TD's old Tijuana fuels Taqueria dream
The site of former Tijuana Mexican Restaurant in The Dalles is sporting new signs and Teodolinda Tapia will soon be serving up her best dishes.
Teodolinda Tapia will open Rio Grande Taqueria in the defunct Tijuana Restaurant, 728, E. Third St., The Dalles.
By Tom Peterson
Teodolinda Tapia began cooking at age 9 in the state of Michoacan, Mexico in the early 1970s.
It was out of some necessity.
She lost her mother when she was 7.
So, she cooked for her two older brothers and her father who owned the orchard they lived on.
She milked the cows and made cheese, sour cream, and tortillas from scratch.
“It’s easy for me,” she said of combining and perfecting flavors having compiled decades of experience as a cook.
That’s good news for The Dalles.
Teodolinda is set to open a new Mexican restaurant in the former location of Tijuana Mexican Restaurant, 728 E. Third St., across from Dinty’s.
She has named it Rio Grande Taqueria, and the signs are up.
She is putting together her best recipes from Michoacan and her two daughters Ariana and Yesenia Pozos will join her as servers. They expect to seat up to 65 with plans to eventually offer outdoor seating.
However, there is some work required by the City of The Dalles first.
Owner of the property Manuel Barajas or “Manny” from Ixtapa Mexican Restaurant across from Cascade Square, must improve the parking lot, curbs and sidewalks before the restaurant can open.
Barajas said he was excited about the project and receiving recent approvals from city hall. He expected it would take about a month to complete.
Now, what about that Rio Grande name?
“When I came to the US, I was about 25 and I started working as a dishwasher at the Rio Grande Restaurant in Hood River next to Pietro’s,” said Teodolinda.
She intended to move up to the kitchen to help prep food, but when she got her chance, owner Gayle Weisfield saw something in Teodolinda.
“She moved me up to run the whole kitchen,” she said. “It was easy for me, I had been doing it since I was 9 years old. I was so happy when that happened.”
Several years back, Teodolinda said she told Weisfield that she intended to eventually open her own restaurant, and she was going to use the Rio Grande name.
“She said, ‘oh great!’ and I thought, right, I will never open a restaurant on my own.”
But Teodolinda did not give up. She most recently was working at Whiskey Tango in Hood River but stepped away 11 months ago to pursue her dream.
She called Gayle several months ago. “Guess what? I am going to open my own restaurant and I am naming it Rio Grande Taqueria.”
“I showed her the sign,” Teodolinda said.
“No Way,” said Gayle. “Great Job.”
When I found out I was able to rent that space, I was so happy,” Teodolinda said. “ This is what I always wanted. Pretty soon I will be my own boss. I will boss myself around. It's crazy.”
