But when she walked into a local Mexican market, the shelves were mostly stocked with what she needed. She even found snacks that she remembers from her childhood in Mexico.
Instances like these encouraged her and her family to open their own business, La Poblanita Mexican Market, on Springboro Pike near Cox Arboretum MetroPark. Reyes and her husband run the business alongside Reyes’ brothers.
La Poblanita means “a little woman from Puebla” in Spanish. The business’ logo is the smiling face of the traditional “Maria” Mexican doll made with ribbons and cloth.
“Everyone wants to feel like they’re at home, they’re welcome,” Reyes said. “And that’s what we try to do here.”
Reyes previously lived in California, where she split rent for an apartment with a few other people while saving up money as a worker in the restaurant industry.
“I think a lot of immigrants can start their own businesses because everything in our minds when we come here is to work and save money,” she said. “There were a lot of 16-hour workdays for us. And we still work very hard. But it’s because we have dreams to achieve.”
Her family’s Mexican market tailors to broader Latin American cuisine, with products popular in Guatemala, Honduras, Argentina, Venezuela and other countries packing the shelves and coolers. A local woman even crafts handmade, colorful piñatas that are sold in the market.
“I once was asked, why don’t you call it a Latin American market?” Reyes said. “And we do serve the Latin community. But we are Mexican. We are proud to come from Mexico. And we want to share that with the community.”
There’s a certain joy that comes from seeing people from all walks of life come into her family’s shop, Reyes said. Some people come in searching for cookies, candies and juice boxes they want to share with their children to give them a taste of their own childhoods. Others want to dip into cooking meals using authentic ingredients — whether this be a nod to heritage or purely for taste.
“I once had a woman whose family came in after having a vacation in Mexico,” she said. “And her children were so excited because we had the ‘good Doritos from Mexico’ here. There’s something for everybody.”
And at the back of the market is an entrance to La Poblanita’s restaurant.
Many Latin American markets also contain restaurants within, serving as a community hub. Customers walking into the dining area are greeted by a large mural of Popocatépetl, an active volcano in Puebla, Mexico.
Reyes said her family’s restaurant is the only spot she knows of in the region that sells authentic tacos al pastor. The marinated pork is mounted to a trompo (a vertical rotisserie) and sheared before it’s placed into a tortilla with sauted onions, cilantro and a thin triangle of fresh pineapple. Customers can take it the extra mile by adding a sprinkle of lime juice and splashes of a tomatillo- and avocado-based salsas.
But the kitchen makes everything from scratch, whether it be horchata — a creamy and refreshing milk beverage with cinnamon and vanilla notes — or tamales, a corn-based dough, cheese, meat and vegetables wrapped in a corn husk.
And her husband’s aunt comes into the business to make her own mole sauce they use in the kitchen.
Reyes views her family’s business as a love letter to their birthplace. But it’s also a fulfilled dream. Her eldest daughter will be going to college next year — and she’ll be the first generation of their family to do so.
“Every version of the American dream is different for every person,” she said. “But it’s always beautiful.”
About the Author
