Maya McFadden Photo
Ana De Los Angeles and her family celebrated the 10 year anniversary of their Westville cafe Manjares with the official grand opening of the coffee spot/restaurant’s bar, Manjares Tapas, and a block party as a thank-you gift to the neighborhood.
The Manjares cafe is staffed by De Los Angeles’ family including two of her children, Stephanie and Ronald Grullon, and her granddaughter Josephine Bracha. The bar is run by Eddy Caves, a well-known New Haven mixologist.
“From the start, I knew he was the right person for the bar,” said De Los Angeles.
Caves has 13 years of bartending experience and has been dedicating himself to managing Manjares Tapas since its soft opening about two months ago at 838 Whalley Ave. “I understand the business,” he said.
Together, De Los Angeles and Caves each brought along a number of dedicated customers to support the new extension of Manjares. Caves said he trained the bar staff, put together the menu, and helped to decide on what tools would be needed from the shakers down to the kind of ice used for drinks.
“It hasn’t really been that long since we opened, and we already have regulars and receive a tremendous amount of support,” said Caves.
De Los Angeles gave special thanks to her family, friends, and staff for a successful first ten years. During her acknowledgments, she thanked two of her everyday customers, Bill Quinn and Tom Hannan. “We can’t start our morning any other way,” said Quinn.
The cafe’s chef, Gerardo Perez (pictured above), was also acknowledged by De Los Angeles for his everyday hard work and commitment to the establishment since its start. De Los Angeles said Perez came to work with passion and dedicated each day no matter if they had no customers or hundreds. “Better times will come,” Perez would tell De Los Angeles every day in the beginning. They did.
At Friday’s anniversary party, Caves and his fellow bartender, Coco, served at Tapas. Caves said the bar is currently staffed by four to six bartenders.
Raised in New York, De Los Angeles (pictured) has been living in New Haven for 14 years now. She said the idea for Manjares came to her in a dream one night, in which her father, who passed away 42 years ago, told her to start a business of her own.
Before Manjares, De Los Angeles worked as a pastry chef, putting in long and hard work days to provide for her family. “I felt like the neighborhood needed a home like ours,” she said.
Movimiento Cultural Afro Continental, Inc. livened the block party with Afro-Puerto Rican/Caribbean dance and music. Community members were invited to join the dancers in the center to learn some of their moves.
De Los Angeles was joined by Caves, her family, and friends as she cut the grand-opening ribbon for Manjares Tapas.
Manjares cafe is known as a family-friendly neighborhood spot. De Los Angeles worked with the Westville Village Renaissance Alliance to put together the block party celebration. Guests paid $25 for admission into the event, a plate of food, and a glass of champagne.
“We are all proud of you for making this dream of yours a reality,” said Stephanie Grullon to her mother.