A well-liked Lakewood restaurant is back after a brief closure sparked by increasing costs and competition.
Chinitos Tacos had a seven-year run before closing. Now, just a few months later, it’s reopening as simply Chinitos with a renewed menu of dinner plates.
The owner, Beeline Krouch, tried to sell the business and closed it at the end of March, but he said, when the new owner didn’t pay their bills on time, the deal fell through. Krouch still had his name on the lease and was forced to return.
“I thought I was out, but it called me back,” Krouch said.
It was an unexpected return to Krouch’s long-running dream of having a restaurant.
That journey originally started with a nickname that became an identity.
“I am Chinitos,” Krouch said.
Krouch started out working as a line cook for 20 years. His coworkers in the kitchen called him “chino” and then “chinito.”
“I just ran with it,” he said.
When Krouch had the opportunity to open a restaurant, he wanted to create a place that served foods with Asian-inspired flavors while showing appreciation for the Hispanic culture that is so prevalent in Long Beach, thus opening Chinitos Tacos.
“I have to admit it was the toughest decision, but the greatest feeling at the same time, because it was something that I always dreamed of, but throughout the years, I felt how tough it was just to be an entrepreneur,” Krouch said.
The business faced its share of challenges, including a struggle to establish itself at first as people weren’t sure about the idea of “Asian-inspired tacos,” Krouch said. There were also several break-ins and the pandemic.
Krouch said the hardest hits came from increasing prices and the large amount of competition, particularly from street vendors.
“I have a brick and mortar, I have rent, I have overhead, and I can’t keep up with them,” Krouch said. “You’re paying $1.50 for a great taco that they’re selling, which is delicious and is packed with protein,” without the same costs as a restaurant.
A single taco at Chinitos Tacos — which included a choice of protein, Chinitos sauce, cotija cheese, pickled red onions and cilantro — was $4.50.
“It was tough because you couldn’t really break it down to the customers. They wouldn’t understand. I mean, they see gas prices going up and when they go grocery shopping, but they never really think that tacos, a taco, will be this expensive,” Krouch said.
After the brief closure, Krouch reopened his restaurant as Chinitos on May 15.
Instead of the tacos that used to fill the menu, Chintos now offers dinner plates with chicken, pork belly, or short ribs. They also have combo plates that have multiple meats and a creamy garlic shrimp pasta called Bang Bang Cajun Shrimp Noodles. All plates are served with a scoop of rice and macaroni salad, which could be substituted with salad or noodles. Prices range from $16 to $25.
Krouch continues to use flavors that he said he holds close to his heart, including lemongrass, turmeric and ginger.
Krouch views the reopening of Chinitos as a rebirth and an opportunity to try new things, saying that everything happens for a reason.
Chinitos will have its grand re-opening sometime in the fall, “but as of right now, I just want to take it week by week and just pray that we just keep on winning,” Krouch said.
Chinitos, at 11130 Del Amo Blvd. in Lakewood, is open Wednesday through Saturday from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 6 p.m.