Javier’s adds a bar, jalapeño margaritas

You can now get a cucumber margarita or a shot of tequila at Javier’s Mexican restaurant.

The 41-year-old business, at 5680 E. Kings Canyon Road, has added a bar, along with a few other changes.

The restaurant converted a banquet room into the cantina, as they call it. Windows, doors, a new floor and tables were added. The owners moved the front door to a central spot to connect both sides of the restaurant.

They also added an outdoor patio with fans.

The new granite top bar has a full selection of liquor behind it. Along with that cucumber margarita, customers can order a jalapeño margarita, or a regular one.

The business had a beer and wine license before, which allowed it to serve only wine-based margaritas. Now they are made with tequila.

Lime shooters – shots of tequila served with a lime wedge on a tiny plate – are popular. They also serve cheladas, beer-based cocktails with shrimp perched on the edge of the glass.

Louis Duran (who started the business with wife Lupe) always wanted to have a cantina, says their son Ronald Duran.

In case you’re wondering, Javier is the couple’s other son and Ronald’s brother. The family decided Javier’s name was most fitting for a restaurant. He was 3 at the time.

Fast forward 41 years and the two brothers have joined the family business. Their parents still work there, too.

They want people to know that the restaurant is still family-friendly, even with the cantina. Kids are welcome at the tables and booths in the bar area. They just can’t sit at the actual bar.

You won’t find any loud drunken partying at this cantina, Ronald Duran says.

“We’ve always been a family type of restaurant,” he says.

The cantina usually closes around 8:30 p.m., with plans to stay open until 10 p.m. once business picks up. The restaurant is closed on Sundays so workers can spend time with their families.

This story was originally published May 19, 2016 at 4:30 AM with the headline "Javier’s adds a bar, jalapeño margaritas."