‘What’s happening, shrimp?’ Behind the name of this new Mexican restaurant in Fresno
In the back of El Toro Loco supermarket in Fresno, between the Gatorade and the seafood counter, is a little Mexican restaurant with a lot going on.
For starters, its name is Qué Pasó Camarón?
That loosely translates to, “What’s happening, shrimp?”
The restaurant is essentially a counter with three tables inside the grocery store at Shields and West avenues. Most people take their food to go.
The menu is handwritten and includes a little bit of everything: quesabirria tacos, asada fries, burritos, tortas, ceviche and breakfast enchiladas. Almost everything is $12.99 or less.
On the weekends, you’ll find owners Mireya Ramirez and her husband Miguel Castro cooking in a tent out front of the market. The couple make menudo, carnitas and birria. Another woman makes tortillas on the spot.
“They’re just so friendly to customers,” said Don Rotella, director of public relations for the store.
“They get a lot of business from cars passing by, and even homeless people,” with passersby sometimes buying food for them, Rotella noted.
The restaurant name
So why name a restaurant Qué Pasó Camarón?
It’s a phrase that’s tossed around a lot at home, said Ramirez. They have an 18-year-old daughter.
Shrimp was a bit of a nickname between her husband and daughter.
They’d all be relaxing and one of them would come home and the other would say, “Qué pasó, camarón?” — “What’s up, shrimp?”
The couple had years and years of experience in the restaurant industry, and sometimes talked of starting their own spot.
Ramirez said: “When we have our first place, we’re going to name it Qué Pasó, Camarón?”
She was a server at Denny’s for 15 years. Her husband was a cook at various Mexican restaurants.
They both got laid off during the pandemic. They started selling food “to survive” to friends.
“We started getting busy, busy, busy,” Ramirez said.
Since that seemed to be working, they decided to open inside the grocery store about three months ago. It’s just the two of them most of the time, working six days a week.
Shrimp
Castro specializes in shrimp, too.
It’s such a part of the identity here that two winking shrimp giving thumbs up and wearing chefs’ hats are part of the logo.
The shrimp mangonero is a favorite, made with chunks of mango and a habanero sauce and sides of rice and a salad with avocado. It has heat, but not enough to obscure the flavor.
“We really like our customers to be happy with us,” Ramirez said. “A lot of people come in, they say, ‘Just surprise me.’”
Their goodwill isn’t all just talk, either.
The couple donates prepared food to three nearby churches, who hand it out to disadvantage folks who could use it.
Together with the store, they’ve also donated money to nearby schools for special needs students to take field trips to Chaffee Zoo.
Details: Qué Pasó Camarón? is inside El Toro Loco at 1405 W. Shields Ave. Hours: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (and sometimes a little later) Saturdays and Sundays. 559-371-3141.
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This story was originally published April 20, 2022 at 10:57 AM.
