Chamber of commerce
Luis Muzquiz Jr. and Luis Muzquiz Sr. of La Casita
Business of the Year: The Springville-Mapleton Chamber of Commerce is happy to announce that La Casita is its choice for 2017 Business of the Year. Considered one of Utah County’s top Mexican food restaurants for nearly four decades now, La Casita’s success is built around two main concepts: unique family recipes perfected with years of fine tuning and always ensuring that customers feel like family. “We not only want every customer who walks through our door to have outstanding Mexican food and a genuine dining experience, but also feel like they are part of La Casita’s family, tradition and history,” said owner Luis Muzquiz Jr. La Casita has become a mainstay in Springville’s dining community. The children and grandchildren of those who dined at La Casita when it first opened in October 1978 are the restaurant’s core customers today. La Casita was founded by Luis Muzquiz Sr. and his wife Luz. They moved to Utah after working as cooks and servers for many years at various Mexican restaurants in Southern California. With encouragement from customer 12
La Casita
Charlie Hesselgesser, who moved from Southern California to Koosharem, Utah, Luis Muzquiz Sr. purchased the small building at 333 N. Main in Springville that once housed Siesta Village Restaurant, which was operated for years by the Domingo Rodriquez family. “I think La Casita became successful from the beginning and continued strong for 25 years because of my dad’s outgoing personality and the recipes he learned from his mother,” Luis Muzquiz Jr. said. In March 2003, Luis Muzquiz Jr. and wife Katie purchased La Casita, and they have continued to serve the restaurant’s original cuisine for the past 14 years. More importantly, Luis Jr. and Katie continue to build La Casita’s generational customer base. In addition to being honored with the Springville-Mapleton Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year award, La Casita was recently chosen by readers of the Daily Herald as Utah County’s best Mexican restaurant. “Our business philosophy is simple. Our customers are family to us,” Luis Muzquiz Jr. said.