Founded in 2010 at Hengshan Lu, Pistolera Cantina needs no introduction to Sherpa’s fan base in Shanghai. Serving up hearty portions of Mexican and tex-mex eats from chili nachos to a 35cm-long burrito dish, Pistolera brings the fiesta one step closer to China. In the centre of it stands Chef Leonardo Guerrero, who goes by the name of Chef Tabasco. How he ended up with “Tabasco” proves to be a good conversation starter.

“You know how every person has a porn name? It’s composed of your middle name and the name of the street you grew up on. I was at this gathering one time and people started talking about their porn names. When it was my turn, I just blurted out “Leonardo Tabasco”, emphasizing that fiery Latino lover persona. It got stuck and I’ve been known as Chef Tabasco ever since. If you would come to the kitchen one day looking for Leonardo, people wouldn’t know who to call.”

“In Mexico, we always gather around food. That’s definitely part of our culture. Drinks like tequila too, of course. We’re very spontaneous about our meet-ups. Shanghai is not too bad because it’s such a dynamic city, there’s something going on all the time. In Mexico, it’s fairly common to receive a call during the day, “Hey, what are you doing tonight? Do you want to meet at my place for BBQ?” That’s it – you call some friends and family. By 9PM, you have a party in full swing. My wife says that we never get tired, there’s something happening every night. We like festivities and we’ll find any excuse to celebrate.”

“When I first arrived in Shanghai, people were looking for someone who could cook Mexican food. I’ve always loved cooking, but I wasn’t a chef per se. After some time, I started getting little gigs here and there. Things progressed and I ended up going back to school for a culinary degree. Shanghai is the place where opportunities are knocking aplenty. Hey, I got the chance to manage a full restaurant! And now with the emerging purchasing power, it’s interesting how we’re evolving from catering to the expats to also catering to the Chinese. We’ve been adding some items that might be a little bit more comfortable for the locals. For example, we have a dish that’s served in a hot stone plate – based on bibimbap. The flavours are still Mexican, but we play around with the presentation.”

“Training staff both in the kitchen and in the front is always very very difficult. People here will never fully understand what Mexican food is because all they know is what I teach them. You can explain how to approach the customers, but a lot of the time it simply comes from the heart. Overall, we do a good job. I’m trying to lead by example – make our staff understand that it’s very satisfying to really please somebody and make them feel good, have fun. That’s the best feeling about this industry – seeing the customer leave with a big smile full of gratitude.”

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