El Famous Burrito reopens original restaurant 6 years after fire
SUMMIT, Ill. (CBS) -- A suburban restaurant's name tells you just how popular it is. El Famous Burrito's original location in Summit recently celebrated its grand reopening, with a younger generation calling the shots.
Believe it or not, there was once a time when there was no Mexican food in the suburbs. Then, Benny Sagredo came to town.
"I started this company in 1985. After that, it's history," he said.
Benny and his family are responsible for the dozen El Famous Burrito restaurants dotted across the western suburbs.
"My dad actually started off with like, I think it was 20 locations," he said.
His daughter, Isabel Sagredo, her two sisters, and his wife are all part of the thriving business.
"That's what helps the business run really well, when you have like family that understand your work ethic, and work exactly like you," Isabel said.
And can support you, when things take a turn for the worse.
A fire at the original restaurant forced the Summit location to close in 2017.
"It wasn't a huge fire. It was just like a little small fire that we had up in one of the apartments," she said.
Isabel said the damage was enough to shut down their original location.
"Then the pandemic hit. So that kind of just delayed everything else," she said. "The process has been … a roller coaster for sure."
The restaurant sat closed for six years, but this year, the grills were finally turned back on last week, and now Benny's daughters are running things.
"They just became ready to do it," he said.
"As I got older, I really enjoyed being here, and I wanted to keep that legacy alive," Isabel said.
Judging by the rotating door of diners, she's not the only one. And Benny, in all of this, said he's now "just an advisor" after nearly 40 years of doing business.
"I don't know. Me? I'm going on vacation," Benny said.
Maybe not quite yet. There are still a few things for his daughters to learn.
"I always say, 'Oh, I'm learning from him,' and … he'll say, 'Oh, no, I'm learning from her,'" Isabel said.
For these two, it clearly goes both ways.
"Good thing that I have my daughters, especially Isabel," Benny said.