Like hand-pressed tortillas and al pastor off the trompo? You'll love Pollos El Gordo.

If you’re a fan of Mexican fare, you’ve likely been acquainted with Taqueria Olgy’s. The restaurant and food truck company has been serving Pensacola traditional dishes from Zitacuaro, Michoacán since 2006 and was founded by Pedro Lopez and Olga Nava. When Giovanny Lopez Nava, their son, opened up a restaurant of his own this month called Pollos El Gordo at 3670 Barrancas Avenue – it was a tribute to the traditions that they passed down to him, while also creating his own legacy.

“I wanted to keep it traditional, bringing as much as the Mexican culture as I can in my food,” Lopez Nava said.

What's on the Pollos El Gordo menu?

The open-concept kitchen reveals all the “magic” of the cooking traditions and techniques that Lopez Nava learned along the way, while also adding a few additions of his own.

Hand-patted tortillas made from scratch to order, pressed into a perfect pancake before being carefully positioned on the grill. Pineapple pastor being sliced of the twirling trompo. Salas and sauces being mashed by hand.

Lopez Nava’s menu includes some of the staples hard to find elsewhere, like the Michoacán style charcoal chicken cooked on the grill out back, offered by the whole chicken, half chicken or plate, or the 16-inch machetes, which are massive handmade quesadillas served with queso fresco and sour cream.

The charcoal chickens come seasoned with an adobo seasoning but can also be flavored with a variety of house sauces, such as the spicy a la diabla, barbecue, garlic butter, mango habanero, or Lopez Nava’s favorite – the spicy barbecue that balances just the right amount of sweetness and heat.

Some of his menu items were even inspired from visits to Mexico itself, like the Que Me Ves, a mixture of bell peppers, onion, chorizo, al pastor, carne asada and cheese served with two sides and tortillas.

However, he also caters to crowd favorites, like the juicy birria tacos, loaded burritos and supreme tacos that come with “every topping available.”

Customers can choose from a wide variety of meats for combo plates and tacos, such as short beef ribs, trompo (al pastor,) carne asada and sausage, chorizo, barbecue, campechano, lengua and carnitas.

Even though there is plenty of great Mexican cuisine spanning cuisine in Pensacola, they all do things a little differently, and that’s a good thing, according to Lopez Nava.

“I wanted to represent the Mexican culture and the diversity of the food we have as well,” he said.

The food is not the only thing reflective of Mexico, as you’ll see it in the vibrant walls of teal and red, and in the signature decorative flags hanging above the patio.

How did Pollos El Gordo get started?

Even before he was old enough to officially work for his parents’ restaurant, Lopez Nava was running out orders from their little stand behind the Shell gas station on Davis Highway where El Asador now resides. Then when he was old enough to cook, everything changed, and his passion was ignited.

“My mother is the main one who cooks. She has taught us the culture,” Lopez Nava said of the recipes.

His father was always a key part of the operation too, as he built out the food trucks for his wife that would be given the name “Olgy’s Taqueria” which were an affectionate tribute to his mother’s nickname, “Olgy.”

As he moved up in responsibility of working in his parents’ restaurant and food trucks, he started to desire something to call his own that he could create for his wife, Lesly Campos, and daughter, Haylee, who is just over one year old.

“To me, those things (restaurants) belonged to my mother and father,” Lopez Nava said.

It was the experience his parents gave him to navigate the stressors and unpredictability of the food industry that got through his first day of business for his own restaurant. Their experience also prepared him for the satisfying feeling of his hard work paying off as he sold his first customers tacos and watched them return later that day for more.

When his father died suddenly in 2020, it became even more clear for him to place a “Pedro and Olgy’s” stamp on his menus and signage when he opened his own place as a tribute to his parents who helped him to get where he is today.

He hopes to expand his restaurant into a larger space one day, but for now is enjoying being able to serve Pensacola, honor his parents and share his culture with Pensacola and beyond.

Orders can be placed by calling Pollos El Gordo at 850-292-8413 or by visiting the restaurant for call-in or take-out. Real-time updates and information can be found on the Pollos El Gordo Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pollos El Gordo opens: Mexican restaurant on Barrancas in Pensacola