Johnny Gringo serves up Mexican, American food in Painesville - The News - Herald
Whether diners are hungry for a birria taco or a flame-grilled burger, Luis Aramys Sandoval hopes that his family’s new Painesville restaurant will give them what they want.
Johnny Gringo recently opened at the site of the former Local Tavern Fish Bar, 11 Chester St. Sandoval says it offers both “Mexican traditional platters” and “American classics,” with plans to add Puerto Rican food in the future.
“Kind of the way we thought about the menu was, ‘What did I eat when I was growing up?’” he said. “And I ate a melting pot of flavors. So I wanted to bring that to the public, to where it was like, we have good American food, good Mexican food, a little combination of them both and just sort of see how that went, and everyone seems to be loving it.”
Sandoval said that his family has a history with Painesville cuisine, including their ownership of the old Latin Corner restaurant nearby. He added that the family later acquired and sold the Hungry Jose’s restaurant before transitioning to the demolition business.
He described Johnny Gringo’s menu as “half-and-half” between the cuisine that his family is known for and new dishes.
“We wanted to implement a little something to include everyone,” Sandoval said. “That’s just the way I grew up.” One dish he highlighted is parillada, which he described as “the cookout.” Given a central place on the restaurant’s menu, the restaurant’s parillada includes grilled steak, grilled chicken, chorizo, roasted potatoes, grilled peppers and onions.
Sandoval also highlighted the restaurant’s 14-inch Johnny Cubano sandwich and its green spaghetti. Other options on the menu include Mexican dinners and street food, seafood, wings, ribs, burgers, other sandwiches, steak, salads and desserts.
“Pretty much everything we do here is in-house,” he said. “There are some things that are pre-made, but for the most part, everything is pretty much made fresh.”
Johnny Gringo also offers a bar.
While customers can access the bar and tables by walking left when they enter, an area for live entertainment is set up to the right. Sandoval said the restaurant hosts a live DJ and dance nights from 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights to 2:30 a.m. the following morning. It also hosts an open mic on Tuesdays.
He expects to hold live music events on the restaurant’s patio, which is a fenced off area facing Fairlawn Avenue. The patio will also feature a bar and offer seafood.Sandoval wants Johnny Gringo to be a “Painesville staple” that comes to mind when people think of the city. He and his family members “took a shot in the dark” after seeing that the property was available, and while he was hesitant to return to the restaurant business because of the time commitment, he found the restaurant location beautiful.
He said that he and his brother, Carlos Sandoval, opened the restaurant, while their parents helped by sharing recipes and what they learned from their experience in the restaurant business.
The name came from a business in Mexico that a friend of his father owned, Luis Aramys said. Their father loved the business, and when the younger Sandoval presented name options for his new restaurant, people responded positively.
He added that the family has loved seeing feedback since the new restaurant opened in April.
“We’re here to bring them new flavors, old flavors that they do remember and sort of just always improving and adapting and bringing people events,” Sandoval said. “We would like to throw events that include everyone.”
Johnny Gringo
11 Chester St., Painesville
Hours: The kitchen is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day. The bar’s closing time depends on the number of customers each night. On Friday and Saturday nights, they have a live DJ and dancing from 10 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.