you have to then educate them on, why? Your margaritas are more than experts easy and it’s getting down to that. Well, here’s the ingredients. Here’s what we have. Here’s why we did it. And here’s what it turns out to your tasting, whenever you’re enjoying it, and this is why we validate our prices. Yeah. If you’re not able to beat them on price, you’ll say we got

[00:52:02.500]
And we got them. We can claim exactly what we’re claiming. So I love that Manuel we’ve ah. Oh. It’s um, where we’re about an hour. What? So now as we as we every wicked this could be a four three hour podcast. Yeah. But as we kind of start to wrap things up, we do have a set list of questions to ask. And I’m very curious on one of the questions. What your answer will be. And we’ll get to it. Okay. So the first one is, what is something you did as a kid? You wish you could still do today? E under the standard of Tommy had told my son this. The fact that would ride my bike up and down every street and Broadmoor with just the most carefree E life. And um, a miss those days where we just ride our bikes everywhere.

[00:52:49.800]
And it is still saying you would just get home before the sun went down and if not, you were in your, your friend’s house and you got the phone and their, their mom to talk to your mom and say, he’s here, we’ll drive them home after dinner, we’re going pizza or whatever. But man that freedom of riding those bikes, I miss that so much. Yeah. Just that, that Carefree be home when the, when the street lights come on. Yeah, and I saw somebody that I’m friends with on Facebook, are that I posted something. I guess the modern-day version of it and they’re like, this is, this is greatness. It was a Friday night or Saturday night and they said, look, parents. I’m posting this on Facebook. If your kids electric scooter is in our parking lot, they’re here. And I was like, this is the modern-day equivalent seems that, you know, they’re like the kids are out here, played basketball in the driveway. If you see your kids scooter, there are there at our house. So like I was like, that’s people are trying to get back to that. Almost I feel like with their kids that they’re bringing their saying we used to do this, we used to do that and trying to

[00:53:49.300]
Operated. So I’m I’m right there with you go. So being in the restaurant business, for as long as you have been, you’ve learned a lot, then opening your own, you learned a lot within the first 30 days of opening your first location. So what are three lessons?

[00:54:03.400]
You’ve learned along your way plan and always tell any future restaurant owner or even business owner, it starts with a business plan. You, you can’t go in blind, unless You have an idea of what your rent. Utilities insurance calls possible labor. You’ve got at least start putting things down and understand what you’re about to. Put yourself into a business plan. Is number one. The second most important thing and this is the god honest truth. You better have a really strong CPA lawyer and Banker always in

[00:54:41.600]
Close by. And I can not under us and undervalue. My CPA is more than my CPA. He’s he’s one of my closest friends in life. Um. He’s in my will. I mean, he is such an integral part of my business. Um thirdly, in it is believed. Invest yourself in the sense that training and research is never done. And it doesn’t matter what you do for me. I do a lot of traveling in Mexico just to to get inspired creativity, you know, right now. I’m investing a lot in my managers too.

[00:55:24.900]
We’re going to seminars, we’re going to think. I want, I want us all to be challenging, our minds, our bodies, our souls to just continue to be the best you can be. So I think the investing in yourself and in your people is key and that’s something that takes you have to be an open a little while. But I still think any type of research that you can do for yourself or Investments is buys money spent?

[00:55:49.400]
Yeah. Well, and if it’s in the beginning where you can’t afford it Google and investing just time I’m reading and learning your craft is best. You can if you can’t afford to pay to get that level of self investment. So this is the question. I’m curious about what is something you love about Baton Rouge. Now, before you answer it, we’ve had a lot of people on the show and

[00:56:12.800]
They’ve given a lot of people have always said the people. So I’m curious if you’re going to have an alternative to that. The first thing that was the first thing. But I was going to go a little bit deeper than that. In the sense that it’s something that this is a big, small town. And the fact that, you know, even the old term seven degrees of separation. I mean Baton Rouge it’s a half degree separation. If I don’t have a great I mean we start a conversation with. Where’d you go to high school? Who’s your mom’s maiden name? Oh, what church? I’ll go to and Abby, Lee. You can go back and connect the dot on How You Were Somehow either related or, you know, somebody knows somebody, you know, what more than anything.

[00:56:57.800]
And I don’t think this gets appreciated. I think it’s the culture we have in Baton Rouge. And I say that in the in the nicest way you think about it. Tell me another place in this in the us in the fifty continental states that they have a food culture and cuisine that is all their own. I can’t think of another area, eh? Anywhere we have something so unique in South, Louisiana, that everybody else wants to come and experience it because they have none of it. Yeah. No. I think it’s I think that’s a valid claim. Everybody that has moved away their number. One complaint has always been the lack of good food when they moved to. Yeah. And every time someone visits here, one of the biggest compliments they give is the food that we have. Yeah. And think about it it. It’s also part of our culture.

[00:57:46.300]
It’s ingrained in everything we do. I grew up anytime, we had a family function at centered around a meal or cooking something. Yeah, didn’t it didn’t matter what it was, we have a Christmas party every year, we cook a whole pig. We do a kushan delay every year and it’s just everybody gets are like 4:00 5:00 6:00. In the morning, we start cooking this pig and it’s a day Affair of cooking and then we never have sit down place settings because we just eat as we’re cooking all day long and it’s the bits, that is the activity. Of the party. The one last thing, always make the joke, Satan love south Louisiana because we come into the new year with these goals and we’re gonna change. And then, the first thing, Satan does, she throw the damn king cakes at you. Okay, you fail miserably.

[00:58:32.000]
And then you start getting lent starts and then the second thing. Satan does he throws a little girl scout cookies at you and you’re like, doom and the next thing you know who you’ve got? Every Festival known to man. It doesn’t matter if it’s raised, is walking the Earth. We’re going to celebrate it. We’re going to infest the fourth and spring and then we start the summer months. You go to 38 and you start whatever and then we flip right into football season and the holiday season, it’s like, we almost almost never have a time. We’re not tempted by the things in south Louisiana, you think? About what we do and it’s just everything that we do. Like you saying whether it’s king cakes or kushan, delays or crawfish bowls or weekly get we come together over food. And it’s but it’s our, it’s our food right now. It’s a combination of different histories. But it’s something that’s unique ear.

[00:59:17.500]
That’s why we’ve made to be south Louisiana, correct? So for the final question Jim, what can I do to help you? Oh,

[00:59:25.200]
Um well, I think you just did it. You are exposing your audience to Mestizo. And um, if you haven’t been, I encourage you to come by. And um, you know, one thing I love the most is we’re getting so many new customers. And I’m seeing such a diversity in in my new clientele, because we’re doing something that no one else is doing. And the fact that half my menu is clean and fresh and whether or not you’re we’ve got a separate vegetarian, keto gluten-free menu. And we also have, you know, Keto frozen cocktails cocktails. And if you’re eating clean, we do everything from the appetizers of the entrees to the cocktails to desserts. We give you the whole experience so you can come in and you’re still eating great food, right. But it’s cleaner and it’s and that’s half our menu.

[01:00:16.400]
And that’s the important part that the fact that it’s still great tasting food. And you’re not sacrificing, the flavor, you’re getting creative on how to make those dishes from the get-go. So yeah. And I’ve had y’all’s froze a. Yeah and it’s delicious, it is phenomenal. And it’s it’s definitely on the list of recurring restaurants to attend, for sure. So thank you so much for coming home and for having me. Absolutely, this was this was fun and we’ve got a vig like a Facebook live or something about the The margaritas. Okay, we’ve got it. We got it. We got to figure something out. Okay? Because I’m I’m curious now to try a true blue agave Margarita. Yeah. Because I’ve only had that froze a there. Well, next time you come in will definitely make that happen. I meant thank you so much for coming. I appreciate your time and I appreciate everybody else whether you are listening or washing to the show. I know the guests do as well. If you have never been to mestizos, make sure you go over and give it a shout and let them know that you heard about them on the petty G, show the right there corner of Acadia.

[01:01:16.000]
Bye-bye I-10, you can’t miss them. So long as we don’t get flooding in south of Katie and they’re very easy to get to. So thank you all so very much and thank you to the amazing sponsors that make this show possible each and every week here a little bit more about all of them right now.

[01:01:31.000]
So your home for $399 flat fee with falaya no seriously. Falaya will list your home on the MLS and help you get all the way to the closing table. For as little as a 399 flat feet. Our online platform is insane, Mainly easy to use and will save you thousands. If you’re thinking about selling your home in 2022 and want to keep more of your hard-earned equity in your pocket, you need to check out falaya falaya thank you all so very much for listening to this episode of The Patty G show brought to you by government Taco.

[01:02:01.400]
They’re located on the corner of Government Street and Jefferson Highway J is always slinging up a new Taco of the month. So if you’re a frequent or to government taco, let us know in the comments what you thought about this month’s Taco of the month, if you’re not a frequenter,

[01:02:16.100]
I this month taco might just convert you big. Thanks over to them. A government taco for making the Patty G show possible. Imagine taxiing on a plane, looking toward the end of the runway, it seems so far away. It’s even hard to see it. And that’s what the concept of retirement probably felt like when you were in your twenties thirties and forties way far in the distance. Not visible or even a concern. But as you turn fish fifty, something happens. Retirement suddenly. Seems like something real something not too far away in your fifties. You are rolling down. The runway. Retirement is getting closer and closer faster and faster weeks and months zipping by. But are you even ready for a successful takeoff to retirement? Fear not there. Still runway left. But the time is now time to make progress and time to get a plan. The runway decade will help you get organized. Get energized and get.

[01:03:16.000]
You the direction you need to take off to your desired retirement, the runway decade building a pre-retirement flight plan in your 50s.

[01:03:28.000]
Thank you to Mercedes-Benz of Baton Rouge for making this show. Possible, Nick pentas is a past guest. We love having him on listening to him. Talk about the culture. They have over at Mercedes-Benz of Baton Rouge, is really an incredible thing to hear, how they treat, not only their employees. But every customer that walks through the door, you are more than just a number to them, they’re going to give you that white glove, concierge service. Every step of the way they’re going to make you feel like family and take what can be a stressful time. Time in people’s life shopping for a car, they’re going to make it so enjoyable and so pleasurable. You’re going to want to go back there time and time again for every new vehicle. Thank you so very much for Mercedes-Benz of making this show possible.

[01:04:13.100]
Thank you to our wonderful sponsor Lake Men’s Health Center With Our Lady of the Lake Physicians Group, guys.

[01:04:18.800]
I know it’s tough to get out and go to the doctor. I know it’s challenging to find time in our busy days but I promise, you sign up to be a part of this group with dr. Curtis Chastain and dr. Tyler Boudreaux, you won’t regret it for several reasons, but most of those being, the fact of the time, it saves where you’re able to get him on the same day.

[01:04:36.700]
Get that appointment done and spend that time you need to talk with them about what? Your health goals and concerns are as well as ensuring that the financial investments you have, you will be able to live out and see those come to fruition. So if your and investing guy, you know, all about and planning for the future, and investing in the future, there’s no other more important thing to invest in, then your health, make sure you go check them out. Our Lady of the Lake, Physicians Group Men’s Health Center and tell him Patty G sent you.

[01:05:06.600]
McLavy Ltd. A proud sponsor of the Patty G show has been serving the Baton Rouge area proudly for forty plus years, gentlemen and ladies, if you’re shopping for your man, there is no other place in the Baton Rouge area to get your clothing, whether it’s gameday needs everyday needs business attire, formal attire. Whatever you you want. Go over there. See Frank and Ashley. It’s a father, daughter duo. They do incredible things in their store. They will outfit you from as simply a shirt that you need for one evening or all the way to a full wardrobe overhaul. They’re gonna take care of you every step of the way and be sure. And let them know that Patty G show sent you. Thank you so very much to currency bank.

[01:05:46.700]
Proud sponsor, the Patty G show if you are looking for a business bank, that Fosters on Three core values, relationships service and Technology Currency Bank is the place for you. They Pride themselves on convenient, accessible and secure online banking resources, where you can manage your account. Balances initiate transfers enroll with East Asians and more via their online portal between the relationships, the service. And the technology, they are going to be that partner with your business. Every step of the way regardless. Us of what you need. Currency Bank is the bank for business owners.