About

Americanos was created to celebrate the rich Mexican-American culture within the United States of America. Years ago a man named Alfonso Castillo traveled to the USA from Tampico, Mexico with dreams of finding a better life for his family. He was a mariachi singer by night and a factory worker by day who provided for his daughter and two sons. One of his sons, Alfonso Jose Castillo, would go on to meet another Mexican-American woman who was from Laredo, TX which is right on the border between Mexico and the USA. Cynthia Ortiz would split her time in Texas and Chicago and started working at an early age to help provide for her family at age twelve. Cynthia not only was a hard worker but learned how to cook delicious Mexican food from her mother and grandmother. In Chicago, Alfonso met Cynthia and the rest was history.

They had a son and were married shortly after. Alfonso joined the marines to provide for the family and was active during the Persian Gulf War. Cynthia helped raise her son at home. Challenges presented themselves over the years but our family stuck together, worked hard, cooked great food, and never gave up on each other through the good times and the bad. They had two more sons and as we all grew there was one thing that always kept the family together and happy. That thing was simple. It was dinner at the dinner table. It didn’t matter what was in the kitchen cabinet because Cynthia would throw down and make the most fabulous dish out of nothing. To this day our family still gathers around food and drinks and we celebrate the good and the bad in life in the beautiful country of ours. We created Americanos to represent our upbringing as Mexican-American people through food and drinks. We want to celebrate the good and the bad with you now more than ever! We are grateful for life and are proud to bring our traditions to you…now join us as we pledge our allegiance to flavor.

- Alfonso Jose Castillo Jr. (AJ) Owner / Chef