Laura Kubisiak : Taqueria La Mejor
When I went to the first meeting about Business 188, I wasn’t really sure what I was getting myself into. However, immediately after hearing more details about the Neighborhood Prosperity Initiative, I knew that I wanted to join the class and I was excited that I was going to be able to make a real difference in the community surrounding Santa Clara University.
The actions of our class didn’t really sink in for me until we first went to the neighborhood on Saturday, January 23. Getting to visit Washington Elementary and chat with some of the mothers of children at the school was so eye-opening, and I finally realized what we were doing this for. The Washington neighborhood is such an incredible place, and I thoroughly enjoyed walking around and simply experiencing the atmosphere of their community.
When we first stepped into the restaurant that my team is working on, I was extremely excited, but also a little bit nervous to meet the owners and see what was going on in the restaurant. My team is working with Taqueria La Mejor, which has been open for the longest time compared to the other restaurants that our class is working with. The Neighborhood Prosperity Initiative 4.0 (last year’s class) had worked with Taqueria La Mejor and did a lot of aesthetic changes. The restaurant looks really good on the inside, so my team is going to have to focus more on the technical aspects of the business.
After our first visit to Taqueria La Mejor, my team already had a lot of ideas regarding how we could improve the business even more. We are excited to start implementing some of our thoughts and are looking forward to getting to know the owners more as well. We have visited the business a total of two times now, and each time we got to enjoy Taqueria La Mejor’s delicious food. I am excited to see what we can do with the business and am happy to help the restaurant and neighborhood flourish.