FernandoSantafe

Restaurant Owner Highlight

By Alan Williams

When I first met Fernando Santafe, owner of Las Guitarras Cocina Mexicana, in Boerne, Texas, he was playing his guitar at Toro Kitchen on 1604. He is a very talented musician, and he mostly plays beautiful Spanish music.I saw him again two weeks later at the Menger Hotel, Mother’s Day Brunch. We chatted briefly. I hadn’t seen him for almost two years when I saw him again at Toro Kitchen. This time, as I got ready to leave, he stopped playing and approached me. He told me that he was planning to open a Mexican restaurant in Boerne, Texas and that when he opened, he wanted me to come. Because I have been around so many restaurant owners, I know that running a restaurant is very difficult. I thought to myself, “what does a guitar player know about running a restaurant?” Well, here is Fernando Santafe’s story.

Fernando Santafe Owner, Las Guitarras Cocina Mexicana

Fernando Santafe was born in Chihuahua, Mexico. He is the youngest of seven children. His parents were both very musically skilled. His father always wanted to be a professional performer but with seven hungry mouths to feed he worked in the community and eventually opened a meat packing plant.

Though all of Fernando’s brothers and sisters went to school, for some reason Fernando’s father had an alternate education plan for him. Fernando never went to school and never had any formal education! Instead, he would either go with his father to work or stay home and help around the house. Fernando particularly liked working in the kitchen!

In his spare time practiced the guita good at playing it. is special because the guitar against is like a hug!

When he was Fernando and a fr delivery service. motorbikes and warmers to them cook steaks along quickly deliver the homes around th was successful, bu more time playing

Around 1998, he started noticing that crime and drug problems were getting bad where he lived in Mexico, so when a New Mexico casino offered him a job playing guitar, he packed his things and moved to the United States. He worked in the casino kitchen during the day and played guitar at night. Within seven months he was able to open his own restaurant. For many years he worked in his restaurant all day and played his guitar at night.

In the 2000’s he noticed a new trend; frozen yogurt. As an entrepreneur he was always on the lookout for a good business deal. Fernando did his research and then contacted a friend. Soon they opened several yogurt shops around Santa Fe and began selling franchises around the country. Life was good until the economy collapsed in 2008. Business with the yogurt shops slowed down, so when his business partner offered to buy out his part of the business, he took it!

Fernando had been to San Antonio when opening one of his yogurt shops and really liked it. Since he no longer had any ties to New Mexico, he moved his family to San Antonio.He had enough money to slow down a little, so for several years he only played guitar. But he played a lot! He has calculated that between 2009 and 2020 he played over 3400 gigs around San Antonio!

Once again, life was good for quite some time, but soon, the kitchen began calling to him. That is about the time that I met him.

Fernando’s restaurant is called Las Guitarras Cocina Mexicana and he offers Mexican food from all stages of his life; traditional Interior Mexico food, New Mexican style food with Blue Corn tortillas and hatch green chilis, and Tex-Mex. The building is a beautiful two-story wooden structure with a bookshelf and fireplace that stretch from the first floor to the second-floor ceiling. Live music is offered every night of the week except Sunday when they offer Sunday Brunch from 10:00 to 2:30! It is an amazing restaurant with delicious food and fantastic Margaritas made with tequila. I pass a whole lot of Mexican restaurants to get to Las Guitarras!

So, what does a guitar player know about running a restaurant? Well in the case of Fernando Santefe, a lot!

Las Guitarras Cocina Mexicana is at 911 S. Main St., Boerne, Texas. https://lasguitarrascocinamexicana.com