The Hernandez-Martinez family will start serving Mexican takeout lunches on Friday under the name DoÑa Esa, using the kitchen of Doma Bar at 388 Pine Street, Unit 2, in Burlington. Ada Martinez, 52, and her three twentysomething offspring — Azul, Alan and Adrian Hernandez — are working together to launch the business.
Offered Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., the menu will change daily. Diners can order online at donaesa.com or by calling 802-207-6532 and pick up their food or use delivery services. The family plans to add breakfast hours at the end of the month.
They said their regional, homestyle Mexican menu will include dishes such as Michoacán carnitas of pork shoulder braised in orange juice, Coca-Cola, lard and bay leaves; enchiladas verdes; and housemade sopes: small rounds of griddled corn masa with toppings.
“It will not be restaurant food but rather the food you would be served when you visit your mom,” Martinez said in Spanish translated by her kids. “We want people to feel the warmth of our homestyle food.”
The family came from southern Mexico to Vermont three years ago. They have all worked in the food business here and in Mexico. Martinez and her eldest son, Adrian, 27, will do most of the cooking for Doña Esa.
Named in honor of Martinez’s late mother, the business will launch on her birthday. Alan, 25, explained that his grandmother was unusual for her era: a successful entrepreneur and full-time working mother who earned more money than her husband. Doña Esa is a somewhat negative term that translates loosely as “that lady,” he said. “We are claiming that.”
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