The story begins over seventy years ago, in 1926, when Adelaida Cuellar's homemade tamales drew crowds at a county fair outside Dallas, Texas.Adelaida and Macario Cuellar immigrated to this country from Mexico in the early years of this century. Like so many people who have come here, they were looking for a better life. And for that better life, they were willing to work very hard. The Cuellars had a little farm in Kaufman County where there was plenty of hard work for all, but not very much money.So Adelaida Cuellar decided she was going to open a little stand at the Kaufman County Fair in that year, selling chili and tamales. You have to understand, Señora Cuellar made the best chili in the world and very, very good tamales.Anyhow, the people who came to the fair ate them like they were going out of style. But the truth of the matter is, they were coming into style. The fair came to an end, but the demand for Mama Cuellar's cooking did not. With the help of her twelve children, her crowd-pleasing recipes and unlimited patience, she opened a small cafe.In 1940, five of her sons moved Mama's kitchen to Oak Lawn in Dallas, Texas. They named the restaurant El Chico, and it quickly became a Dallas tradition. It wasn't long before the brothers built restaurants throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area and eventually, the entire state Today, there are close to a hundred El Chico restaurants in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and throughout the South. Twenty-seven El Chico Restaurants are owned and operated by franchisees.Our restaurants reflect sixty years of changing tastes and styles and our guests' preferences. We have taken care to preserve the heritage while updating the decor and adding exciting new tastes to our menu. The strength of El Chico comes from the simple fact that we have been in this business so long, that we know how to improve traditional favorites and introduce our guests to the next level of great Mexican food with our new items.The Top Shelf™ line of products is our signature, which covers everything from enchiladas to quesadillas to margaritas. This is our way of delivering quality food and large portions at a value that is unsurpassed. Our menu items are prepared fresh daily and made by hand. We even feature daily blackboard specials to ensure that we provide our guests with a wide variety of choices for every palate. You can even select from a selection of premium imported tequilas to make your margarita just right.

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