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Best Local Eats:
f you’re in Saline looking for a place to indulge in Mexican food then Cancun Mexican Grill may be a spot for you.
General Manager Maria Vera said the restaurant that opened in 2012 brings a family-friendly atmosphere and offers a wide range of menu items including tacos, veggie plates, fajitas, chimichangas, salads, and enchiladas with options for chicken, seafood and steak.
“(For customers that) want to have a nice meal they can just come and relax and take a load off or if they are in a hurry, we will get things rolling as fast as we can,” she said. “I feel like if you were to mention everything that we have (on the menu) it would take us forever.”
Saline’s Cancun Mexican Grill is just one of the owners’ many locations, Vera said, adding she began working at the restaurant’s Okemos location in 2007 before moving. She said she has been in Saline since that restaurant opened and has grown accustomed to its size and operations.
“I feel comfortable with a place this size because I get to know people and I get to know my
Donuts inside the market.
Two months ago, the café moved up front, adding a pick-up window option during times the market is closed.
“Moving near the front door has already changed my numbers nancially already,” she said. “I’m doing better than I was prior.”
Penny’s Café caters at weddings, business meetings, baby showers and parties.
Penny’s Café is open during normal market hours, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Additionally, the pickup window option is open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays.
“I love working,” Walgenbach said. “The amount of friends I have made because of this place is crazy.”
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Delights regulars,” she said. “If I had a bigger place I wouldn’t be able to.”
As the weather continues to warm up, Vera said she’s working to add an outside patio for customers to enjoy possibly as early as this summer.
Besides burritos and tacos, Vera said Cancun Mexican Grill has become known for some dishes like its Cancun fajitas, which are made with bell pepper, onions, tomatoes, shrimp, steak and chicken served with rice, refried beans, lettuce, guacamole, pico de gallo, sour cream and either corn or our tortillas.
Another popular dish is its Molcajete which features grilled steak, chicken, shrimp and chorizo sausage with jalapenos and nopales in a stone molcajete bowl. It’s served with pico de gallo, rice, beans, lettuce guacamole, sour cream and either corn or our tortillas.

As for Vera’s go-to menu item, she said it’s the Cancun chicken which some may consider to be an interesting combination. The dish is made with grilled chicken, onions and mushrooms topped with fresh spinach and cheese served with rice, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream and tortillas.
Regardless of what someone orders, Vera said customers can always nd quality with Cancun Mexican Grill.
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Cancun Mexican Grill, 405 E. Michigan Ave. in Saline, is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
“To me, it’s not because I serve it, but we have one of the best,” Vera said. “We brought the Molcajete into the atmosphere and then other restaurants brought it in after us which is great. But, from what I’ve seen, it’s not close to the same with the sauce, texture or presentation.”
“I don’t want to substitute on cheaper quality because that is going to jeopardize my business especially for our regular (customers),” she said.
The restaurant, of course, offers options for margaritas both frozen and on the rocks with avors like strawberry, lime, mango, peach and raspberry. Other alcoholic drinks include daquiris, beer and wine along with non-alcoholic options like Mexican sodas, Jamaica water and Horchata rice water.
Cancun also serves desserts like an made from scratch, fried ice cream, churro bites and a cheesecake chimichanga that Vera said is the best.