Founder of Grapevine’s Esparza’s Restaurante Mexicano has died, family says
The owner of Grapevine’s Esparza’s Restaurante Mexicano, who died last Saturday, spent his entire working life in the restaurant industry and never forgot where he came from, his brother told the Star-Telegram.
Steve Brown founded the restaurant, at 124 E. Worth St. in Grapevine, as a logical next step to a career interest formed as a busboy, his brother Dan said.
“He went to work and he never quit, and didn’t want to,” Dan Brown said. “It really was kind of a ‘you know, what else am I going to do?’”
Esparza’s celebrated 40 years in May, and some of its staff have been with the establishment for up to 30 years, Brown said. The employees’ longevity, he added, was a testament to the kind of work culture his brother built at the restaurant.
Steve Brown put in 100 hours a week to keep the restaurant going until he finally built “something super special in the Grapevine community,” Dan Brown said. Eventually, people were coming in from all over the world: Passengers from nearby Dallas Fort Worth International Airport would ask airline employees where to eat, and the airline employees would recommend Esparza’s, Brown said.
Brown became emotional when asked to describe his favorite memory with his brother.
“I’m not eloquent in that way,” Brown said. “But the work ethic is what I remember most. It’s what got him where he ended up. He got there from pure force of will and work ethic.”
