Beatrice Chandler summed up her business relationship with her mother, Maria Vazquez, by saying, “She is the yin to my yang.”
The mother and daughter own Latin Creations restaurant at 3505 St. Johns Bluff Road S. in South Jacksonville.
They moved to the new location in January from across the street at 3546 St. Johns Bluff Road S., where they had operated for six years.
After humble beginnings serving Puerto Rican-inspired food at the Beach Boulevard Flea Market on weekends, they have continued to expand, outgrowing two other sites before settling into the former Seafood Express space.
The business began in 2011, when Chandler, who was working in human resources at a hospital in Bronx, New York, became homesick for her family in Jacksonville. Neither Chandler nor her husband, Anthony, had jobs when they moved here.
Vazquez operated a home cleaning service in Jacksonville. Chandler convinced Maria to bring her recipes from her native Puerto Rico to the diners in Jacksonville. At the time, there was only one other restaurant serving Puerto Rican cuisine, Chandler said.
By the time they began serving food at the flea market, Chandler found another job and Vazquez continued her cleaning business. The two were working seven days a week, sometimes approaching 12 hours or more a day.
That grind got to her and she told her mother she wanted to move back to New York City.
“I’m leaving. You can just close it and go back to your old job. And she was like, nope, I’ve already invested too much time, energy and money into this place, and I’m not gonna leave it. So she stayed at the flea market and I went back to New York.”
The separation lasted just more than a year until Chandler became pregnant.
“She called me and asked me to come back, that it was too much for her,” Chandler said of her mother.
“We discussed it, and about the same time I got pregnant. We were definitely moving back.”
The restaurant has a larger kitchen and can seat 110 customers, compared to about 40 at the previous location.
It has a food bar at the entrance for those who want to grab something quick for lunch. Entrees of pasta, beef and chicken are rotated daily.
There is also a counter where customers can order off the menu.
One of the most popular items on the menu is roast pork, yellow rice, beans and pigeon peas.
The restaurant serves wine and beer and includes house sangrias and wine-based cocktails. The mother and daughter hope to apply for a full liquor license in the coming months.
Over the years, the business has grown from four employees to more than 20.
The growth has also meant that the simpler ways had to become more structured.
Staff needs to be more responsible for keeping track of inventory, Chandler said.
“There’s processes in place. We’re being a little more strict on the ordering process,” she said.
“Before it was we don’t have lettuce. OK, I’ll go buy lettuce. But now, because it’s bigger and there’s more work to do right now, we need to be very disciplined. If you have 10 heads of lettuce, and you know you need 20, you can’t wait until you have none to order them.”
Everything on the menu is made from scratch, even the sauces. Nothing is frozen or processed.
The restaurant caters and has a food truck for private events.
The larger space has allowed Latin Creations to add features.
They bill Latin Creations as a family restaurant and encourage customers to bring their children to hear and take part in early evening music events on weekends.
The Latin music is spirited, Vazquez said. She has tambourines on hand for children to play.
On every third Saturday, they open the parking lot to vendors who sell arts and crafts and other items.
“They come in free of charge. We do it to help the community,” Vazquez said.
Chandler’s husband, her sister Maria Velez and other family members also are part of the restaurant’s daily operation. Chandler plans to introduce her 10-year-old son to the business over the summer and teach him to bus tables. He likes the idea of making his own money, she said.
One night a week is reserved for a family get-together. Sometimes, not always, it takes place at Latin Creations. The family gathered at the restaurant for Easter.
But they prefer to take a break to enjoy other cuisines as well and spend time talking about family instead of business.
Latin Creations is open 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday; 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday; and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Breakfast is served Monday through Friday and brunch is 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.