Rey Azteca Taqueria Offers Authentic Flavor of Michoacan

"A lot of people call me Rey," said Ismael Pantoja, owner of , on Fair Oaks Boulevard.

The restaurant's name means "Aztec King" in Spanish.

"Yeah," Pantoja adds with a good-natured laugh. "I'm the king."

Pantoja grew up in Zamora, Mexico and his family recipes are a reflection of his home in the west central region of Michoacan. The 13-person staff includes his son and nephew.

Prior to opening Rey Azteca, he worked for 10 years at Fresh Choice, where he picked up the skills for management and customer service.

“It’s a good company," Pantoja said. "I learned a lot from them.”

He worked for Fresh Choice in Fresno until he got transferred to the Sacramento area.

He’s worked in different restaurants all his life and ever since he came to the United States after high school, he dreamed of owning his own restaurant.

"I even bought some equipment over the years hoping someday I would use it," Pantoja said.

Five years ago, his dreams came true.

In 2005, Pantoja had a choice to make. He had been working in the construction business and was on the verge of pursuing a contractor's license when he saw an opportunity to purchase a building for a restaurant. He had to decide whether to keep working in the construction industry, or follow his dreams. Rey Azteca Taqueria was the result of that decision.

Looking back, he feels he made the right choice. “I’m glad I did it," Pantoja said. "After that, the construction industry started going down."

During the worst of the recession, he had already established Rey Azteca for a couple of years which helped it weather the difficult economic times.

Now his business is steadily increasing as the economy recovers.

“I can tell that business is a little better than it was before," he said, estimating that it has increased about five percent in the last year.

Pantoja has lived in Carmichael before, but currently resides in Elk Grove. He'd like to move back to Carmichael at some point.

He supports local schools by sponsoring sports teams in Carmichael or helping with fund raisers. He also contributes to local law enforcement.

"I really like the people here," he said.

Now that Rey Azteca is established in the community, Pantoja has considered joining the .

The menu at Rey Azteca offers many typical favorites, such as tacos, burritos and enchiladas, and the food is cooked with vegetable oil instead of lard. Pantoja also includes family recipes from his home state of Michoacan in Mexico. The recipes differ from those found closer to the northern border where they are more Americanized, Pantoja said.

Pantoja also serves many soups and salads, the most popular of which are the fish and shrimp soup, and the Azteca salad with homemade dressing.

Shrimp is found all over the menu in tacos, burritos, and even in a shrimp cheeseburger. His most popular recipe is the one found in the spicy deviled shrimp plate. The red sauce is a family secret and customers often ask for it when they order a chicken or carnitas dish.

While Rey Azteca is only open during lunch and dinner hours, there is a breakfast menu from which you can order items like huevos rancheros and breakfast burritos all day.

Rey Azteca is located at 6140 Fair Oaks Boulevard and opens at 11 a.m. every day.