New Ann Arbor restaurant owners aim to offer fresh fare native to Mexico City
Chela's owners Adrian Iraloa and his wife Lori stand inside the restaurant.
Laura Blodgett | For AnnArbor.com
The restaurants are the creation of Adrian Iraola, who has always wanted to open a restaurant serving the kind of food he grew up with in Mexico City.
“I grew up in downtown Mexico City where there are a lot of street vendors, and my father had parking lots and (ran) taco stands,” said Iraola, who retired as an engineer with the city of Ann Arbor and works as a consultant for the Downtown Development Authority. “Mexican food has such a tremendous tradition and is so flavorful. That’s what I’ve craved for the last 25 years.”
The first Chela's location is 693 S. Maple, a block west of Stadium, in Ann Arbor.
Laura Blodgett | For AnnArbor.com
“We didn’t know when we opened how many (tamales) to make that weekend so we said ‘Let’s make 80 (of them),’” said Iraola, adding that tamales are a very labor intensive, specialty item. “We finished steaming them around11:30 and by 2:30 we had sold out. “
The restaurant is providing food with a health conscious twist, eliminating the deep fryer typical with Mexican fare and instead lightly frying the food. Chela's is reaching out to local growers and working with 4-H groups to find local sources for vegetables, meats and eggs. Nothing comes out of a can in the Chela's kitchen, rather the tomato sauce and salsa is made fresh daily from tomatoes and onions.
Located at 693 S. Maple, a block west of Stadium, Chela’s West opened in the former Kappa Coney Island tucked between McGuire’s Barber Shop and Buster’s party store. Iraola says Chela’s is doing very well and drawing customers from the area’s business community as well as the large residential population.
The restaurant is a family affair, with Iraola’s wife Lori managing the restaurant and his extended family as well as his college and high school aged children working there.
Iraola and his wife are adjusting as they go along such as adding a kiddie quesadilla to the menu to appeal to the large number of families who come in the door in addition to restructuring their production process to meet the high demand.
Adrian Iraola wants to bring the flavors of Mexico City to Ann Arbor.
Laura Blodgett | For AnnArbor.com
They are in the process of hiring three or four people to work in the second restaurant. Iraola selected both locations for their smaller size — roughly 1,100 square feet — and the fact that both locations previously housed restaurants and could be easily converted.
Though it seems ambitious to open two restaurants simultaneously, Iraola says that is his Type A nature.
“I don’t sit around,” said Iraola, who lives in Saline. “I’ve always coached soccer travel teams and love to be involved with the community.” His wife Lori is the coach of the equestrian teams at Saline Middle and High School.
Chela’s West is currently open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., with possible plans to stay open later to accommodate customers.
Comments
truenorth
Thu, Oct 25, 2012 : 2:35 p.m.
Oh my, Love this place. Seriously awesome.
JimB
Mon, Jun 25, 2012 : 4:22 p.m.
I agree that the flavors are amazing. Better than what's around A2 now. When I was there, they were out of not only tamales, but a few other items as well. I assume it's a correctable problem once they get thier groove on. It's frustrating to wait 15 minutes for the order only to be notified that they just realized they're out of that item. Still a good eating joint overall.
Ben Curtis
Mon, Jun 25, 2012 : 12:04 a.m.
Loved it! Had lunch with a few people and we tried a bit of everything. The tamales were better than the few other places I've had them. I will definitely be back. Great job Adrian and Lori!
einy
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 6:54 p.m.
lol. 80 tamales? I can't make only 80 tamales, my batches generally run 140+ I've been twice and really liked it both times. The chorizo taco is my favorite. The cuban torta was exceptional too. The cheese tamal and it had a nice kick. I hope they add the refried bean (pinto bean.) I can't wait until they open up on the other side of town. With the stadium bridge down it's painful to get there. As for the Stone School Rd location, it's thoughtful to the Muslims about excluding pork, but, shouldn't that be their choice not to order it? I'd like to be able to get the al pastor and chorizo (both are pork, didn't I say chorizo was my favorite?!) I've met both Adian and Lori. Both are SUPER nice people. Best of luck!
NewYorkerinAA
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:28 p.m.
Wow, interesting to see how people have reacted to no pork at the Pittsfield location. My sense is that Iraola was just trying to be respectful, not alienate customers. I too enjoy parts of the pig, and would happily go to the Maple location if I was looking for a fix. That said, I still think it's pretty nice that there will be two locations.
bedrog
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 8:25 p.m.
New Yorker :sadly we live in a time where some people think...and perhaps not always wrongly-- that too much deference to particular religious sensibilities, even when well meaning (as in this case), embolden those whose religious agendas are not that benign. Although i am myself pretty sensitive and attuned to middle east-related matters i don't particularly fear a "stealth jihad by mexican burrito" in this case...although ido think the "no pork" decision is not that well advised.
Les Gov
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:22 p.m.
Chela's in that location will not be serving pork products out of respect for that community."..... Well...points to you for being honest. Good to know up front you don't want my business. Out of respect of you not caring about my preferences I will not be spending my dollars in either of your places. This article did help me make plans for this weekend. Time to BBQ some Pork Butt for pulled pork sandwiches. Nothing like fresh pulled pork straight from the home grill!
fjord
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 7:01 p.m.
Your loss.
Lola
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:17 p.m.
I'm going to check it out soon. This is the kind of place I really want to see succeed, locally owned and operated. Best of luck to the Iraola family.
bedrog
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:01 p.m.
With this place and the new mexican venture by mani osteria's adam baru (previously reported ina2.com) ann arbor will have happily moved up a notch from tex-mex "same-old-same-old" ness. but yeah..bring on the pork. Religious dietary restrictions can be observed privately and ought not to be imposed on a diverse public ,unless the owner shares them which is clearly not the case here.. .that's what menu choices are for.
SpartyKath
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 3:53 p.m.
Food is terrific and i'm thrilled about the 2nd location...although not-so-much about no pork, boo. Adrian and his wife were both there the night we stopped in, without our less than well-behaved toddler in tow. They were swamped and our food took a bit longer than expected but they gave us chips and salsa to tide us over, and on the way out the door Adrian caught up with us and insisted we take a free dessert for my son. Places like this are hard to find, and I hope both locations do really well!!
Hmm
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 7:20 p.m.
They do have great customer service there.
jns131
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 2:47 p.m.
O the street vendors. Boy do they sell great food. Any chance of them being close to Ypsilanti? Can't get to downtown Ann Arbor any time soon.
Lola
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:15 p.m.
Neither is located in downtown Ann Arbor. The one on Stone School is pretty close to Ypsilanti (sort of).
tim
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 1:30 p.m.
Great tacos " carne asada" . I've grown weary of Northern Mexico boarder food, great to see this type of Mexican food in A2.
Hmm
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 12:24 p.m.
First time I ate there, food was hot and delicious. The second time I ate there the food was not so hot or so delicious. I think the trick is to not go right before closing when they are tired from a long day's work. I hope the second time was a fluke, I will give them a few more shots to see how it goes.
Lola
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:13 p.m.
Billy Bob, it's still there. Hover your cursor over the score.
Billy Bob Schwartz
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:08 p.m.
That's "allow us".... Wish I could edit it.
Billy Bob Schwartz
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:07 p.m.
I erased it for you. I think the problem is that you might make a mistake (even I do that sometimes), and there is no way to change it. I wish instead of the identity thing, they would fix it so that 1. we can change our ups and downs and edit our errors or mistatements after they are posted, and 2. all us to put the cursor on the up/down thing and see how many ups and downs there are (there's a difference between one down and 11 down and 10 up). They were allowing the latter, but where did it go?
Hmm
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 3:47 p.m.
Whomever -1 my comment thanks for showing your ignorance. Hopefully the staff at A2.com will be able to make it so we can see who is rating our comments up or down and if/when that happens you will not be leaving your anonymous hate for me anymore I promise you that!
millermaple
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 12:13 p.m.
Taco King in Tienda La Libertad around the corner has really tasty Mexican food, I found the taste of Chela's to be kind of meh!
Hmm
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 1:03 p.m.
Yeah I would go to either of those places before I went to Taco Hell any day of the week
zags
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 12:36 p.m.
I thought they were both quite good, only slightly different. Hard to complain about a $1.50 taco!
Hmm
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 12:26 p.m.
Taco King is also hit and miss. They do serve tongue though so they get points for that
applehazar
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 11:49 a.m.
Ahmos in the same Stone School Rd plaza serves pork sausage. In respect to who- you will not serve pork? In respect it might just keep me away. Please elaborate.
Frustrated in A2
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 11:40 p.m.
The sausage and bacon served at Ahmos aren't pork products. The one downtown has bacon and sausage for the breakfast menu and the pizza but again not pork. They do use quality meats (turkey and or beef if I remember correctly) and they're really good.
einy
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 6:59 p.m.
Excellent point Craig.
Craig Lounsbury
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 2:48 p.m.
I see bacon and sausage listed under breakfast items on the menu as well as turkey bacon and turkey sausage. Should i assume they are separate items or are they all turkey? I have never eaten there. http://www.ahmosdeli.com/menu.cfm
Robo
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 12:48 p.m.
agreed. I go to taco joints for pastor.
Craig Lounsbury
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 11:20 a.m.
"...the Chela's in that location will not be serving pork products out of respect for that community. " What community is he referring to? Isn't that area mostly light industrial or some such thing?
Craig Lounsbury
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:45 p.m.
when I think "community" I think the folks who live in the immediate area. To me I think the co-oops on Elsworth and the Pheasant Run /Champagne area as the nearest "community" . I didn't really think those areas were overly populated with Muslim/Middle Eastern folks. I have also been in a few party stores owned by Middle Eastern folks where I could buy pork rinds, pork and beans, spam, and a few other items that would not be part of the diet of the store owner. Of course those are prepackaged items. So is the concern food preparation in a kitchen?
Lola
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 4:09 p.m.
They probably think he's being sarcastic, that he knows perfectly well that there is a large Muslim population in that area and also a Halal market in the same strip mall.
Hmm
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 3:34 p.m.
Why would anyone vote this comment down? He is asking a question for petes sake!
DDOT1962
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 1:01 p.m.
Ahmo's and the strip mall it's located in on Ellsworth is owned by the Issa family, whom I believe are Lebanese and Muslim. There is a large Muslim/Middle Eastern population in the southern part of Ann Arbor running through to western Ypsilanti. I'm sure Mr. Iraola is withholding pork from the menu out of respect for them. I, however, am a pork- loving agnostic living in the same area. He can feel free to respect my wishes that pig is represented on his menu there. Oink-oink. ;O)
aa1940
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 11:07 a.m.
located a block west of the Stadium I think you mean located 1 block west of Stadium Blvd.
sellers
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 11:34 a.m.
No, it's written correctly, there is no article "the" in the article
Jon Carlson
Thu, Jun 21, 2012 : 10:56 a.m.
This place is absolutely amazing. Some of the best flavors and so authentic. You can't help but want to go back and back and back. Congratulations!