Business: Latigo
Address: 2229 Blake St.
Hours: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-12 p.m. Friday-Saturday
Founded: 2016
Contact: 303-537-7682,
Employees:20
Interview with Ignacio Leon, chef and owner
Q: How did you get involved in this business?
A: Itap safe to say that food is in my blood. As a young man, I worked at my parents’ Mexico City-based restaurant as a dishwasher, and thatap where I developed my love for food and appreciation for fresh ingredients. After attending cooking school at the Instituto Culinario de Mexico, I came to America in 1997 so that I could open a restaurant that would showcase all the unique flavors of Mexican food that I had come to know and love, and that had been lacking in the states. I’ve been entrenched in the local restaurant business ever since.
Q: What distinguishes you from other businesses in your category?
A: Latigo features family recipes from Central and Southern Mexico that rely on fresh ingredients and regionally-specific herbs to capture a distinct moment. We believe we are preparing Mexican food that is true to its roots. In contrast, most Mexican restaurants in Colorado focus on Tex-Mex flavors which is really an Americanized version of Mexican food much like California rolls are to sushi. Latigo was inspired by the farm fresh flavors that I experienced at my parents’ restaurant growing up and I strive for true authenticity by using imported ingredients straight from Mexico.
Q: What do you like best about your line of work?
A: I love being a part of my community. We love hosting events for the people in our neighborhood that gives them a chance to enjoy good food and listen to live music. It brings me so much joy to see people enjoying my food. I love creating new dishes that could inspire someone else to love authentic Mexican flavors as much as I do.
Q: What is your business’ biggest challenge?
A: It has been hard to really establish this new location. We would love to get the word out that we are here and doing something different. I want people to believe in our food and I want to maintain a reputation as a food innovator in the Denver food community.
Q: Something people might be surprised to learn about you or your business:
A: Many people believe that Mexican food cannot be healthy or diverse. Our food is healthy and we make an effort to feature dishes on our menu that are not associated with your typical Mexican fare. For example, we offer three entree-sized salads as well as a salmon entree served with vegetables. We want to show that we are bringing something new to the table — food that isn’t greasy or leaves you feeling overly-full.