Eric De La Torre,46, grew up in San Jose. Leaving behind the rising costs of living and housing in the Bay Area, Eric De La Torre, and his wife, Stephanie Servin, moved to Los Banos in 2016.
Now De La Torre is the proud owner of one of the newest additions to Los Banos cuisine, Blue Agave. “If you’re looking for a good ambiance and a modern taste of Mexican culture food, give us a try,” De La Torre said.
Blue Agave opened its doors on Aug. 12. The focus is on a mix of modern and Bay Area Mexican-style food with a small amount of Asian mixed in with sushi.
“We wanted to bring something that represented a little bit of the Bay Area feel,” De La Torre said in an interview with the Westside Express. “Most Mexican restaurants don’t have sushi, but we wanted to add a little of that fusion.”
De La Torre said, “We like it here, it’s a small-town feel. There’s not a lot of traffic like the Bay Area, it’s a slow pace living here, and a good place to raise a family.” De La Torre and his wife had the idea for the business after seeing many locals go out of town to eat.
“People go to Turlock, Modesto and the Bay Area to have a good nice dinner in a nice ambiance,” he said.
He emphasized that the Bay Area feeling was missing in the food options of Los Banos. “We wanted to bring something closer to the people in town,” he said. “My wife and I pour our hearts and soul not only into the decor, the whole feel, the detail of the restaurant.”
The unique name, Blue Agave, is named after the Blue Agave plant grown in Jalisco, Mexico. De La Torre tracks his heritage to Jalisco. The Blue Agave is used extensively in the production of Tequila and can be found cultivated throughout the Jalisco area.
“We wanted to put some of that culture into it and at the same time be modern, be diverse,” De La Torre said. The target audience is practically anyone “who likes Mexican food,” he said.
So far, De La Torre says he’s gotten a lot of support from both locals and passersby. He says that within the first two weeks, plenty of business came through, providing constructive feedback that he uses to better the food and experience.
The de facto mascot of the business is a mural in the back of the restaurant. The mural depicts a woman in the Day of the Dead or Dia De Los Muertos in the foreground and behind her is a field of blue agave. The butterflies and Aztec Calendar add additional detail to the mural.
“We wanted to integrate all the culture within the mural,” he said. The painter was a popular Bay Area artist, Artes Luna.
Eric De La Torre prides himself on the quality of ingredients used. “We’re going to the highest standard,” De La Torre said. “We’re not skimping on any low-quality proteins.”
To aspiring business owners, De La Torre had a succinct message: “If you’re going to do something, make sure you put 100 percent and do your homework.”
He emphasized the need to take constructive feedback, do extensive research and do the process right. “Be financially prepared and educated on how to run a business.”
