Popular Denver restaurant La Loma opens fourth restaurant in Parker
La Loma is preparing to welcome customers to its new Parker restaurant at 9355 Crown Crest Boulevard.
It all started with one woman, "Grandma Mendoza," whose recipes and small restaurant have now turned into a successful chain about to open its fourth location.
"It's family. It's tradition. It's being rooted in Colorado. It's having our story and it's a family story," said Renee Brinkerhoff, owner of La Loma. "The story of La Loma goes back to the 1970s."
The original La Loma sat in a small house off Zuni and Speer, in what today is known as the Highlands neighborhood of Denver.
"It was a place I would go with my in-laws and my kids, and we would eat there once a week and enjoy their wonderful recipes," Brinkerhoff said.
Renee Brinkerhoff, owner of popular Denver Mexican restaurant La Loma, discusses the fourth location, opening in Parker.
CBS
Brinkerhoff said her father-in-law proposed going into business with Grandma Mendoza and her family.
"That's how it began in 1981. The Padilla family and the Brinkerhoff joined together and started... this wonderful tradition that we've created for the last 40 years here in Colorado," Brinkerhoff said.
The restaurant eventually moved downtown and added locations in Castle Rock and McGregor Square.
"It's bringing this to the community and wanting more people to experience it. It's having this emphasis on the quality of food and retaining those authentic original recipes," Brinkerhoff said.
Tortilla mix and margarita mix on display and for sale inside the newly opened La Loma Mexican restaurant at 1801 Broadway on Nov. 2, 2016 in Denver, Colorado.
Helen H. Richardson/The Denver Post via Getty Images
Now, another La Loma is cooking off of Parker Road and E-470.
"Parker is a perfect fit for us. Parker has its own community, its own story, its own rich heritage, and it needed a La Loma" Brinkerhoff said.
The opening comes at a difficult time, with inflation and tariffs taking their toll on businesses.
"Construction costs are 25 to 35% higher than they've been. Food and liquor costs are higher. But our goal has always been to absorb those costs ourselves, find where we can save so we don't affect the customers' experience and what they're having to pay," Brinkerhoff said.
While the Trump administration has walked back tariffs on most goods from Mexico, uncertainty looms.
"The tariffs haven't really affected us at all at this point, and if they do, we're gonna have to pivot and strategize what to do," Brinkerhoff said. "Tequila has to come from Mexico, right? If it's true agave."
But it's not stopping La Loma from opening its doors to a new community.
"To be here today opening the Parker location is just a fulfillment of a dream that I've had for a long time, to see this expansion, and it's very rewarding," Brinkerhoff said.
La Loma is also planning to open a new location in the Denver Tech Center that should open next month.
The Parker location will officially open on Monday, Cinco de Mayo, and be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
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