Giving Back to the Community
La Carreta’s Saul Rubio
by Erin K. Moore
Thank goodness Saul Rubio did not fulfill his childhood dream. What a relief he didn’t stick to his original college major. He would no doubt have become a highly successful architect or accountant, but La Carreta restaurant as we know it might not exist today.
Those who’ve ever enjoyed a meal at La Carreta are thankful he decided to continue his family’s tradition and go into the restaurant business. His family owned a restaurant in his hometown of Queretaro, Mexico. He decided to open his own restaurant somewhere in the states. After graduating from college in Mexico with a degree in business, Saul says he ended up in Hammond by pure luck. “A friend told me about a nice college town in Louisiana that didn’t have a Mexican restaurant,” he says. “It just made sense.”
What began in 1998 as a startup restaurant next to the railroad tracks in downtown Hammond has grown to include multiple locations of La Carreta restaurants in Amite, Baton Rouge and La Place, as well as Adobe, a sister restaurant across town in Hammond. La Carreta beat the odds. National statistics put the failure rate of new independent restaurants anywhere from 26-90 percent in their first year of operation.
That didn’t stop Saul. The original La Carreta increased its profits by more than 400 percent after only four years of operation. And that was long before the other highly successful La Carreta and Adobe restaurants came along.
When asked to share the secret of his success, Saul doesn’t hesitate. “It’s the people,” he states. According to Saul, La Carreta is named after the plazas in little towns in Mexico where men would sell produce from horse-drawn carts and gather to discuss the “news.” He always remembers that it’s the people who make the restaurant: They’re the ones who gather to chat over chips and salsa and enjoy a great meal. They create the atmosphere. “La Carreta is always full of students, faculty and personnel from Southeastern and members of the community who come to enjoy their meals and each others’ company.”
He credits much of his success to the restaurant’s close relationship with the university, noting that the relationship he has with Southeastern Louisiana University is much more than just geographic proximity. “I realize how lucky we are to be here and to have such a great university as our neighbor,” he says. “My ‘restaurant family’ is made up of so many college students. Southeastern is working with me to arrange classes for the Spanish-speaking members of my ‘restaurant family’ so they can learn English as a second language. And, of course, Southeastern is my customer base.”
Giving Back
For these reasons and many more, Saul and his wife, Jennifer, have contributed $60,000 to establish a Southeastern professorship, the Rubio Family Endowed Professorship, in the Latin American Business Development Initiative. The Rubios’ $60,000 donation will be matched with $40,000 from the Louisiana Education Quality Support Fund.
The professorship will be the first in the University of Louisiana System established to recognize and support the important role of Latin American businesses and people in the development and strengthening of the economy and vitality of the United States.
According to the institute’s director, Dr. Aristides Baraya, “One of the goals of the initiative is to help Hispanics—who are growing in number both nationally and locally, especially since the hurricane—reach the resources they need to move forward. The beauty of this endowment is its broad scope. The true beneficiaries are the Hispanic population and, simultaneously, the entire community of the northshore.”
The vision is to see all Hispanic youth, adults and businesses become productive members of the community-at-large of the region and of Louisiana, respecting the law and contributing to the development of this country.
Baraya is proud of the formation of the Latin American Student Association on campus, noting, “Now more than ever there is a strong renaissance of the Hispanic dream of creating a community based on common goals, values, honesty, principles and collective commitments. Part of the achievement of this dream is the result of Saul’s generosity, noble spirit and his commitment to the social responsibility that is a characteristic of the university,” Baraya adds.
Saul says the decision to make such a large gift to the university was not an easy one. “I had friends back in Mexico who told me that the money could be used to renovate a church or help an elementary school in my old neighborhood. However, we decided the money should go toward the future success of the university, its students and the surrounding community who have contributed so much to my businesses’ success.”
Success in Business—and in Life
Neither Saul’s success nor his genuine character has gone unnoticed. Once, several men who were planning to open a restaurant of their own drove all the way from Oklahoma to Hammond just so they could see “how it’s done,” he notes. “The waiter came and told me that table 24 wanted to see me. I thought they wanted to make a complaint, but they said they had heard such great things about La Carreta that they wanted to come see the restaurant in action.”
To Saul, the process is simple. Perseverance, integrity, and believing in your employees are at the top of his list of must-have qualities for a successful business owner. The endowed professorship at Southeastern will serve as a tribute to those ideals and as a lasting legacy to the Rubio family and their gratitude to this community.
There’s obviously much more to Saul Rubio than his tasty tortilla chips and haute hot sauce. There’s a business leader who respects the opportunities afforded him and is compelled to give back to the community.
Thank goodness for Saul Rubio.
