Café resides at epicenter of Olmito's growth

From the window of his restaurant, Joe Barguiarena watches Olmito grow.

The owner of Joe B's Olmito Café started serving food eight months ago in what he calls "downtown Olmito"-a quiet, residential street less than a half mile from Highway 77.

Nearby, between thick patches of ash trees, signs advertise soon-to-be-built subdivisions with names like "Lago Vista" and "The View Tower."

But despite the unincorporated community's growth, Joe B's Olmito Café is one of the few local eateries. More than that, Barguiarena says, it's one of the community's only meeting places.

Police officers, church groups and boy scouts gather at the café for hours at a time. Once 50 motorcyclists pulled up for an impromptu gathering.

"It feels like this is my own kitchen," said Juan Longoria, a regular at the café. "Joe is always coming in to talk with customers, to keep us up on what's happening in Olmito. This is our place to gossip."

Longoria is one of the many customers who make up a mixed crowd at Joe B's.

"It's the kind of place where you might see six Mercedes' parked on one side of the café and six horses on the other," said Barguiarena.

The description could be applied more broadly to Olmito, where the per capita income was only $12,600 in 2005, but large houses tower over a resaca that ebbs in the center of the community.

One of the planned subdivisions advertises limousine service and the availability of a private jet for personal travel. But Barguiarena says he's not catering exclusively to the rich or poor.

"All types of people come in everyday," said waitress Brenda Gomez. "They talk about Hillary (Clinton) and (Barack) Obama, about the traffic, about what's happening in Olmito. The conversation changes everyday."

When the lunch crowd comes in, Barguiarena seems to know everyone. He greets patrons by their first names, kissing cheeks and shaking hands. Because Olmito is unincorporated, it has no mayor. Joe B. seems to have informally adopted the role.

"I run the restaurant like a politician would," he said. North of Brownsville, signs pointing in the direction of the café are as ubiquitous as any political advertisements.

After Joe B's Olmito Café closes at 3 p.m., community groups take over. Demand for a public space is so great in Olmito that the café is booked for after-hours meetings until May.

Even in its cuisine, which Barguiarena describes as "Olmito food," the restaurant is community-oriented. "Chiles rellenos, pollo en mole, menudo-these are the things people make in their homes around here."

On the walls, black and white photographs of old local buildings contribute to what he calls "a local history lesson." The old brick gas stations and taquerias have closed since the photos were taken in the 1950s. Some of the buildings were cleared to make room for newly bought subdivisions.

Barguiarena says that his customers are often getting offers to sell their homes to developers who have tracked Brownsville's northward growth.

But Joe B's Olmito Café-part coffee shop, part local landmark-isn't going anywhere. If anything, Barguiarena says, the question is whether the restaurant should expand.

"I want people to get off the highway. I want them to see what Olmito is really like," he said. "It might be changing quickly, but it's a great place to live. And it's a great place to grab a cup of coffee."