YUNET JOMOLCA Perico’s Tex-Mex American Bar & Grill restaurant is set to reopen at 11 a.m. Saturday.

Since Gabe Costilla, owner of Perico’s Tex-Mex American Bar and Grill, shut down his restaurant on Del Prado Boulevard in 2003 to lease the building to another restaurant chain, Cape Coral has experienced an economic boom and bust.
Now, when many local restaurants are struggling, if not closing altogether, Costilla is reopening Perico’s at a new location on the corner of Hancock Bridge Parkway and Hunter Boulevard.
He is hoping the restaurant’s atmosphere — Perico’s will have 42-inch LCD televisions and live entertainment Wednesday through Sunday — and lower menu prices will attract more customers.
“We’re going to try to do it through volume and bringing people in,” Costilla said.
A mainly Mexican menu that also includes American favorites like burgers and ribs, with prices starting at $5.99, should bring in new customers as well as Perico’s “loyal following,” Costilla said.
“We have quite a bit of American fare, too. Of course, we specialize in Mexican. We’re going back to the five years we’ve developed a loyal following here,” he said.
A 10-year Cape resident, Costilla has nearly four decades of experience in the restaurant business, opening 12 eateries in the Cleveland, Ohio, area before coming to Southwest Florida.
The original Perico’s opened in 1999, but Castillo decided to rent the building to Stevie Tomato’s Sports Page in 2003 after tiring of the business.
“I did it just to take a break. I’ve done this for 37 years and Stevie’s came along and wanted to rent from me,” Castillo said.
The return of his passion for the typically tough restaurant business coincides with a contracting economy, but Castillo said he is prepared to deal with the times.
“We’re lowering our dinner prices from five years ago. We understand people are suffering from the economy,” he said.
The new Perico’s was slated to open Monday, but a delay in the arrival of kitchen equipment pushed the opening back to 11 a.m. Saturday.
For additional information, call 656-7000.