New Mexican kitchen and tequila bar to open in Port Orange

A new Mexican restaurant is preparing for its grand opening in Port Orange.

Don Chente Mexican Kitchen and Tequila sits within the city’s Tuscan Village Shoppes, the former location of Agave II Fresh Mex and Cantina, and plans to host its official opening by July 15.

Brothers and owners Richard and Jahel Li said the restaurant will offer classic Mexican dishes with modern flavors in an inviting “family-friendly” atmosphere.

“I just want people to know that we’re a family-owned restaurant that works for this community,” Richard said. “We want to try to help the community out as soon as we can, and try to create a safe, family-fun environment for the people here in Port Orange.”

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The new scratch-kitchen eatery plans to source fresh vegetables from local farmers, Richard said, and offer a wide range of menu items, including parrillada — various grilled meats and sides, "like a huge fajita" — and “classic” molcajete dishes, homemade salsas, seafood and various combo plates, as well as handcrafted margaritas and non-alcoholic beverages, including homemade lemonade.

“Our tamales and chiles rellenos are going to be from scratch. We want to get the corn and smash it to make our own tamales — we don’t want to buy them, you know?” Richard said.

“We have a vegetarian option, we have a seafood option, we have every option of Mexican flavor for people that like it.”

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For the tenacious duo, one word came to mind regarding the opening of their first restaurant together.

“Calm,” Richard said. “We’re calm, because we know how we work.”

“You just need to learn how to manage pressure,” Jahel added.

And that’s a skill they’ve certainly honed.

The brothers, born and raised in Peru, told me they began working at a very young age — Richard at just 8 years old — and held discipline and diligence as non-negotiables in the arduous journey of their professional lives — values they attribute to their father's Chinese roots.

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“I see that little opportunity and I jump on it,” Richard said. “That’s what my dad (taught) me — you see opportunity, you jump on it and you put hard work on it. If you put hard work (into) stuff, it’s gonna be successful regardless.”

However, life turned upside down for the brothers when their father was tragically diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2012 and given just six months to live.

His final wish, they noted, was for Richard — around 17 at the time — to move in with his aunt in New York City, where he would work to help support his mother and siblings back in Peru.

After nearly one year in the city, where he began as a dishwasher at a local Burger King and quickly worked his way up the ranks, he then moved to Florida, where Jahel soon followed, and even spent a brief period in Georgia, where they landed their first positions as servers in a local Mexican restaurant at 19 and 20 years old.

“I always had two jobs; he always had two jobs. We worked all day, every day,” Richard said, often putting in upward of 17 hours a day during their six- to seven-day work weeks.

The duo ultimately moved to Florida in 2014, both working tirelessly in various restaurants, including Azteca D'Oro Mexican Restaurant, Agave Azul Kirkman location and Se?or Frogs, learning the ins and outs of the industry. During this time, Richard says, he seized every opportunity to absorb information, as did his brother, never shying away from even the largest or most thankless tasks at hand.

“We liked the restaurant environment — we love it,” Richard explained. “I always say to (Jahel), there’s people that work for money and there’s people that work because they love their job … I work in the restaurants because I love it.”

With years of experience under their belts, even helping others close to them successfully open restaurants, the duo realized a passion for family-run operations and felt it was only a matter of time before they put their knowledge to the test.

Richard says his positions in the Mexican restaurant space, one that welcomed him and his brother with open arms, largely influenced the decision to open their own.

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“This is the land of opportunity … you just have to work hard,” Richard said. “So, we realized that we could do our own (restaurant), and we started saving money.”

Following a yearlong search across Florida, everywhere from Melbourne and Cocoa Beach to Daytona Beach and DeLand, where one door after another seemed to close, the search finally came to a successful end at 3510 S. Nova Road in Port Orange — the former location of Agave II Fresh Mex and Cantina.

After receiving word that the current tenant's lease would end early, Richard said it felt like a perfect fit for the new Don Chente. While the name is inspired by their grandfather, he says, the restaurant itself will open in remembrance of their late father, built upon the values of the hard work and dedication he inspired.

“We signed the lease and, yeah, we started decorating the whole thing by ourselves. We’re doing pretty much everything by ourselves,” he said.

“And we want to bless families. I want to open restaurants (to) help other people have a job with fair pay and fair treatment. I know God’s giving me this — me and my brother — to help other people.”

Don Chente Mexican Kitchen and Tequila is located 3510 S. Nova Road, Suite 101, in Port Orange with tentative plans to open from 11 a.m. – 10 p.m. Monday – Thursday, 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. – 9 p.m. Sunday. The restaurant's website and social media pages are still to come.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Port Orange to welcome new Mexican restaurant and tequila bar