photograph by bruce vanwyngarden
Juan Viramontes and his famous “Mangorita.”
While training for the 2012 Boston Marathon in his hometown of Ventura, California, Juan Viramontes ran into his future.
“I started talking with Sabine [Langer] on a long run — 22 miles at a conversational pace,” says Viramontes. “She was in Ventura, also training for Boston, and joined my group for a run. We stayed friends on social media, and then in 2017 she called and asked if I wanted to be part of a project she had in mind, and if I’d be interested in moving to Memphis.”
Inspired by her own immigration experience, Langer’s project was Global Café, an enterprise dedicated to helping immigrants and refugees in Memphis by investing its proceeds in its employees — paying them a living wage, offering English lessons, free shoes, profit-sharing, and helping them transition to life in the U.S.
photograph by bruce vanwyngarden
Viramontes was intrigued enough to move here in early 2018. He got to work creating a menu, developing recipes, and concocting cocktail ideas. (More about those soon.)
“My family moved from Mexico to Ventura when I was 10 years old,” says Viramontes. “We were in the heart of California’s agricultural country, and I’ve worked in the food and restaurant business since I was 14. My first real job was being a dishwasher for a Mexican restaurant. Since then, I’ve worked as a busboy, buffet attendant, line cook, bartender, chef, and restaurant manager.
He slides it across the bar in my direction, and it’s … it’s … huge. Thankfully, there’s a straw. Otherwise, I’m not sure how I would get to the drink itself. I take a sip and, bam! It’s really good. But this is a drink with a punch.
“Sabine is also an immigrant, like me, and the restaurant is her vision,” he continues. “We are empowering immigrants and refugees to bridge the gap and to become a part of the culture and society. We’ve had employees from Guatemala, Burundi, Ukraine, Pakistan, Nepal, Sudan, Syria, Mexico, Venezuela … more than 20 countries.”
Global Café, located in Crosstown Concourse, features a varied international menu that includes dishes from Venezuela, Somalia, Colombia, Sudan, Mexico, and the Middle East — everything from street tacos to African peanut soup. Viramontes’ cocktails are equally international and include “Syrian Sangria,” “Sudanese Sundance,” and “Mexican Mule,” to name just three.
“Because of my agricultural background, I can work with almost any food,” he says. “For our cocktails, I focus on fresh fruit. If peaches are in season, I turn them into a drink I call ‘Peaches and Cream.’ Watermelons? I make a ‘Watermelon Pucker.’ Our ‘Kiwi Lime Drop’ is also very popular.”
So far, Viramontes hasn’t mentioned the elephant in the room, and that would be his famous ‘Mangorita,’ the most Instagrammable cocktail in Memphis — and probably the largest — so I ask him about it.
“We sell a ton of those,” he says, smiling. “It’s our most famous drink. I take a mango and cut it into a flower and put it on a stick in a glass filled with 20 ounces of ‘Juan’s Famous Margarita.’ I buy the largest mangos they sell and ripen them myself. That’s why they’re so creamy and buttery, with no tough fiber. After I cut it, I drizzle it with fresh-squeezed lime juice, fresh orange juice, tajin [a spice blend], and Cholula hot sauce. With this drink, you have to give in and get messy with it.”
After that introduction, I have to try one. (And reader, let me just add that this interview was happening before lunch. On a Tuesday.) Watching Viramontes put this masterpiece together, I feel a bit like I’m watching Picasso at his canvas.
“How much alcohol is in here, Juan?”
“Three and a half ounces of tequila.”
“Whoa.”
“You’re supposed to savor it,” he advises. “Take a bite. Have a sip. Take your time.”
“It’s 11:14 in the morning. I think I’ll have to just drink a sample, if that’s okay.”
“No worries,” says Viramontes. “Some people come in and order it for dinner,” he adds, helpfully. “They use a knife and fork.”
I make a note to myself to come back and try a few of the intriguing-sounding dishes on the menu. And to bring a cohort to help me tackle the “Mangorita.” I figure we’ll need two straws and an Uber. And it will be well worth it. Do yourself a favor and put Global Café on your restaurant list, if you’re not already a patron. It’s an opportunity to eat well, drink well, and do some good for your community. Tell Juan I sent you.
Global Café is located inside Crosstown Concourse,1350 Concourse Ave., Suite 157.
