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Jaime SolteroJaime Soltero Jr. opened the door to his first Portland restaurant location for Tamale Boy in March of 2014–Less than three months ago! By doing so Soltero falls in line with a larger trend of successful food carts expanding into restaurant locations. At the time of this interview, Soltero was just a few weeks removed from opening his brick-and-mortar presence and was kind enough to share what the experience of starting a new restaurant has been like so far.

In this episode Soltero covers a variety of topics relevant to food truck entrepreneurs considering the transition to restaurant ownership, including the process of finding the right location,  getting a restaurant designed and built, and the differences between owning a food cart versus a restaurant. Soltero even provides tips on determining if buying a restaurant is the right move for your business.

Tamale Boy

Window outside the new Tamale Boy location in Portland.

Quote From The Show

 If you feel that your product is there and the customers are asking for it. I would say go for it. – Jaimie Soltero Jr.’s advice to other food cart owners considering the transition to brick and mortar. 

 

What You’ll Learn

  • Why Soltero decided to rebrand his business from Mayahuel Catering to the more memorable Tamale Boy
  • A glimpse into the history and evolution of the Tamale Boy brand
  • The moment Soltero knew he wanted to get transition into the restaurant business
  • What the transition has been like from food cart to restaurant
  • Some of the benefits of having a permanent location: a place for tastings in the event of wedding catering and consistent location and hours of operation for customers.
  • How Soltero was found his restaurant location
  • Advice for other food cart owners considering a restaurant location

Mentioned in The Podcast

Tamale Boy – The official online home of Tamale Boy. Check out their menu items and view dozens of photos of the new restaurant location.

Skylab Architecture –  The firm that designed the new Tamale Boy restaurant location. Check out their website. They’ve done some really incredible work.

Scene Marketing – Soltero gave serious props to this marketing / branding agency based out of Portland for assistance executing the vision and interior design of the Tamale Boy restaurant.

Tamale Boy News Article –  Article written by staff reporter Wendy Culverwell on the Portland food carts transition to brick and mortar.

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Want to start your own food business?

Hey! 👋I’m Brett Lindenberg, the founder of Food Truck Empire.

We interview successful founders and share the stories behind their food trucks, restaurants, food and beverage brands. By sharing these stories, I want to help others get started.

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