Rogelio Tellez shows off a plate of tacos at C Rojo’s. The restaurant is gaining national attention, as America’s Best Restaurants is set to film at the Tyler joint. ABR travels the country telling the stories and highlighting the unique food of locally owned independent restaurants as part of their ABR Roadshow.

The sound of sautéed ingredients could be heard from the kitchen of C Rojo’s Taqueria, filling the air of aromatics of traditional Mexican spices instantly making patrons’ mouths water while looking at the menu. Are you in the mood for carnitas tacos? Maybe kimchi? How about a Brussels bowl with shrimp?

“You really can’t go wrong with anything here,” said owner Rogelio Tellez. “We’re pretty proud of everything.”

Rogelio and his wife and co-owner Carrie Mendiola Tellez have been in business since 2019, starting with a taco truck, C Rojo’s Mobile Cuisine.

“It was really good,” Rogelio said. “We have followers before so they’ve been with us everywhere we go. They’ve all been amazing.”

C Rojo’s Taqueria has a unique twist of a fusion with Pacific Islander and authentic Mexican foods.

“We have Brussels sprouts, we have burgers, we have quesadillas and then a bunch of tacos, but it has all different flavors and a lot of people think that’s weird,” Rogelio said. “They’re kinda afraid to try it… but when they do try it, they can tell with the taste, the textures… I mean, it is a different experience.”

Even with loyal and enthusiastic customers, C Rojo’s Taqueria is like any other mom-and-pop businesses when it comes to keeping things afloat. Whether it’s dealing with the rising costs of ingredients or keeping more than one door open, the owners have had to make tough decisions — like closing down their FM 14 location in September of 2023.

“It’s tough getting money together when you don’t have that much to begin with,” Rogelio said. “We already have a pretty small staff here too. We are hoping to expand in the future.”

C Rojo’s Taqueria has been located at 7205 S. Broadway Ave. since May of 2023.

“(Broadway) has been a really good location for us,” Rogelio said. “But we do hope to have a bigger… standalone spot where we can offer more options for customers.”

The praise of the local restaurant reached the team of America’s Best Restaurants (ABR), a YouTube channel with 4,700 subscribers that is devoted to highlighting hidden gems of local restaurants. Several hosts travel across the country with a videographer to taste various foods, learn how some of the menu items are made and find out about the business.

“We are very excited to have this opportunity to present our food to them,” Rogelio said. “We’ve been a little bit nervous because we aren’t sure what to expect but we know our food is good.”

Wednesday afternoon, with videographer Nick Mammone, ABR host Theo Williams invited their viewers to the C Rojo’s Taqueria kitchen where Rogelio and Carrie and their small staff prepared three meals for them to try.

Over a large cooking pot, Rogelio showed Williams the marinated carnitas that will go on top of the kimchi fries.

“Oh, man… you can really tell how nice and juicy and tender the meat is,” the host said.

Rogelia gently placed the meat in a bed of fries, then topped it with chipotle mayo and kimchi sauce, followed by Asian slaw, pickled onions and cilantro.

As soon as the host took a bite, he was in cuisine heaven.

“Wow… this is such a… marriage of flavors,” Williams told the viewers. “This meat is so tender… oh, my gosh!”

The ABR crew also got to try the Brussels Sprouts bowl with meat and a plate of gourmet tacos.

“We want to give them as much exposure as we possibly can, to let all of America know this is the place to come,” Williams said. “We also want to make sure Carrie and Rogelio get all the love and exposure that they need because America’s Best Restaurants is all about helping small businesses.”

Restaurants are either nominated by a customer or someone from the restaurant that reached out to ABR. Through a rigorous screening process and diligent research, the ABR team will reach out to the nominated business and make arrangements for a visit.

“We crisscrossed the country… doing our best to get the word out for small restaurants and small businesses,” Williams said. “We want America to realize how important small restaurants are compared to these big box national chains… that restaurants are a backbone to our communities.”

ABR has been a presence for almost two years, not only uploading videos on YouTube but livestreaming on social media at every location they visit.

“We want to help the little guy out… help put them on the map to make sure everybody knows that if you are in the area like Tyler, Texas, (birthplace) of Patrick Mahomes, that this is the place to be,” Williams said. “It’s our job at America’s Best Restaurants to let communities around the country know about these great restaurants that they have right in their own backyards.”