There are few who can say that they have not gone to the south center of the city to try the specialties of one of the best restaurants of typical Guayaquil food: El Jardín. Thanks to the tenacity of Mariana Navarrete, the owner, and her daughter, chef María Fernanda Cepeda, they never stopped serving, despite the fact that the place was closed for months. The slogan was not to leave their guests wanting to enjoy the delicacies that are prepared there.
Both decided, while the remodeling of the house where the family business has always worked, to rent another place to serve the public. Even the pandemic was not a problem because they never stopped preparing the ball broth, the guatita, the casseroles, the bolones, the breaded meat, the lentil Moors, the green noodles accompanied with breaded or fried meat, the homemade laundry, in end, dishes that gave him well-deserved recognition in gastronomic contests held by the Municipality of Guayaquil.
“The building is around 93 years old. In its beginnings it was a large colonial house that always opened onto a garden (hence the name). As it was one of the most beautiful in the sector, whose owner was Rafael Guerrero Valenzuela (1915-2008) -mayor of Guayaquil and later governor of Guayas-, they awarded it three stars for his contribution to the decoration. So I asked my brother -the architect responsible for the remodeling- what they mean and he told me that the Municipality gave them to the most outstanding buildings for their architecture. My mom bought it 38 years ago and decided to keep it just as she bought it, thus fulfilling her dream of owning a house and opening a restaurant. It had two floors and was of mixed construction: the lower part was made of cement and the upper part was made of wood. The old buildings were completely made of wood, but since the previous owner had money, he built the house with both materials. Even the pillars were intact when they were removed, they were like wooden stakes and they were intact, without moths, without anything, it was perfect maintenance,” says Cepeda.
Since then, El Jardín has been capturing palates, achieving fame and not because of the ball broth. “My mom always started working with typical Guayaquil food. At first, she started with the guatita; that’s how she became famous, then she decided to prepare the ball broth. By then more staff were hired because this dish is more elaborate and later others were added”.
About 30 years ago the ball broth gave it the fame that El Jardín enjoys today. “The recipe has been improving because the one who gave us the recipe was my grandmother. It was a more homemade preparation, so we asked ourselves how we can keep it that way, but also transform it for a business without losing its roots. In that course there was a failure-error until it began to be perfected and it acquired its popularity, so much so that at first they didn’t call us by the name El Jardín, they called us ‘the ball broth restaurant,’” recalls the young chef.
A generational affair
The restaurant has been around for 38 years and during that time entire families have been tempted by the flavor of this place that is part of the hollows of Guayaquil. “It has given me pleasure, for example, to see that a man came along with his son, now, it is the grandson who is my age (33 years old), who in turn also brings his son. Our guests are several generations and that is something that fills me with pride, especially for the work that my mother has done together with us to be able to get where we are. We reached a point where we said we have to invest a little more because the place is not only good flavor and attention, something had to be done with the infrastructure. Hence, we decided that investment should be made to make it more in keeping with our days, equipping it and improving it so that our customers feel comfortable”, Cepeda says.
The secret of seasoning
María Fernanda says that the success of El Jardín’s flagship dish is due to two factors. “From a professional point of view, when you make a standard recipe with its weights and quantities, you also have to taste the food and see that they are really following that established recipe. Personally, it’s what I’ve always said that ‘in the eye of the owner, the horse gets fat’. With that motto my mother, who owns it and then I went to help her as a chef graduated from the university, we decided that we should be where ‘hot potatoes burn’. It is important to take care of the details and we try to ensure that the food always comes out good”.
The improvements in the infrastructure brought with them the hiring of more personnel. Before they had four cooks, now there will be six; before they had three waiters, now they will serve five people at the tables. “We have wanted this project for a long time, but due to family problems we had with the land, the matter was delayed. This conflict lasted for six years, added to this the COVID-19 pandemic. This made it even more complicated for us to start with the remodeling works.”
Cepeda highlights the fact that people of all social classes and ages go to the restaurant. “From politicians, even families who no longer live in Guayaquil, television people, celebrities like the remembered Gino Molinari. We serve everyone equally, whether they eat a la carte or when they order lunch.”
The remodeling allows the seating capacity, which was 55 people, to now be 95. There is an area at the top (like a loft or mezzanine), where, if it is not reserved, diners can go up without problems. It is intended for social events such as business meetings or birthdays.
Architecture
The remodeling has allowed the restaurant not to lose its colonial architectural style, says Cepeda, and his brother Francisco was the architect in charge. “There are certain details, for example, in the pillars. That was a difficult part to get because there are no longer people who do those details because they must be artisans and getting them was a bit difficult. Another case is the incorporation of lamps (lantern type) that we buy in an antique store and that will illuminate the portals. The balconies have been preserved, the doors with chazas are metallic and not wooden due to the issue of crime, but they look exactly as if they were made of wood”.
Inside, more modern details are noticeable, but with certain touches that provide warmth such as the use of brick and plants. “In one of the upper parts, a design was made that only an architect can do: they are interspersed bricks that give a more modern touch. Now there will be a ramp and bathroom for people with reduced capacity, two more bathrooms for men and women. We will have air conditioning.
The kitchen will now have a cold room to keep fresh products and that area has been significantly enlarged to provide comfort when preparing food. There are also points of sale that help provide fast service for diners.
The menu
From now on the menu will also include appetizers such as María preñadas, which are breads in the form of a sandwich with a filling that can be seco de chivo; rice, stew and fried meat or with guatita. “They come from my grandmother’s mother taught her how to prepare some stuffed rolls and we decided to return to those dishes that come out quickly and are from the past. My mom told me ‘I don’t know if people are going to like it’, but I told her of course yes, who doesn’t like to eat pan con guatita, for example. It is a rolled bread with any of those fillings and we serve it with salsa criolla and avocado. They are very cheap, but with a lot of calories (laughs). We will also incorporate the llapingachos to include gastronomy from the Sierra”.
Attention is from 07:00 to 15:30 every day in Chimorazo between Venezuela and Portete. Phone: 098-627-6861. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
Paul is a talented author and journalist with a passion for entertainment and general news. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he has established herself as a respected voice in the industry.
