When Robert Fitzsimmons first started dining at Hay Caramba in Park Ridge, he recalled his son being brought into the restaurant in a baby carrier.
“And now he’s 15, and we just love the place,” said Fitzsimmons, an Edison Park resident who said he, his wife, Candace, and son, Jacob, visit the Mexican restaurant about three times a month.
“We’ve been going there, I think, since 1997, and that was when they were at the other location. It’s our favorite restaurant,” Robert Fitzsimmons added.
In December, Hay Caramba celebrated 25 years in the city. Hay Caramba’s first location was behind the Pickwick Theatre at 146 Euclid Ave. In 2005, Hay Caramba opened at 122 S. Prospect Ave.
In 1991, Hay Caramba’s owner, restaurateur Bulmaro Saavedra, known as “Bull,” opened Hay Caramba.
“It’s a great community. I traveled around the neighborhood and thought it would be a great idea to start a business,” Saavedra said.
He said the restaurant started making money when it first opened, and even though many restaurants have been added to the community, throughout 25 years business has been good and remained generally steady.
“More restaurants come in, but people come back,” he said.
Saavedra talked of customers like the Fitzsimmons family, saying “I have customers for 25 years, people that were young people, then they got married. Now they have kids. They bring their families. … Two generations of families, they go out they stay here. They move out, and they come back. It’s been great.”
Robert Fitzsimmons mentioned that the family has “had the same waiter, Ruben since the very beginning. He’s seen our son grow up.”
Fajitas, burritos and tamales are some of the featured entrees on the Hay Caramba menu.
“Whatever they like, they get the same things. Some people try different things, and they go back to the same things that they like generally,” Saavedra said.
Amy Swanson, 55, said the guacamole is her favorite. Her husband, Scott Swanson, seems to like it all.
“We love their guacamole, chicken soup. Our kids love the shrimp cocktail, burrito grande and wonderful chicken soup, their homemade tamales,” he said.
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The Swansons now have four college-age children who grew up going to the restaurant regularly as a family.
“Hay Caramba’s is one of those restaurants that you go to the restaurant because of the people there and the quality of the food,” Scott Swanson said.
“Whenever the kids come home from school, that is the first place they want to go to for dinner on Friday night,” Amy Swanson said.
The Swansons said that they celebrated family milestones at Hay Caramba.
“We like the restaurant both for the atmosphere and the food. The atmosphere is really good; we always have fun when we’re there,” Amy Swanson said. “It’s a nice environment. It’s friendly and cheerful. We always have a good time.”
After more than two decades Saavedra said he is proud to be a part of Park Ridge and values his customers as family and partnerships with community churches and schools. Twenty-five years in the park ridge community seems worthy of the restaurants’ title, “Hay Caramba.” The family said the translation is similar to “holy cow,” in English.
“It’s been great. Being a part of the community for 25 years is a great success to be serving the community for this long,” Saavedra said.
Taryn Galbreath is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.