Adolfo Melendez had been serving Mexican cuisine to Waupaca customers long before he opened a new restaurant inside the Best Western Plus Grand Seasons.
“I had people coming from Waupaca and asking me when I would open a restaurant here,” Melendez said.
Melendez owns El Mezcal in Stevens Point. He plans to bring the same affordable and authentic Mexican food to Waupaca.
“Everything we make is 100 percent from scratch. There are no preservatives or MSG in our food,” Melendez said. “We offer quality food at an affordable price. For lunch, we drop the price, but we don’t drop the size of the portions.”
While Melendez is speaking with the County Post, a cook comes from the kitchen with a plate of fresh cut steaks. Melendez inspects the meat and approves it.
“We cut our own meats here,” Melendez said.
Michael Hastings, the restaurant’s general manager, also stressed that D-Fuego’s staff takes pride in the quality of the food.
“Our fajitas and chimichangas, our cheese dip, guacamole and pico de gallo, everything is made fresh and from scratch,” Hastings said.
The only frozen items on D-Fuego’s menu are the margaritas. And they are also handmade and include peach, mango and strawberry.
“Our customers will appreciate the difference between out-of-the-box meals and Mexican that’s made fresh from quality ingredients,” Hastings said.
Melendez said his personal favorite was the nachos fajitas.
“But a lot of people are addicted to our shrimp chimichangas,” he said.
D-Fuego is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.