Family and freshness comprise the main ingredients in the chain of nine Senor Taco restaurants, two operating in Fountain Hills.

A cover photograph and in-depth interview with Reynaldo (Ray) Ruiz, founder and main promoter for Senor Taco’s success, appear in the current issue of Ser Latino, a magazine showcasing Latino culture.

Franklin Jauregui wrote the article after visiting Senor Taco’s Chandler location, where he sampled “Tacos de Carnitas” and a plate of Chile Verde, “which left us astonished,” he wrote. “Delicious Mexican food is what we tasted.”

Ruiz explained in the interview the origin of the Arizona restaurants after his relatives introduced “Cotijas Mexican Food” to San Diego in the mid-1970s.

Ruiz opened his Fountain Hills restaurant in 2000, emphasizing faith, honesty and integrity. The business has expanded to nine locations with a soon-to-open restaurant in Apache Junction.

Every Senor Taco restaurant is operated by a “trusted relative, who remains by textbook on all our quality guidelines, uses the best products and is personally responsible for all our staff and that they will give first class service to all our customers,” Ruiz said in the interview.

“The most important quality is that we try to preserve the richness of our original kitchen, rescue our traditional meals, not to lose our authenticity, and what better way to do it than with family?”

His cousin, Juan Gonzalez, oversees the Senor Taco on Shea Boulevard and Fountain Hills Boulevard. Juan’s brother, Rodrigo, assists him at the Fountain Hills Boulevard location.

To Juan, the magazine’s attention represents “what I have created in town. If not for them (his relatives), I would not be here today.”

The article reflects the origin of Senor Taco and its expansion, said Gonzalez.

Why does Ruiz believe the Senor Taco chain remains successful?

“Mainly because we keep our food as traditional as possible,” said Ruiz.

“While it is more tedious and more laborious than in other kitchens, we

don’t neglect the quality, taste and presentation.”

Food in all locations retains the same flavor and quality. “We have a recipe journal with procedures.”

Most popular dishes are the variety of burritos, green chile, carnitas and shrimp.

More than 54,000 Mexican-cuisine restaurants operate in the United States as of 2014. Mexican cuisine ranks third in popularity in the country, according to Excellence in Global Foodservice Information.

Customers are mostly Americans but more recently, Ruiz said, the restaurants are serving the Mexican public who seek authentic food.