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Tito Padilla, owner and namesake of the forthcoming taqueria taking over the former Mojo’s space
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Estefay Padilla, sister to Tito and owner of La Fe Cafe, opening next door to Tito’s Taqueria
Growing up, Tito and Estefay Padilla were mainstays in their father’s Mexican restaurant, running baskets of tortilla chips to tables, welcoming guests and dropping off glasses of water. Some would say they were born into the business, their earliest memories taking place inside the four walls of a restaurant.
Originally from Mexico City, the siblings were raised in Charlottesville, where their father, Rudy Padilla, operated restaurants for 14 years before relocating to Richmond and opening Amigos Family Restaurant.
In the coming months, the duo will carry on the familial industry torch, taking over the shuttered Mojo’s space at 733 W. Cary St., where Tito and Estefay plan to introduce Tito’s Taqueria and La Fe Cafe, respectively.
Splitting the 6,700-square-foot building into separate ventures, Tito’s Taqueria will occupy the larger side of the space, while La Fe Cafe will take the other. Estefay says her parents are excited for them, and that a solo venture of her own has been a long time coming.
“My dad has had us doing everything since we were kids,” she says. “I managed my dad’s [restaurant] and have pretty much done [restaurant work] all my life. This is what we know, and my dad was like, ‘Let’s do it, I’ll help you.’ ”
“They are happy, and at first they were going to help us and be partners, but then they said, ‘You can do it, you should do it,’ ” Tito adds.
Before acquiring the Mojo’s space, Tito and Estefay have been working at their sister Iliana White-Padilla’s Church Hill restaurant, Kahlo’s Taqueria, which made its debut in 2018.
While this marks Estefay’s first foray into ownership, Tito previously owned a restaurant in West Virginia, called Herradura, with his brother-in-law for six years before selling the business. He’s looking forward to stepping back into an ownership role, he says.
“I dream a lot of the place being busy, so I think it’s going to be good, my dreams have been telling me,” Tito says, noting that he was drawn to the property because of its walkable neighborhood in close proximity to VCU campus and businesses such as the Altria Theater.
Tito says there will be 15-20 different types of tacos on the menu at the taqueria, a combination of traditional varieties, more Americanized versions and vegetarian options. Offerings will also include sopes, “tornado fries” and playful riffs such as birria pizza. He also hopes to make happy hour a fun two- to three-hour period with mariachi or other music and plenty of frozen margaritas on tap.
At La Fe Cafe, Estefay plans to start the day a little earlier than her older brother, focusing on breakfast, lunch and coffee. Drawing influences from her travels and her background, she says, “I decided to do something different, like a breakfast cafe but a little bit international. I’ve been traveling a lot, and I love food … and experiencing different places and different cultures.”
Estefay says her vision for brunch includes elaborate pancakes and waffles — the latter served both solo and in sandwich form — along with chilaquiles, Honduran baleadas and pupusas, which draw on her mother’s Salvadoran roots.
La Fe translates to “faith” in Spanish, and Estefay says it is the guiding force in her life. “Faith in so many ways — faith to have a good coffee, a good day and even the religious part,” she says. “Faith is everything.”
Tito’s Taqueria is aiming for a May debut, while La Fe Cafe plans to follow a month or two later. Nathan Hughes of Sperity Ventures represented the landlord on the two spaces.
Continuing the tradition of a family-run restaurant, Tito says he will be joined in the business by his 17-year-old daughter, 19-year-old son and his wife. And while he feels confident in his instincts as an owner, he knows that he can always turn to his father for guidance.
“Being in restaurants, you need to be responsible, and I learned that, and when I started having my own restaurants, I started to understand the responsibilities,” he says. “I’m a little wiser now, but I still ask [my dad] about plenty of stuff.”
