By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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LOVES PARK — Kevin Mata has a rich restaurant history to live up to.
Not only are he and his business partners Eraclio Macias and Gabriel Delgado branching off from Mexico Clasico on Broadway in south Rockford, but they’re filling a space on Riverside Boulevard that for years was the cherished home of Maid-Rite.
Beth Higgins, who worked for Maid-Rite for more than 30 years, said Mata and his team are the right group for the job.
“It couldn’t have been a better group of people,” said Higgins, who now works next door to the new Mi Placita Mexico Clasico, 1726 E. Riverside Blvd. “I’m telling you if it couldn’t be Maid-Rite, I’m glad it’s these guys.”
“There’s no arrogance, nothing like that. They’re just fun people. … I’m sure they’re going to do great.”
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Mi Placita Mexico Clasico celebrated its grand opening on Wednesday with a ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Parks Chamber of Commerce with leaders of the city of Loves Park, village of Machesney Park and the Winnebago County Board.
The space was most recently home to Riverside Family Restaurant, which closed roughly a year ago, and Maid-Rite before that.
“With the Maid Rite being there for all those years it was a great location,” Loves Park Mayor Greg Jury said. “Now, you’re able to at least keep the same type of clientele where they can come in and do their thing and stay in the city of LovesPark.”
“These guys are going to do a great job. They’re awesome, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Mata learned the ropes of the restaurant business while working at Mexico Clasico, 3929 Broadway, in south Rockford. He and his business partners all worked there before deciding to open their own branch on the north end of the community.
“We went over to Mexico Clasico on Broadway one night and fell in love with the place. We do birthdays, we do everything there,” Higgins said. “My kids are very excited about this opening up.”
Mi Placita will carry some of the most popular menu items from its Rockford restaurant namesake, but it will also have some of its own dishes. It also shares a similar logo featuring a guacamole bowl set against a bright yellow backdrop.
“The name also carries on the good history from the other place. We’ve really got to take care of that, and really put forward the best effort to make it grow,” Mata said. “We hope to be known for a good experience overall: good service, cleanliness and happy times. You’re going to have a good time with your kids, friends or anybody.”
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Some of the house specialities at Mi Placita include arroz con pollo, which is a rice bed toped with grilled chicken and covered in cheese dip, choripollo, which is a chicken breast with chorizo covered in cheese dip, pollo ranchero, carne asada and T-bone ranchero. The Mi Placita especial is a chopped ribeye steak cooked with mushroom, tomatoes, onion and cilantro. It’s served with rice, bean and avocado salad.
There’s much more on the multi-page menu that lets you flip through loads of classic Mexican meals and other dishes.
“We’re going to try our best to make sure you have an overall good experience: the food, customer service and the cleanliness,” Mata said. “Anything you look for in a restaurant. We’re going to try to keep it good and improve over time.”
About | Mi Placita Mexico Clasico
Where: 1726 E. Riverside Blvd., Loves Park
Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m to 9:30 p.m. Sunday
On the web: Find Mi Placita Mexico Clasico on Facebook.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas.