Miguel’s Jr.’s founder marks chain’s 50th anniversary at its first restaurant
Mary Vasquez marked the 50th anniversary of Miguel’s Jr. in the place where it began on Friday, July 18.
She opened the chain’s first restaurant with her late husband, Mike Vasquez, at 1039 W. Sixth St. in Corona in 1975. Business from nearby Corona High School and Mike and Mary’s food, including house-made hot sauce, made the place a success.
Mary Vasquez visited the drive-thru, now called “the original,” at 2 p.m. Friday afternoon to hand out birthday cake. The first 50 customers also got cards for free tacos.
The dining room was full by the time she cut the cake, which was chocolate with cream frosting. State Senator Sabrina Cervantes dropped by to give Mary a framed resolution and compliment her “masterfully crafted burritos.”
She chatted with longtime customers and caught up with them on their children and grandchildren, or parents and grandparents.
Among them was Shelly Jensen, who said she used to go through the drive-thru in the late ’70s in her ’67 Buick when she was a Corona High School student.
“It hasn’t changed a bit,” she said.
She ordered her favorite, a bean and cheese burrito with several cups of hot sauce.
Jensen’s uncle Tom Gunderson was mayor of Corona, and her father, Phillip Gunderson, were friends with Mike and Mary Vasquez at their first, full-service restaurant that opened nearby in 1973.
But there’s a new addiition, a piece of artwork that reads, “A 50 year tradition and counting.”
“it’s pretty, isn’t it?” Mary Vasquez said.
Javier Vasquez, the chain’s chief executive officer and Mary’s son, arrived at the party a little later.
All 23 restaurants in the chain gave out cake and taco cards from 2 to 4 p.m. Miguel’s Jr. has locations in Riverside, Orange and San Bernardino counties.
At 82, Mary Vasquez is still the face of Miguel’s Jr. in Facebook reels and TikTok videos. In May, she completed her education and picked up a high school equivalency diploma from Corona-Norco Adult School, near the original restaurant.
Information: miguelsjr.com
