God’s Blessing and $200 were all that Teresa Esparza had when she opened El Chef Restaurant 10 years ago.

A family business is a successful business. In July El Chef Restaurant was named the Small Business of the Year by the Douglas Chamber of Commerce. From left, David, Aracely, Nancy, Hilario, Teresa and Alejandra.

Her little eatery on Pan American Avenue had only four tables and since all her children were very young then, Esparza had to do all the cooking, cleaning and waitressing. Because of the home style cooking, however, the restaurant soon became popular.

Three years later she moved El Chef Restaurant to 8th Street. There, she had nine tables and because of God’s Blessings, those tables were always occupied. The patrons found that the good tasting food had not changed.

By now the children were older and they were able to make major contributions to the success of the restaurant.

“Because of my children and God, I’ve been able to achieve all that we have,” Esparza said.

By then Esparza’s husband, Hilario, had returned from California. Hilario’s undeniable talent as a cook had made El Chef one of the most popular Mexican restaurants in Douglas. Often, the place on 8th Street was so full with patrons that many others had to be turned away.

As a result, Esparza decided to move once again to a larger building.

On October 26, 2007 El Chef relocated to 11th Street and A Avenue and Esparza’s success has continued to grow. Again, the menu remained the same but now she had 20 tables. And again, trying to find a table at El Chef can be a challenge because the food is still so good.

In July 2008 El Chef Restaurant was named the Small Business of the Year by the Douglas Chamber of Commerce.

“I feel very happy about being selected,” she said. “I really owe it to God and my patrons who have made El Chef a success.”

Of course, she added with a big smile that she wouldn’t be this far along without the help of her family.