east valley
Volume 4 Issue 41 Mesa, AZ
April 24, 2021
Kurt Riske, chief of brands for Los Sombreros, shows off the recently renovated upstairs dining area at the Los Sombreros location on Southern Avenue and Dobson Road in Mesa (David Minton/Tribune Staff Photographer)
Mesa restaurant owners excited about Mezcal bar BY JOSH ORTEGA Tribune Staff Writer
H
IN THE BIZ
e opened at the height of the pandemic and will finally complete his restaurant’s renovations next month. Kurt Riske opened Los Sombreros Mexican restaurant located at 1976 West Southern Avenue in October 2020. Now, he can say the work is complete just in time for Cinco de Mayo – his busiest day of the year. Public Notices ............... page 2 © Copyright, 2022 East Valley Tribune
The 43-year-old Scottsdale native has worked for the company on and off since 2002 when he was still trying to make it in Major League Baseball. Now, he serves as the chief of brands for Los Sombreros at a time when restaurants still struggle on several fronts in the economy. “You just got to be creative and try to trust your instinct on what you think might be different that not everyone else is doing,” he said. Since October 2020, the restaurant has done its best to stay afloat and now has (USPS 004-616) is published weekly
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unveiled its newest feature: a mezcaleria, where patrons can find more than 30 different mezcals that all originate from Oaxaca, Mexico. Riske and his business partners took a trip there because they wanted to bring that southern Mexico flair to Mesa in the most authentic way. Climbing the stairs to the Mezcaleria helps you to really see, touch and feel Oaxaca without crossing the border, he said. He said there’s not really a mezcal lounge in the Valley and it was “a great Subscriptions are $26 for 2 years, $14 for one year. Periodicals postage paid at Phoenix, AZ 85026.
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