Los Cuervos Flauteria co-owner John Robles opened the restaurant, located at 607 W. Center St., Kyle,in 2012. The restaurant has expanded its menu to include menudo, enchiladas, sopes and flautas.[/caption]
John and Sylvia Robles decided to move their family to Kyle from San Marcos to cut down on commute times between their old home in San Marcos and Austin, where their son is a competitive swimmer. The move to Kyle in 2012 shortened their commute time and allowed John the possibility to pursue one of his dreams.
The Robleses decided to go out for coffee and donuts at Shipley's Do-Nuts on Center Street shortly after moving to Kyle. When they arrived, they noticed the adjacent suite was unoccupied and had a "For rent" sign in the window. From there, John's 10 years of struggling to get all the necessary pieces in place for a restaurant came together in a span of two months. A lease was signed in May, and Los Cuervos Flauteria opened July 1, 2012.
"We do surgery on taste buds," John said of he and his wife's work at the restaurant. "We bring them back to life."
The instruments the Robleses utilize include fresh chilies and cheeses from Mexico and perhaps most importantly, Sylvia's family recipes.
Sylvia's family emigrated from Chihuahua, Mexico to El Paso. The proliferation of chilies in her family's native land carried over to the recipes her aunt would cook at home. She said she still remembers how her aunt's enchiladas became such a staple of her neighborhood that children would line up outside the house to buy a plate.
Decades later Sylvia and John are bringing that flavor more than 600 miles east to Kyle, and they hope to achieve similar success.
"What I want to do is showcase food from the El Paso–Juarez border," John said. "I was born into Central Texas food and quickly realized there is a great difference."
John said the restaurant is an "all-in" venture. When the opportunity to open the business presented itself, he jumped in headfirst. John liquidated his 401K and pension and used his life savings to invest in the new business.
"It's food that I'm passionate about," John said. "So much so that an electrician, a mechanic—whatever you want to call me—has left a good trade to come here and really bring this and see if it would flourish and take root."
John's passion is evidenced by the restaurant's menu, a quality over quantity operation for the Robleses. The menu features 13 items not including chips, salsa and queso. John said he is slow to expand the restaurant's menu because he is intent on maintaining the quality of each item he and his wife cook.
"I just made it this morning," John said. "The flautas, I roll them in the morning. I'm able to do that because I don't have 50 or 70 items on the menu."
