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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, L & J Cafe has served the El Paso community for a |
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remarkable 96 years; and |
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WHEREAS, Established by Antonio and Juanita Flores, this |
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iconic Mexican restaurant first opened as Tony's Place on the |
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outskirts of El Paso in 1927; it soon became a popular local |
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watering hole, especially among those stationed at Fort Bliss, who |
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sought out Mrs. Flores's delicious Mexican food as well as the |
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restaurant's home brew and slot machines; and |
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WHEREAS, The couple's daughter and son-in-law, Lilia and John |
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Duran, assumed responsibility for the restaurant in 1968, renaming |
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it L & J Cafe after the initials of their first names and the names |
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of their children; after John Duran passed away in 1987, his son and |
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daughter-in-law, Leo and Frances Duran, took over the café, with |
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Lilia Duran continuing to serve as an advisor until her death in |
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1999; a fourth generation of the family is represented by the |
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current general manager, Vanessa Duran; and |
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WHEREAS, The restaurant has expanded over the years, with its |
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kitchen tripling in size, and it now boasts a gift shop, which began |
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as a way to sell the restaurant's Tombstone Salsa; a popular |
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destination for local residents, visitors, and celebrities alike, |
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L & J Cafe has received numerous awards, including winning the USA |
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Today Best Tex-Mex in Texas contest in 2018, and Leo Duran was |
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inducted into the Texas Restaurant Association Hall of Honor; and |
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WHEREAS, L & J Cafe has also set an inspiring example of civic |
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engagement by working with other restaurateurs to feed refugees |
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from Central America seeking asylum in El Paso and Las Cruces in |
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2018; and |
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WHEREAS, L & J Cafe has won the loyalty of generations of area |
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residents while contributing to the prosperity of the local |
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economy, and over the course of nearly a century, it has attained |
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the status of a treasured community institution; now, therefore, be |
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it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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Legislature, 3rd Called Session, hereby honor L & J Cafe and extend |
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to all those associated with the restaurant sincere best wishes for |
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continued success; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for L & J Cafe as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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House of Representatives. |