Two family-owned businesses — a Mexican restaurant on one end
and a meat market on the other — are reinvigorating a strip
center near Getwell Road and Park Avenue.
Las Delicias Mexican Bar and Grill opened three weeks
ago, but already the restaurant has an enthusiastic clientele of nearby
neighbors and young people from the University of Memphis. Customers
appreciate the restaurant’s fresh, authentic food and affordable
prices, says Antonio Martinez, who owns and operates the
restaurant with his wife, Leila.
“We wanted to be closer to Midtown and have a bigger space,” says
Martinez, comparing the Park Avenue location to the couple’s other
restaurant (also called Las Delicias) on South Mendenhall near
Winchester.
Much of the new menu duplicates the old, and that’s a good thing.
Don’t miss the restaurant’s much-loved guacamole (it’s made fresh for
each order), chipotle and verde sauces (served in squirt bottles with
every meal), steak, pork, or chicken tortas, and Leila’s homemade
chips.
“Leila makes her own corn tortillas, then we slice them and fry
them,” Antonio says. “Our chips are crunchy but still light and a
little soft on the inside.”
A bigger kitchen has expanded food choices, too. New options include
four varieties of enchiladas, three soups, and flautas, which are fried
tortillas filled with shredded chicken or beef. At $7.95, the flautas
and enchiladas are the most expensive items on the menu.
Justin Fox Burks
Las Delicias owner Antonio Martinez
Customers can buy beer or bring wine, but Antonio promises full bar
service within a week or so. “We are waiting on our liquor license,” he
says. “When the bar opens, we will stay open later on Friday and
Saturday nights.” For now, Las Delicias is open Monday through Saturday
from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Las Delicias, 4002 Park (458-9264)
The business cards stacked on the counter at Big Daddy’s Meat
Market say this: “We aren’t the biggest, but we’re the best.”
No one agrees more than Haytham Hammad, who upgraded the
grocery’s merchandise and service when he took over the market last
month. “Now we have everything, and it’s all good,” he says, waving his
hand toward the store’s refrigerated display case. “The only frozen
food in the store is the catfish nuggets.”
Certainly, the store’s mix of fresh produce and meat, geared toward
Middle Eastern and Hispanic customers, is impressive. Exotic produce
fills the bins, and in the meat case, there’s goat, rabbit, frog legs,
ox tail, and leg of lamb.
For less adventurous shoppers, the store sells steaks, fajitas,
ground beef, and chicken wings. Ten different “meat deals” also combine
variety, value, and free bread, potatoes, or milk. Look for the bright
yellow handout on the checkout counter for a description of the combos,
which range in price from $20 for 10 pounds of assorted meats to “Big
Daddy’s Special,” nearly 200 pounds for $340.