Personal touch makes him the Juan

By Dale Rice
American-Statesman Restaurant Critic
Nov. 4, 2005

JUAN MEZA OF JUAN IN A MILLION

Deborah Cannon photos/AA-S Top: Juan Meza likes to interact with his customers, Juan-on-one. That and the food have made Juan in a Million a huge hit. Below: A mountain of eggs, bacon, cheese and potatoes, the Don Juan taco at Juan in a Million redefines muy grande. You'll need extra tortillas.

And if he steps away for a moment and a group slips by his grip, Meza approaches them in the dining room to offer his hand.

"I enjoy it. I enjoy people," Meza says. "It feels good to get up in the morning and come to work."

It wasn't always that way. Meza and his wife, Myrna, were schoolteachers in the late 1970s, working two jobs to make ends meet. After the school day wrapped up, she worked in a Mexican restaurant as a waitress; he washed dishes.

That soapy water proved an inspiration.

"I fell in love with the hustle and bustle of the restaurant business," he says.

So when this spot on East Cesar Chavez Street came on the market 25 years ago, Meza and his wife bought it. At first, attracting customers was difficult.

"We struggled and struggled," he says. "It took a while before the barrier broke down and people came to the East Side."

Now, his restaurant is full at lunch time every day, a sign that the Mezas' food and attitude triumphed.

"My wife and I have been lucky," he says. "We have a following."

With all this success, though, will Meza expand to other parts of town? No way. He'd lose the kind of control he now has and, besides, he wouldn't be able to maintain those personal relationships with customers.

"I'm comfortable where I'm at," he says. "We'll never be a chain. There will never be five Juans in a Million."

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