You can also buy tickets on the Eventbrite Page here

Well, here’s that something big that was promised to you awhile back. If you’ve been following on FB, Instagram here, or Twitter, then you have already seen this and read past posts about it. Yay, you! Thank you for the gift of your attention, I love you! It’s a work in progress, but I think you will enjoy what has begun. Here’s another magical place for you, replete with some of our favorite things beginning with the letter M: #Mezcal, #Mole, #Mariachis and #Mexican Folk Art!  Now we have lots of new ways that we can relax and eat and walk and talk together, while  conducting a little business! And lastly, a special announcement of a favorite visting artist’s return is coming up right on the heels of this event, so stay tuned! Jesus and Jose Luis and their excellent staff are waiting to shower you with delicious things with grand hospitality, and I, well… I’ll be there when you need me, where #foodisart and #artisfood! 

The collaboration that we’ll all soon be celebrating actually began four years ago at the University of Pittsburgh’s Center for Latin American Studies  annual Latin American & Caribbean Festival, where Jean Pierre and I first met Jesus and Jose Luis of La Palapa when they made their debut. Coincidentally, it was where we also had made ours. He gave them and their work a very rarely given seal of approval, and just a few months later, he was gone, but the legacy that he and my late mother and father in law left to us has enabled the foundation for all that has ensued since. For four years we have encouraged and supported one another, through sorrows, hopes and joys, trading our skills and talents in many ways. I have never for even a moment doubted their dedication and abilities.  I’ve observed their devotion to their families and to their employees and their calm in the midst of clamor, so when the opportunity came at last to co~create a larger space where people could gather to relax and enjoy all that we offer as emissaries of Mexican food, folk art and culture, the leap of faith was made to re-envision the space that used to be occupied by Ibiza. With the owners of Mallorca as landlords and neighbors, the guys already knew they were in excellent company. But this Valentine of a sort that we are preparing belongs equally to the artists I represent, to the customers that we share, and to the dedicated crews behind the scenes every step of the way, some of whom worked for decades alongside Jean Pierre making magic happen in film and theatre. Walls that are 30 feet high do present unique challenges! But the very 1st item is up, and most fittingly it’s a tree of life weaving from Teotitlan del Valle in Oaxaca. In the branches of the community tree of life where we all have often perched together, so often many of us spoke of a place such as this, where more magic can happen, where #foodisart and #artisfood.

The first special event there has already been booked (a wedding!), the new drinks menu is being lovingly curated, and offerings of Mexican mezcal, tequila, wine and beer will also feature some cherished favorites from beloved local breweries. A diverse selection of workshops and classes will be held  and by god, there will be mariachis and there will be boss cross cultural beats. Thanks to so many, so much that is a celebration of Life will be.  Please stay tuned for further details coming soon! I’ve just finished the new revised menu cover, and here it is:

When Jean-Pierre died in 2013, everyone, customers and artists alike insisted vehemently to me: “You must continue! You are needed! We will support you!” Knowing even then the unlikelihood  of financial success when after almost 10 years we had never once made a profit, I was hesitant, but I was determined to throw in all that I had to give and it a try. I increased the advertising budget significantly, I brought two Great Maestros as visiting artists and collaborated with local organizations to introduce them to as many people as possible, I commissioned one of a kind masterpieces and I introduced some wonderful new clothing lines. I Facebooked, I Tweeted, I Instagrammed, I blogged, I emailed. Quite often couldn’t do much in my grief stricken state, and then we lost Jean-Pierre’s mother as well. This world is very different than it was when I began my site and then 2 years later opened the store; there has been a perfect storm of circumstances beyond my control, all pointing to the same conclusion: this cannot be sustained in this fashion with just one person being chef, cook and bottle washer. The rise and fall of the latest “it” shopping districts have incurred a sharp decrease of traffic in my beloved neighborhood, and I have never been willing to pass the price of higher rents on to my customers for the sake of  more traffic or more recognition, whether that would have been wiser or not. I have been fortunate in my landlords at Equity Real Estate, who have not raised my rent for years, yet even that isn’t enough. More and more of our shopping is done from our homes. The influx of inexpensive Chinese imitations of categories of work such as muertos has significantly curtailed my sales as well. I will close the Murray Avenue locale at the end of February. It will make more sense for me at this time to go back to where I began, and the site re-do that I began in July is well underway. I will let you know when the relaunch is official. But before that, I have a much neglected house to attend to, with clutter and things to be sold and redistributed in all manner of ways. I will finally begin paperwork to bring to life my non profit, which will be called Mundo Lindo, so that I can find a way to continue doing what I love within the framework of multicultural collaborations. I will do some local events as a vendor, and I will be creating some product lines that I have long desired to, with the hopes that there may yet be a way for Mexico Lindo and the artists whom I represent to preserve their traditions, for all to prosper and grow. I have a dream: a location that has room for vendors representing various countries, dedicated space for changing exhibits, visiting artists, workshops, dance and performance. In the middle of that is a cafe and there is ample parking for food trucks for outdoor events. An international mercado. Whether or not this dream is based in a reality that can be manifested will depend on many factors, and it is a long range plan. A developer with deep pockets and similar vision will be needed. I truly don’t know if it can or should be done, or if I am the person to do it. Nonetheless, I’m compelled to ask: are you with me? Then please stay tuned and stay in touch. 

with all of my love and gratitude,

Lisa