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Platillos Deliciosos Servido con Mucho Amor
Delicious Dishes Served with Much Love
The delectable aroma will entice you in and the friendly faces waiting at the front door of El Señorial Mexican Restaurant will keep you coming back. Located in West Milwaukee’s Burnham Park neighborhood, this authentic Mexican restaurant was founded in 2001 by brothers, Miguel and José, fulfilling a dream of opening such a business together. Miguel and José aren’t your average restaurant owners—on top of managing the business, the two work in the kitchen, operate the register, serve their guests, and roam the restaurant’s tables to ensure each customer is enjoying their food and dining experience. Given their passion for and dedication to the business, it is no surprise that the brothers experienced rapid success.
Fast forward to 2015, Miguel and José reached a point where they had to develop a plan to meet the needs of El Señorial’s growing customer base. They determined that the best option was to update and expand the existing building. They began by working with Ivan Gamboa, their long-time business lender at Tri City National Bank, to learn what financial products and programs were available to them. Ivan steered the brothers toward WHEDA’s unique lending tools. El Señorial’s proven success made supporting the brothers' business expansion an easy decision for WHEDA.
WHEDA and Tri City National Bank worked to provide El Señorial with an 80% loan guarantee, which was funded through WHEDA’s Transform Milwaukee initiative. In addition to providing financial support, WHEDA connected the brothers with local resources that could provide assistance with their expansion. This included working with Layton Boulevard West Neighbors, Inc. to secure additional financing, which allowed for a makeover of the restaurant building’s exterior.
El Señorial completed its expansion in September 2016, allowing Miguel and José to welcome customers in for a grand re-opening of the newly remodeled restaurant. Not only was El Señorial equipped with a much larger kitchen, but the capacity limit had more than doubled in size from 76 to 210. The owners’ top priority in expanding was to ensure that no customer would wait to be seated—the brothers are happy to report that they meet this goal every day. The expansion also allowed for the creation of nine new jobs—seven full-time positions and two part-time.
The business continues to flourish today. Customers rush in to experience a superior ambiance and indulge in Mexican favorites, including their most popular menu item, Parrillada, while sipping on margaritas from the restaurant’s in-house cantina. In addition to expanding El Señorial’s original Milwaukee location, Miguel and José opened a second restaurant in April 2018, in Kenosha, where José and his family reside. This new location came about at an astonishing speed, only two years after the expansion of the original restaurant in Milwaukee. It’s with even greater excitement that Miguel and José anticipate paying off their 2016 loan from Tri City National Bank by the end of 2022.
WHEDA is proud to have supported El Señorial’s growth and the business’ ability to continue providing high-quality food and services to its beloved customers. El Señorial is an example of WHEDA’s ability to help small businesses and advance the state’s economy. Sí se puede!