Brothers Omar Ayala Jr. and Johnathan Ayala of Pineville don’t want La Luna Mexican Grille, 2624 Old Marksville Hwy., to be just another Mexican restaurant in central Louisiana when it opens Monday, Aug. 19. They want to do things differently by offering good customer service, Mexican dishes with Southern culture and a lively dining atmosphere. Yes, they will serve margaritas.
Opening hours are Sunday to Thursday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Omar, 26, is familiar with the comments on social media that there are already too many Mexican restaurants in Alexandria and Pineville every time people hear about a new one opening.
“To be honest, they’re right,” Omar said. “There are a lot of Mexican restaurants. But the main reason we opened one is simply because we grew up in the restaurant business.”
Mexican food is what they are used to and know best. Their father, Omar Ayala, Sr., has operated Los Portales Mexican Restaurant, 3628 Monroe Highway Suite 148, in Pineville since 2005.
Despite the “yet another Mexican restaurant” comments, Omar said they’ve gotten a lot of support from people they know and old schoolmates from Pineville High School who are happy for them. And that makes him happy. Omar graduated from Pineville High School in 2016 and LSUA in 2020. Johnathan graduated from PHS in 2017 and LSUA in 2021.
“You mean, it’s more than just a restaurant for us. We want our first restaurant to be here, where we grew up,” Omar said.
Because of their strong ties, they plan to stay here. Once the restaurant opens, they will run it themselves. They will not just open it quickly and then leave and let someone else run it.
“When we decided to open the restaurant, we wanted to make sure we had everything we wanted to offer,” he said.
Like good customer service.
“We want to be able to accept criticism. If someone has something to say to us, we want to accept it and try to fix it,” he said.
They are currently working on finding the right mix for margaritas and have just hired a full-time bartender.
“We will have very good margaritas. I know that for sure,” Omar said.
The restaurant will have a bar where guests can sit and order drinks or meals.
Some of the meals will include a little Southern culture.
“We mix lobster into some of our Mexican dishes,” he said, such as lobster dip and lobster quesadillas.
His mother, Melissa Barber Ayala, invented the crawfish dip when she ran the former El Parian Mexican Grille restaurant. The former building is now home to La Luna Mexican Grille.
“She told us, ‘You have to do this again,'” he said. “So my brother and I decided to put it on the menu. And if I remember correctly, when my mom ran the restaurant, people loved the crawfish queso.”
There are also traditional Mexican dishes and some specialties like Milanese de Pollo.
“I’ve never seen a place around here that serves this,” Omar said.
The furnishings are also striking.
“This is what we were most pleased about,” said Omar, pointing to one of the cabins. The black enamel headrest has a white crescent moon engraved between the words “La Luna.” There are two crescent moons in the upper corners, one on each side.
Johnathan has chosen art.
“It looks really good,” Omar said. “I told him so. I just thought, ‘Wow! They’re incredible.'”
The restaurant offers a mix of Mexican decor and therefore has something to suit every taste.
A large painting by the Mexican artist Frida Kahlo hangs on one wall.
“She is famous,” said Omar.
On another wall hangs a picture of a balcony scene with pink flowers and on another wall a picture of a village street.
When you enter the dining area, it’s hard to miss the two life-sized metal figures and large Dia de los Muertos prints.
“This is what they celebrate in Mexico. We celebrate Halloween. They celebrate the Day of the Dead,” Omar said.
Their father walked them through the process of opening a restaurant and explained what they needed to focus on. Omar and Johnathan had originally planned to open in April, but their father told them to take their time.
“If you’re not ready, you’re not ready. Don’t rush into anything. Take your time. Because once you’re open, you’re open,” Omar told them. “There’s no stopping you from closing the restaurant and doing something else.”
Opening day is approaching and they are just trying to get what needs to be done done.
“We want it to look really good. And so far it’s worked,” Omar said.
For more information, visit La Luna Mexican Grille’s Facebook page.
