Behind the counter at American Canyon’s The Birria Spot at Canyon Cafe, owners and siblings Michael Lara and Cindy Lara are taking orders and charting a new course for the breakfast spot that was once an institution in south Napa County.
The menu is a far cry from what used to be served at 3845 Broadway (Highway 29), which stuck to classic American diner fare. The Lara siblings are looking forward to bringing a sit-down birria restaurant to American Canyon seven days a week, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends.
“People have always given us a chance, especially when they actually get to know us,” Michael said. “We’re not just a corporation, a big business; you know, we’re locals, opening a business.”
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As the name suggests, The Birria Spot’s menu is centered on birria, a flavorful slow-cooked Mexican stewed meat that is traditionally beef. The restaurant has everything from birria ramen, a combination of birria meat, birria stew and ramen noodles, to the handmade tortillas filled with cheese and birria that are known as quesabirria.
The menu boasts other types of dishes and protein selections ranging from $4 to $19.95. Those needing a breakfast fix can get chilaquiles or huevos rancheros, both Mexican breakfast classics, or keep it simple with tacos or burritos.
Cindy is behind the food side of the business while her brother Michael is more aesthetics- and numbers-oriented. She runs an American Canyon food truck named Tacon Hambre, while Michael has his own income tax office in Vallejo.
“When it comes to ideas on what we can incorporate here, how certain things go, what’s put on certain plates, that’s where my strong suit is,” Cindy said.
Cindy added that their restaurant gets most of its business from restaurant sales but also sells birria by the pound for events.
The birria offered at The Birria Spot is the same recipe Cindy makes in her food truck at 4225 Broadway to the north. The only difference is that at The Birria Spot, each tortilla is handmade.
The Lara siblings grew up coming to the Canyon Cafe with their three other siblings, who have lived in town since 2004. The family has an entrepreneurial spirit, with two income tax offices, two food trucks, a real estate company and now a restaurant among them.
Cindy and Michael Lara bought the cafe in November 2023 from its former owner Ali Tadjbakhsh, a family friend. Michael admitted that the prospect of taking over a locally well-known establishment was intimidating.
“We know that Canyon Cafe has been a staple here in American Canyon, and we knew that once we took over, that we had big shoes to fill,” Michael Lara said. “We wanted to make sure that we’re here to stay, that it’s something that people will be proud of.”
Once the siblings bought the location, they got to work. Tadjbakhsh gave them a rundown of what needed to be fixed after they bought the restaurant, and Michael knew he and his sister had their work cut out for them.
“Coming in, being here until 1 or 2 in the morning, taking out the (kitchen) equipment … it’s been a long, enduring process but it’s definitely worth it,” Michael said.
There’s new upholstery on the seats, fresh paint on the walls, and a decorative wall of fake vines with the phrase “All You Need is Birria” in illuminated lettering.
“We gutted everything out, tried to fix it up and give it a whole new perspective, bring the place back to life,” Cindy Lara said. “It really did need a little bit of love.”
Now that everything at the cafe is up to code, the family has been seeking to get the word out about its reopening and have seemingly done so successfully.
Michael Lara said that it took customers a bit of time to get used to the new menu.
“With change there’s always going to be a little bit of resistance,” he said. “Once people come and try it, they can see the direction we’re going.”
Both siblings swear by the eatery’s most popular dish — the quesabirria. The dish comes with three handmade tortillas filled with stewed beef and mozzarella cheese, topped with cilantro and served with the birria broth known as consomé, grilled onions, cucumber and radish on the side.
Cindy and Michael Lara hope to put up an illuminated sign atop the restaurant as soon as the city processes their request, and plan to keep the iconic Canyon Cafe sign up to honor what came before them.
Michael said that in the coming years, he and Cindy intend to build an outdoor patio and host music performances and other events, which would cement their goal of creating a community hub.
“We want to be able to use every square inch of this location,” Michael said. “It’s a place to come and enjoy family. … We’re all very close, and we want to be able to have people come in and enjoy the same thing that we’re enjoying.”
