Buen Provecho Verified listing

Buen Provecho took over the former Lupe’s space at 3rd Street and Promenade in Downtown Long Beach. It’s a slight melding of Latino American cultures: Largely Mexican. A handful of Puerto Rican and other influences. Buen Provecho aims for one thing: To highlight the Latino influence on SoCal culture, life, and food. This is for the Latino kids who straddle the line between where their immigrant parents were born and their distinctly American upbringing.

For Broken Spirits bar manager Stephen Ramos and Chef Isaias Hernandez—the former an owner of Buen Provecho and the latter heading the kitchen—both have shared the desire to share their mixed-heritage experience. With Stephen, whose parents hail from Puerto Rico, there was always the burden of being, well, too American for the Latinos who speak Spanish. For Isaias, it was not being Mexican enough after three generations of his family made California their home.

It’s a fence-riding many Latino Americans experience. But for Stephen, Isaias, Isaias’s mom, and a handful of others, it is time to recognize their Latino-ness and their American-ness.