Mariela Juarez has fought for her dreams of cooking for and serving people her entire life, and now she’s doing it full-time as the owner-operator of La Consentida.
Mariela was born and raised in a tiny town in central Mexico. At 14 years old, she moved to Bryan/College Station, Texas with her family. Her younger brother had health issues and they were seeking resources to help him to become independent eventually. It was a hard year for her, she didn’t speak English, she didn’t have fashionable clothes, and she didn’t fit in. She was bullied, and depressed, and wanted to return to Mexico, the only home she’d ever known. Her teachers were kind and encouraged her to keep trying every day. When her grandmother came to visit, she told Mariela, that she was meant for more and she had to keep pushing. Mariela had been cooking since she was seven years old, but it was then that she realized that her dream was to cook for and serve others.
As an adult, she got married, had a daughter, and became a traditional housewife, but she always knew she had bigger goals. The relationship was rocky and didn’t work out. She returned home with her young daughter, to live with her parents and did some soul searching. She and her best friend are like sisters, and after seeing Mariela go through a long depression, she asked Mariela to move to Fort Worth, and together they would open a restaurant.
In 2018, Mariela packed herself and her daughter up and moved to Fort Worth in search of dreams. Her sister found a booth in a market within a week, and they opened their first location together, with no money and only household kitchen wares. It was a hit, with a thriving and loyal customer base, when again tragedy struck. The market closed down with no notice; they had only a day to get everything they could out of the space.
Mariela’s daughter had been waiting for a surgery that would require extensive aftercare and recovery. It was then that the surgeon's office called, and Mariela had the time to be with her daughter. As she sat in the hospital with her daughter, Mariela began searching for a new location for their restaurant.
She found a listing for a spot in Arlington, about 25 minutes away from the previous location. It was fully furnished, but the recently vacated location needed extensive cleaning and repairs. Soon they were back on their feet, and again seemingly blessed by God. They were able to transfer their recently obtained TABC license because it hadn’t been used at the previous location, the landlord worked with them on the deposit so they could get open, and one after another blessings flowed in.
In 2020, Mariela found herself driving back and forth from BCS to Arlington multiple times a week, she and her sister were working the restaurant without any help, and they were exhausted. It was taking its toll. In 2022, they decided it was time to sell their business.
Back in BCS, she started dating a man and grew close with his father, Baltazar. She was like another daughter to him. They spent long hours in meaningful conversation; talking about how much he loved his family, how she needed to follow her dreams, discussing recipes and how she could improve them. He loved her as his own daughter.
He sat one day and told her his deepest feelings, and when she asked why he was telling her all of this, he said he knew he would be gone soon. “He was healthy!” She exclaimed as she told me the story. Soon after, he was in the hospital. As he lay in the hospital, Mariela entertained herself by scrolling through Facebook listings, thinking of their daydreams about him helping her at her restaurant. She found a listing, a stand in a convenience store, it was small but that’s all she needed. When she called about it, the landlord said she would have to look at it that day, someone else was also interested in it, but Mariela was unwilling to leave Baltazar’s side.
About a month later, Baltazar passed away, and desperately heartbroken again, Mariela was ready to give up on it all, but she couldn’t do it. She knew she had to continue to try to make her dream come true and make him proud.
Three weeks later, she saw the same listing come back up on Facebook, the stand was available again and she leased it. In February 2023, she opened La Consentida because that’s what he called her. “It kind of means My Favorite, that’s what he called me.”
She's constantly working to improve and grow. "I do it all for my parents, Roberto Juarez and Evelia Rodriguez, and my daughter, Angie." All of the long hours, struggles, and stresses she endures with love, to help provide for them and make them proud.
This dining experience is not typical of one of my features; it is a taco stand in a gas station. There’s only one table to sit at, and customers pass by to grab a soda or a bag of chips. But Mariela’s hospitality and food make you feel as if you’re sitting at her kitchen table. You can stand and talk with her as she greets people coming and going and cooks a meal for you. Then grab a seat at the table - if there’s still one open, or take it to go. Everything is made fresh daily. She buys her meat and produce fresh every morning, corn tortillas are made fresh for each order, and flour tortillas are made twice daily. I learned that as impressive as her story is, her food is even more so.
The chilaquiles verde with bistec was the first for me to taste. A pile of freshly made corn tortilla chips, coved in house-crafted salsa verde, queso fresco, crema, cilantro, and onions; with a large serving of grilled steak pieces on the side. Often served with eggs for breakfast, this would be a hearty start to the day. The steak was tender and flavorful, the chips covered in refreshing flavors from the toppings.
Spicy, savory scents drifted to me as the chorizo vampiritos were put on the table. Two
freshly made street taco-sized toasted corn tortillas were topped with chorizo that Mariela makes herself. A sprinkle of gooey white cheese, cilantro, and onions top them. They’re served with a container of spicy red chili diablo sauce and a creamy jalapeno sauce. I’ll be honest, Mariela told me the chili diablo sauce is very spicy and I was too chicken to try it, so I have no idea what it tastes like. But that jalapeno sauce, I could just straight drink it!
The Tarahumara nachos were a pile of fresh fried corn tortilla chips, topped with grilled steak, roasted poblano peppers, and melty Chihuahua cheese, served with a side of cool Mexican crema. The roasted poblano peppers brought a punch of deep flavor to this dish that you don’t usually get from nachos.
She makes the flour gorditas fresh every morning; they are similar to a flour tortilla, but a little more sturdy. Pork loin made with a red chili sauce and spices, called red asado, and Chihuahua cheese is stuffed into a pocket made into the gordita. This is a dish that is traditional to northern Mexico; it’s filling and flavorful
The Hawaiian gringa was a fresh flour tortilla wrapped around a gooey filling of adobada, which is similar to pastor, grilled pineapple chunks, and Chihuahua cheese all melted together. Then cilantro, onions, and avocado were added in. The balance of the salty against the sweet and acidity of the pineapple, was absolute perfection
The fish taco was definitely my dish of the day! These were large pieces of fish, beer-battered and fried until golden and crispy. The fish was served on a freshly made tortilla, with crisp cabbage, pico, creamy pink secret sauce, and jalapeno sauce. She created this recipe for her dad and it’s gluten-free. The flavors and textures of this dish were heavenly.
At the end, Mariela brought out a dessert that is traditional to her hometown, guava raspa-nieve. A snowcone saturated in freshly-made guava syrup, beautifully served with a scoop of homemade vanilla ice cream. This sweet, cool, and refreshing dessert was an absolute dream. I was completely stuffed, but couldn’t put this one down.
She’s recently extended her hours, so if you’re looking for lunch or dinner, make sure you stop in at La Consentida, in Bryan, Texas, for the freshest and most flavorful Mexican food. Tell Mariela I said hi! And make sure to get dessert too, you’ll be glad you did!
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3151 Briarcrest dr. Bryan, TX 77802
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