To Dine For with Kate Sullivan

KATE SULLIVAN: Austin, Texas.

A college town known for art, food, culture, and a campaign "to keep it weird."

Austin is also where you can find a little restaurant with big flavors.

MIGUEL GARZA: I think you're gonna love them.

KATE: Wow, that is good.

It's where I'm meeting Miguel Garza, the CEO of Siete Foods, the fastest growing Hispanic food brand in the U.S., with a focus on using ingredients that are better for you.

MIGUEL: And one of the things that is so important to us is that we create a brand that honors our heritage and celebrates our culture.

KATE: Over enchiladas, tacos and chilaquiles, we hear how a family of seven banded together around illness to create and grow an exciting company.

MIGUEL: And we would go straight to the kitchen at 9:00 PM.

We would make tortillas by hand, come back the next morning, do it all again.

KATE: And what it really takes to turn a dream into reality.

MIGUEL: I realized what we could build- KATE: Yeah.

MIGUEL: And I finally felt permission to dream.

KATE: What's better in life than a bottle of wine, great food and an amazing conversation?

My name is Kate Sullivan and I am the host of To Dine For .

I'm a journalist, a foodie, a traveler, with an appetite for the stories of people who are hungry for more.

Dreamers.

Visionaries.

Artists.

Those who hustle hard in the direction they love.

I travel with them to their favorite restaurant, to hear how they did it.

This show is a toast to them and their American dream.

To Dine For with Kate Sullivan is made possible by... ANNOUNCER: At American National, we honor the "do"-ers and the dreamers: the people who get things done and keep the world moving.

Our local agents are honored to serve your community because it's their community too.

American National.

KATE: Hi everyone.

Today I'm in Austin, Texas on my way into a family run Mexican restaurant called La Cocina de Consuelo.

I cannot wait to eat here, but it's the person who's meeting me here that I can't wait for you to meet, a dreamer and visionary, Miguel Garza.

KATE: Miguel, how are you?

MIGUEL: Very nice to meet you.

KATE: It's so nice to meet you.

Thank you for doing this.

MIGUEL: Thank you.

KATE: La Cocina de Consuelo, which translates to the kitchen of comfort, is easy to miss if you're driving down Austin's Burnet Road.

It's a small, unassuming building with a little bit of parking in the back, but inside is a bright and colorful restaurant that immediately puts you at ease.

LETTY GARCIA: It's from like a grandma's recipes, you know, and it is not like a chef.

It's, it's more like a mom cooking in the kitchen.

KATE: The restaurant was opened in 2006 by Consuelo Rodriguez or Connie, as everyone knew her.

Connie came to the United States from Mexico at the age of 14 and started her career as a housekeeper.

Eventually, her delicious home cooked meals caught the attention of the family she worked for, who began to pay her for her cooking as well.

Connie continued to sell her food in the 1980's to raise money for her church, which eventually turned into a catering business.

Finally, at the age of 63, Connie opened her own restaurant and ran it for 13 years before passing the reins to her niece, Letty Garcia.

LETTY: When she opened the restaurant, she was working part housekeeping.

Then she would come here and continue cooking until late night.

And then early morning she would come back, do the tortillas, the beans, get everything ready.

She will come to her home and she'll say, "Hey, try this, try that."

I mean, she would be so excited all the time.

She was so happy.

KATE: You might hear the emotion in Letty's voice.

That's because Connie passed away just months ago at the age of 80.

Letty and her family have banded together since and are working hard to maintain Connie's legacy of great food, cooked with great love.

LETTY: It is very important to keep it the way she, she will do it like she used to do it, you know, with love.

So everything had to be the way, you know, they, they teach us and now we're doing it the same.

KATE: That love is obvious in every bite served here.

It is the perfect place to sit down with Miguel Garza, the CEO of Siete Foods, to discuss his own family's relationship with food and how it led them to create one of the fastest growing food brands in the United States today.

KATE: First of all, thank you for bringing me here.

MIGUEL: Thank you, yeah.

KATE: This is an honor.

What is it about this place that you love?

MIGUEL: I mean, I think you saw it when you walk in, like when you have a, I mean, even we start with the name, right?

"Consuelo," um, meaning comfort.

KATE: Comfort.

MIGUEL: And I think being able to come to a place where... you can be yourself, be relaxed, but then also enjoy really delicious food.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: And I think that's like the best thing and really what I love about the food that they serve here is it's simple.

KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: It reminds me of home, reminds me of my grandparents' place, but then it just tastes really, really good.

KATE: Yes.

That's important, isn't it?

Hello!

MIGUEL: And I, think that's hard to do.

SERVER: Here's your chips, your queso, your salsa.

KATE: Ooo... SERVER: Guac for two.

KATE: I love it.

SERVER: And there's some Topo Chico.

MIGUEL: Awesome.

Thank you.

KATE: Thank you so much.

Do you eat chips that aren't Siete, is the question?

MIGUEL: I do.

KATE: Oh, good.

MIGUEL: I probably, I mean, when you go to a restaurant... KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: Chips and salsa, chips and guacamole.

I feel like you can't say no to that.

KATE: Yes.

(Both laugh) KATE: These get me in trouble.

MIGUEL: Me and my family have been known to sneak our chips into restaurants, but um, restaurant style chips, sometimes you just want 'em to be bottomless, so.

KATE: When this restaurant was chosen as a favorite, I figured that Siete was somehow sold here.

And the fact that it is not really says something.

MIGUEL: We eat a lot of places that... don't, don't thank you very much.

That don't carry our product, but like, we're building a, Mexican American food brand.

And one of the things that is so important to us is that we create a brand that honors our heritage and celebrates our culture.

KATE: Mm.

Let's talk about your family and growing up.

What was it like to grow up in your family?

MIGUEL: Well, I'm the baby... KATE: Awww.

MIGUEL: So whatever I say is probably very different from what everybody else would say because I, I'm like the annoying little brother.

KATE: [laugh] You're the little brother.

MIGUEL: So I might be like, it was awesome.

And they're like, what?

KATE: And you're a family of seven, right?

Siete?

MIGUEL: Yeah, so my two parents and then, uh, five kids.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

KATE: Wow.

All seven of you work at Siete?

MIGUEL: Yeah, all seven of us.

And then we, we were like, well, that's not hard enough.

So my, my wife also works at the business.

My brother-in-law and my niece.

KATE: You're kidding me?

MIGUEL: Yeah, so.

KATE: What is that like?

[Laughs] MIGUEL: It's, it's actually, I've told people, you know so much about starting a business is building a foundation of trust.

KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: And so I'm 35, so I have a 35 year advantage over other businesses because I've had that much time to build trust with, uh, my family.

But then also, you know, one of our core values is to do everything with love.

KATE: Mmm.

MIGUEL: And we all love each other.

KATE: Speaking of love, look what just arrived at the table.

The feast begins with chilaquiles, tortilla chips with an ancho chili sauce and queso fresco.

As well as chicken enchiladas, one of Connie's original specialties.

Tortillas filled with chicken, onion, tomatillo, and Monterey jack cheese covered in verde sauce.

The enchiladas are paired with a nopalito cactus salad and refried beans.

KATE: Oh my gosh.

So enchiladas was the dish that Connie first started making, um, when she started this restaurant.

This was sort of like her claim to fame here.

MIGUEL: I think you're gonna love them.

KATE: All right.

Mmm.. Mm ..wow.

MIGUEL: Yeah?

KATE: That is good.

MIGUEL: And then I also think you should try the beans because- KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: Beans are simple but- KATE: The flavors can change depending on who's cooking them.

MIGUEL: Yes.

KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: And I think these have love in them.

KATE: Yeah, aww.

These have love in them.

I believe you.

So before your sister started making almond flour tortillas, you opened a gym as a family.

MIGUEL: So we opened a gym as a family.

I had just graduated college.

I was in the three month gap before I went to law school.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: And I was in the backyard working out with friends.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: Then my mom and sisters joined, and then my dad joined.

And then our family, it was like an accidental business where all of a sudden we had neighbors and friends saying like, "Hey, can we come... work out with you guys?"

KATE: And what was the gym's name?

MIGUEL: Uh, G7 Athletics.

KATE: Okay and so it sounds like you've always had an entrepreneurial spirit.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

I didn't know I did.

[laughs] MIGUEL: But, uh, my family reminds me of my oldest sister's wedding.

And I don't know if it was entrepreneurial, but I was trying to make money.

KATE: Uh-huh.

MIGUEL: But I wasn't doing any work for it.

So I was walking around my sister's wedding, just asking people for tips.

KATE: And how old were you?

MIGUEL: Uh, 11.

KATE: Okay.

[laugh] MIGUEL: More recently, I've come to find out, my grandfather, come to find out that he made and sold corn tortillas when he was probably like in his teenage years.

KATE: Wow.

MIGUEL: So if it is genetic, I feel like- KATE: There was a seed planted- MIGUEL: [laugh] Yeah.

KATE: Several generations ago.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

KATE: That is really interesting.

So you open up this gym... MIGUEL: And that's really when the tortillas started, around the same time.

KATE: In 1999, Miguel's sister Veronica was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition called ATP and then with lupus in 2004.

Their older brother Roberto, suggested Veronica try a paleo diet to help alleviate her symptoms, which unfortunately cut out things like cheese, corn, grains, and legumes, all staples of Mexican cuisine.

Like with G7 Athletics, the entire Garza family decided to join Veronica on her journey and undertake the new diet together.

MIGUEL: There wasn't like some big discussion or anything, but I think we realized that together we could make that an easier experience for her.

And then it just so happened that we all felt better in different ways as we did that.

KATE: Interesting.

So you did it as a family in show of support of your sister?

MIGUEL: Yeah.

KATE: And it turns out you all sort of benefited.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

KATE: Yeah.

MIGUEL: So we all felt better and you know, we're, we're from Laredo, Texas.

uh, we're very proudly from Laredo, Texas.

And food, you know, as we're eating here is so much a part of, culture.

KATE: Mm.

MIGUEL: And so we had given up, you know, in this elimination diet, all of these foods, so tortillas- KATE: And you've given up tortillas- MIGUEL: Chips, rice, we even gave up beans like we had given up so many different- KATE: That's everything.

That's the heart of Mexican cuisine.

MIGUEL: Like this is normal.

Right.

Tortillas sit, they're kind of the center of the table.

KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: And you use them as a utensil.

KATE: Right.

MIGUEL: Like you don't just eat tacos with them and we were no longer eating those.

And I think we felt disconnected from our culture.

KATE: Mmm.

MIGUEL: Because food is so much a part of culture.

KATE: This disconnect from the culture caused Veronica to start experimenting with making her own tortillas from almond flour.

With no idea just how much it would change their lives.

MIGUEL: And so, I still don't know, and she would tell you that she doesn't know.

What iteration of almond tortilla that we tried, but the first one that we tried, we were all blown away.

KATE: Was good?

MIGUEL: Yeah.

It was delicious.

So it's 2009.

So if you think back to 2009, almond flour's not readily available at retailers.

KATE: And she's making it in her kitchen?

MIGUEL: And she's making these tortillas in her kitchen.

So she's finding the almond flour, she's creating this recipe.

And again, kinda like the gym where you're doing something that you love and you end up sharing it with people and then that propels the business.

KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: And so she's making 'em on the weekend, she's selling 'em to friends and family.

KATE: Mm.

MIGUEL: I'm here in Austin, I'm going to law school.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: And she and my parents are driving up from Laredo to Austin, which is about a three and a half hour drive.

And we start selling 'em to the members of a gym that I was going to here.

And so we had all of these people placing orders.

And so there was this business happening, but starting a business is daunting.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: It honestly really wasn't until, we had a conversation and I told her, "Hey, if you don't start selling these in retailers, somebody else is gonna do it 'cause it's a great idea.

And you're gonna regret seeing somebody else do it more than if you were to have tried to do it yourself- KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: And failed."

KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: But January, 2014, she drove up from Laredo to Austin and we took a Ziploc bag of almond flour tortillas.

No brand, no business, but we took it to a local store called Wheatsville Food Co-op, they're a local food co-op here.

And I was very pushy and I asked the buyer to try it on the spot, which now when I think about it is... it's kind of aggressive.

Right?

[laughs] MIGUEL: Like hey, try this Ziploc bag of tortillas right on the spot.

But he tried it.

And on the spot, he said, if you start a business, I'll put this on the shelf.

KATE: It was confirmation of a good idea.

MIGUEL: Yes.

It was like, we have a customer.

So we have a customer- KATE: Which is a great feeling.

MIGUEL: We're gonna make the tortillas.

And I distinctly, like, in my memory, I have this moment, we're walking outta the store, we speaker phone call, um, my mom and my mom's reaction is... always the same.

Where, whenever there's good news, she cries.

KATE: Oh [laugh] MIGUEL: And so she was crying on the phone.

KATE: Aw, for your first customer?

MIGUEL: Yeah and we still didn't even really know what we were doing.

But we had a customer and we started to figure it out.

So May 1st of 2014, we put almond flour tortillas, uh, to the shelf.

And- KATE: In that store?

MIGUEL: In that store.

And that's when the business was born.

KATE: As if we needed some more food.

I'm really hungry.

MIGUEL: I feel like I'm just getting started.

KATE: Yes, thank you very much.

KATE: We couldn't say no to more food, especially with barbacoa tacos, slow simmered beef on fresh tortillas with pico de gallo.

For the next 18 months after their first sale, the Garzas would meet in Austin every Friday night, some driving three and a half hours to get there.

They would use the entire weekend to make as many tortillas as they could, by hand, before heading back to their homes to work their full-time jobs during the week.

KATE: At the very beginning of any business, you're working so hard and you don't know if it's going to succeed.

Most businesses don't.

So at what point did you know, wow, we are onto something.

This is taking flight.

MIGUEL: I will say right off the bat, people were buying a lot of tortillas.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: I think I knew that things were headed in the right direction when I could sense from industry folks that how well the product was doing was something that hadn't been seen in a while.

So like at this one Food Co-op, we were the number one selling refrigerated item.

So this tortilla was out-selling milk, eggs, hummus, and yogurt.

KATE: Wow.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

I think there was a moment kinda how we ended up getting... into Whole Foods was, was exciting.

Like, one of our customers basically suggested to one of their executives that they should have the product.

And we ended up getting our one store shot, and then it expanded really quickly there.

So there was that moment.

I still feel like we're early in what we will do and what we can do.

KATE: Even though you're one of the fastest growing Latin food brands in the U.S.?

MIGUEL: Yes, because I get really excited that Latinos are gaining cultural influence- KATE: Mmm.

MIGUEL: In this country.

KATE: Right.

How far- MIGUEL: Yeah.

KATE: Culturally- MIGUEL: In 30 years.

KATE: we have come in this country.

The hashtag Taco Tuesday.

MIGUEL: Mm-Hmm.

KATE: Is something that has made tacos in every American family, making them on Tuesday a thing, right?

MIGUEL: Yes.

KATE: Where it's not just for people who eat tacos all the time.

Right.

They're not, it's not just for Latino families, it's for every, I mean, we do Taco Tuesday right?

KATE: So, so everybody does Taco Tuesday.

MIGUEL: LeBron's yelling into his phone on Instagram about Taco Tuesday.

KATE: Yes.

MIGUEL: Like, we want to honor heritage and celebrate culture.

We do that through food, but for us, it's how do we amplify Latino voices in a way where we're able to... help tell that story.

KATE: Yes.

KATE: The story of Latino businesses in America is one of historical underrepresentation and current day growth.

While the number of Latino owned businesses is growing more than any other demographic, Latinos still are the least represented demographic on Fortune 500 boards and get approved for fewer bank loans than any other demographic.

Siete Foods is one of the success stories.

The company now offers tortillas, vegan refried beans, flavored tortilla chips, hot sauces, a cookbook, and more with retail sales of $250 million.

In 2017, Miguel was named to "The Forbes, 30 Under 30" for his role as CEO.

In 2021, Siete Foods started The Siete Juntos Fund awarding grants to Latino entrepreneurs in food.

KATE: Has there been a Latino that you have looked up to that has inspired you, that has helped you along the way?

MIGUEL: Uh, that I look up to?

My grandfather.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: He passed recently, but he did some amazing things.

He, uh, got drafted into World War II.

He became- he volunteered to become a paratrooper.

He got dropped behind enemy lines five times, but our responsibility is to continue that legacy of honoring and celebrating Latinos.

And I actually think we have, like, it's a responsibility we have because we've created a business that has had some measure of- KATE: Success.

MIGUEL: And so, now we have to carry that and we have to actively be, uh, making an effort to make sure that the ladder goes down even further.

So that more people can climb up.

KATE: I'm wondering if you can help shed light on, what do you do when you're starting a business and you're running into obstacles?

When you're running into problems, when you're running into issues to keep that dream going, to keep that dream alive?

MIGUEL: I believe that it takes a village.

And I think if you were- KATE: Siete [laugh] MIGUEL: Yeah and it really is like we felt like we were a family owned business that operated like a startup.

But then in 2017, we launched a cassava based grain-free tortilla chip cooked in avocado oil.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: Within the first 12 months, it became the number one selling tortilla chip at Whole Foods nationwide.

KATE: Wow.

MIGUEL: I think for myself, I don't wanna speak for my sister, but that was the time where I finally felt permission to dream.

KATE: Hmm.

MIGUEL: And I felt permission to dream because it felt like we had a win.

KATE: You're a realist, you want to have proof before you can dream.

MIGUEL: Yeah, because I think it's hard to, I mean, dreams are scary.

I think dreams are really scary.

KATE: And why do you think they're scary?

MIGUEL: Because failing is scary.

KATE: Yeah.

Yeah.

MIGUEL: And I think that we're taught like failure shouldn't be scary, but... KATE: Or that it's bad or that makes us a failure.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

KATE: Yeah.

MIGUEL: But I think it is like you can really put a lot into a dream, and I think you have to have ignorant foolishness.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: Because if you don't, the realism will tell you that... KATE: You're gonna fail.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

KATE: Yeah.

MIGUEL: But I think once we had that success, and once I personally felt permission to dream, I realized that we could share our authenticity.

And I think authenticity is a word that's thrown out a lot, but the way I use it is a true expression of oneself.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: And so we could share our truth- KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: With the world through this brand.

And what we felt is that because, um, culturally there's this shared experience- KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: That it would actually give other people the opportunity to share their authentic selves.

But then more than that, it allows more people to dream.

KATE: What responsibility do you feel to, trailblaze away so that others can dream?

Or do you think about it at all?

MIGUEL: No, I do because I have conversations with founders who are navigating many of the challenges that we are navigating.

I see conversations that we have with our consumer where our brand resonates with their upbringing.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: And I see the hundred plus people that show up every day and have decided to call Siete their work home.

KATE: Mm.

MIGUEL: So I think for me, that's a lot of responsibility.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: Amazing people have decided to believe in this dream with us.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: And, you know, if I'm having this conversation, I'm really doing it as a microphone for all of the people that are currently in our office, building a beautiful brand and a beautiful company.

KATE: What advice would you give to other Latin business owners to achieve success and to dream?

MIGUEL: The advice that I would give is to not be afraid to be yourself.

KATE: Mmm.

MIGUEL: And to find a community that will support you in whatever endeavor you have.

KATE: Your family really is your strength, isn't it?

MIGUEL: It is.

KATE: Because you, you, you didn't have to worry about that part.

MIGUEL: No.

That was, and I think again, I, I feel like, I mean, you, I guess you could work for that, but we're lucky in that we were just blessed with that.

KATE: Yeah.

MIGUEL: But it, it takes, it takes a community and it takes mentors and be unapologetically yourself as you build.

KATE: Mm-Hmm.

MIGUEL: So I think that taking those moments to cherish and honor the time that we're given with loved ones is super important.

And I think, you know, every morning when you wake up that you're just taking one more small step forward.

And I think if you do that enough times, like you've walked pretty far.

KATE: That's beautiful.

MIGUEL: Thank you.

KATE: Thank you for this meal.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

Thank you.

It was so good.

KATE: This is a feast.

MIGUEL: I know.

KATE: Thank you Miguel.

MIGUEL: Yeah, thank you.

KATE: It's wonderful to hear the Siete story and to hear it through your lens, which has been an upward climb.

So cheers to you and cheers to dreaming.

MIGUEL: Yeah.

Thank you.

KATE: Miguel Garza, his sister Veronica and the Garza family of Siete are the living, breathing American dream.

To create and build something from scratch that not only serves a powerful purpose for their family, but also for thousands of others seeking a healthier option.

Siete is the fastest growing food brand in the country.

No small feat.

A great testament to what happens when you match a dire need with a powerful purpose and you do it in the name of family, with family, for family.

What's better than that?

Nada.

KATE: If you would like to know more about the guests, the restaurants, and the inspiring stories of success, please visit todinefortv.com or follow us on Facebook and Instagram at To Dine For TV.

We also have a podcast, To Dine For the podcast is available on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

To Dine For with Kate Sullivan is made possible by... ANNOUNCER: At American National, we honor the "do"-ers and the dreamers: the people who get things done and keep the world moving.

Our local agents are honored to serve your community because it's their community too.

American National.