With its oceanscape mural, beach-themed tabletops and sand-colored floors, Dan Balderas’ newest Round Rock restaurant aims to provide a type of seafood oasis in an area inundated with steak and burger eateries, he said.
“Last year I started to think, ‘There are a lot of hamburger places coming in [...] and everybody is selling hamburgers,” Balderas said of the inspiration for Pacific Gulf Sea Island Fish Fry and Hot Wings, which opened in 2015. “There’s not a lot of fish places that are fast food. [...] I wanted something reasonable that everybody could afford.”
Balderas is no stranger to the restaurant scene. The 86-year-old entrepreneur got his start in Round Rock in 1976, selling tacos out of his brother’s car. He has since opened 15 restaurants in the Greater Austin area, including Tio Dan Puffy Tacos and Little Red Wagon Hamburgers in Round Rock.
The vision for Pacific Gulf comes from Balderas’ experience as a teenager working at a local seafood restaurant where he picked up secret family recipes from the kitchen staff, he said.
“I would see the cooks, and I liked what they were doing,” Balderas said. “I would see the prep ladies cutting the fish, cutting the onions, breading the fish. [...] I would keep an eye on them and learned the recipes.”
Pacific Gulf offers breakfast tacos, wings, soups and salads but is most known for its seafood platters, such as the Catfish Plate, Head Chef and General Manager Paul Tripputi said.
“[The Catfish Plate] is my pride and joy, but don’t get me wrong—everything we serve here is spectacular,” Tripputi said. “It’s great quality; everything is made from scratch and breaded to order.”
In addition to quality ingredients, Balderas said quality customer service is the key to success.
“It’s [about] treating people like you want them to treat you,” he said. “I treat people like gold. If you have a piece of gold, you’re excited, and if you lose it, you’re upset.”
And for the near-90-year-old restaurateur, there is no thought of slowing down.
“People ask me ‘Why don’t you retire?’” Balderas said. “And I say, ‘Well, I like what I do.’”
Round Rock’s first food truck?
Dan Balderas may be responsible for bringing the first food truck to town. One day in 1976, Balderas said he borrowed his brother’s car, purchased ingredients for 100 tacos and drove to local businesses, offering tacos for sale as “Dan the Taco Man." Balderas’ first day on the job got off to a rocky start when he missed the lunch rush and only sold a single taco for $0.55, he said. The next day, Balderas began his rounds early and sold every taco.
Pacific Gulf Sea Island Fish Fry and Hot Wings
105 E. Old Settlers Blvd., Round Rock
512-248-8550
www.pacificgulfseaisland.com
Hours: Mon.-Thu. 6:30 a.m.- 9 p.m., Fri. -Sat. 6:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Sun. 8:30 a.m.- 8 p.m.
