During Brownwood’s State of the City address back on Jan 27, 2023, it was announced Providencia restaurant would be opening at the former Texas Fun Co. Building, located at 101 Fisk Avenue.

Almost 16 months later, the Providencia grand opening is set for Saturday, May 4 during the 10th annual Downtown Brownwood Cinco de Mayo Celebration

“At first I was a little upset that things took a little longer than what we thought, but God moves his pieces around,” said Providencia owner Nemecio Torres. “We probably weren’t ready to go three or four months ago and now I think we’re more ready than ever.”

Torres, who has been involved in the restaurant business since 1983, owns the Cancun Grill in Midland, and Providencia will offer similar menu options.

“When I started the Cancun Grill in Midland in 2005, I created a different concept and that was good ol’ American food but with Mexican flavors,” Torres said. “We were a big hit in Midland and on Trip Advisor we are ranked No. 3 out of more than 200 restaurants. It’s an American product, good steaks, good chicken, good shrimp, and good salads with Mexican flavors. That’s what Cancun Grill is and that’s what I’m going to bring to Brownwood.”

Regarding the decision to open a restaurant in Downtown Brownwood, Torres said, “I have two friends in Brownwood and we had talked about doing something together. We were walking downtown Brownwood one morning and Sherry Ratliff told me that she had a building there we could turn into a restaurant. Through Sherry, I met her nephew, Clifton DuBose, and he also had a building. He and I are doing another restaurant here in Midland, and he’s one of the main investors.”

The restaurant features a dining area which is separate from the bar area, but both are clearly visible though the massive glass windows that face Fisk Avenue and could potentially lure in a plethora of patrons.

“It’s a large restaurant, but it’s exactly the size of the one I have here in Midland,” Torres said. “After it was all furnished, it doesn’t look as big as it did when it was an empty building. It may be a little challenging because Brownwood is not as big as Midland, but if we do a good job hopefully we can attract people from here and the surrounding area.”

Torres spoke about the layout of the restaurant and the perks it will offer to customers.

“Some of the modern restaurants now sit one table on top of the other,” Torres said. “Here, there is plenty of space, plenty of room to have big parties or small parties. The bar is also separate from the dining room and we hope to attract a lot of people walking by the windows. The kitchen is big, we can produce a lot of food there and we want to try and do a lot of catering. Hopefully we can stay busy.”

Along with the unique spin on food, Torres says to expect elite service once you step foot inside Providencia.

“We are known for having the best service in Midland,” Torres said. “Here when someone comes to apply to be a server, we give them a three-week probationary period and if they don’t make it within three weeks, we tell them this isn’t for them, we’ll have to find something else. You don’t want to a place where the servers are moody. We like people who like people and people that come here to be friendly.”

Saturday, May 4 – the date of Brownwood’s Cinco de Mayo event – could very well be the busiest day of the year downtown with 10,000 people expected for the celebration. For Torres, that seemed like a perfect opportunity to show exactly what Providencia has to offer.

“This will be a good way to attract a lot of people and advertise to a lot of the locals and people who come to visit Brownwood,” Torres said. “We’re going to be fully staffed and make sure that we have everything that day. Being a new restaurant, I think we might get hit big that day if we do it right.”

Initial hours will be 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.

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