Born in December 2008, Hecho En México was masterminded from a community member’s will to introduce Austinites to the flavors he was raised with in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Now, the restaurant transports diners to various states across Mexico with flavors from far and wide.

The backstory

Co-owner and head chef Mario Gonzalez is no stranger to the art of cooking. He recalls his mother in a restaurant for many years throughout his childhood.

“I cooked with her on holidays,” Gonzalez said. “We made chiles en nogada, buñelos, tamales and atole.”

As a labor of love, Gonzalez’s passion for the cooking process is reflected in the preparation and presentation of delicate cuisine—from roasting pork in a banana leaf for 10 hours to crafting mole poblano with 28 ingredients over the course of three days.
Co-owner and head chef Mario Gonzalez was inspired to bring Mexican dishes to Austin and opened the restaurant in 2008. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
Co-owner and head chef Mario Gonzalez was inspired to bring Mexican dishes to Austin and opened the restaurant in 2008. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
Gonzalez said the market has changed since the restaurant first opened, making it easier to find classic Mexican ingredients used for particular dishes.


“I think the market is more open,” Gonzalez said. “A few years ago it was very limited to find all the ingredients that you needed. But now I feel like you can find everything.”

What they offer

Gonzalez said the restaurant’s menu was thick when they first opened due to the never-ending list of dishes he wanted to share with the local community. However, as time passed, he decided to limit options so as to not overwhelm customers.

Some non-negotiables were the enchiladas and mole options.


“The salsa is the main ingredient in enchiladas,” Gonzalez said. “If the salsa’s the right one, your enchiladas are going to be the best. In Mexico there are over 100 recipes with mole. Everyone’s [mole] is going to taste a little different. But the mole that I serve is the closest thing that you can find to the state of Puebla which is one of the first states that came up with the recipes of the mole.”
The Platon de Enchiladas de Mole gives customers a chance to taste all four mole options at the restaurant. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
The Platon de Enchiladas de Mole gives customers a chance to taste all four mole options at the restaurant. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
Diners can take a trip to different areas of Mexico by tasting cuisine from Oaxaca, Campeche, Yucatan, Veracruz and more.

The restaurant hosts monthly Tequila Nights in which customers can pay $85 to attend the reservation-only event where they will enjoy specialty tequila and cuisine not typically found on the restaurant’s menu.

In its daily menu, community members are welcome to try one of Mexico’s seven popular spirits including tequila, mezcal, raicilla, bacanora, charanda, sotol and pox.
The restaurant supports local artists by showcasing their art inside its dining area where customers can purchase it. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
The restaurant supports local artists by showcasing their art inside its dining area where customers can purchase it. (Dacia Garcia/Community Impact)
Looking forward

Gonzalez said the business is looking to expand its operations with a second location or introducing a new concept focused on Veracruz cuisine featuring seafood from the Gulf of Mexico area.