If you’re looking for a place that serves authentic breakfast and street-style tacos in Austin, Texas, you’d be hard-pressed to find a restaurant better than Vaquero Taquero, owned and operated by brothers Miguel and Daniel Cobos. The duo, who are from Edinburg, Texas, near the U.S.-Mexico border, started selling their tacos from a modified paleta pushcart in 2016 and then a food truck a year later. Since then, business has been going so well, the Cobos brothers expanded their taco empire into two restaurants.
The inspiration to start Vaquero Taquero six years ago stemmed from a simple reason. The brothers didn’t think the taco options in their city were sufficient for one that had such a burgeoning culinary industry. So, they did something about it.
“We came into this with the passion of making food and to build on family traditions,” Miguel, 32, said. “People who do that end up producing quality products because they went into it for the right reasons.”
There are plenty of tacos to choose from on Vaquero Taquero’s menu, and all of them are served on homemade corn or flour tortillas. The Trompo Al Pastor taco comes with flame-seared marinated pork topped with cilantro, onion, salsa verde, fresh avocado cream and pineapple slices. The Tinga de Pollo taco comes with chipotle-marinated shredded chicken dressed with cilantro, purple limed-onions and crema.
Being connected to their customers, wherever they are, allows them to read raving reviews that let them know which tacos are their customers’ favorites, and keeps them coming back for one more.
In 2020, Bon Appétit magazine gave Vaquero Taquero a “highly recommended” rating. The Cobos brothers also made an appearance on the eighth season of the TV reality series Man v. Food on the Cooking Channel. During their episode, the brothers served host Casey Webb six tacos covered in a ghost pepper salsa.
Aside from his work at Vaquero Taquero, Miguel is an account manager at a tech company. He also has a side hustle where he repairs rock climbing shoes with recycled materials.
“It’s a challenge because you have all these high expectations of getting things accomplished,” Miguel said. “I’m always trying to juggle things. But at the end of the day, you feel like you’re doing the right thing, and your life has meaning.”
Below are a few tips from the Cobos brothers about their business philosophy, and how they have been successful jefes of Vaquero Taquero. They also share what it’s like working alongside a member of the family and how they support each other through everything.
1. Starting a Business for the Right Reasons
The last word the Cobos brothers would use to describe themselves is “businessmen.” They both understand that making a profit with Taquero Vaquero is a critical aspect of what it means to run a business, but it’s not the only important thing to consider. “Of course, we live under capitalism, and making money is a big factor, but another strong factor about being a good businessman is to do things that actually matter,” Miguel said. “Being a good businessman means making things that are good quality because that matters, not just because you want to make money.”
2. Motivating While Managing
As a manager, it’s easy enough to tell employees what they need to do to make the business successful. Everyone wants the people who work for them to be good at their jobs. On that note, however, being a good manager also means motivating the people on your team and not just doling out responsibilities. “I like to tell [my employees] that they are good at what they do,” Daniel, 36, said. “Instead of just managing people, I want to motivate them. I feel like [an employee] will do good when they feel appreciated.”
3. Multitasking with Your Phone
Daniel admits that he hopes for the best and prepares for the worst every time his phone rings. “If someone is calling me at 5:30 a.m., I think it’s a call that is going to ruin my day,” he said laughing. “Something always goes wrong.” But Daniel said that he would rather know as early as possible, for example, if someone forgot to order chorizo for the week, rather than find out about it later. So, he’s always “attached” to his phone. The same goes for Miguel. Multitasking on his phone daily is inevitable, especially since he’s in charge of social media outreach. Having a strong connection through a reliable network like Cricket Wireless is key to the Cobo brothers’ success. “There’s always messages that I have to reply to,” Miguel said. “We want to be reachable, not automated. My phone allows me to connect to staff and to the customers and to build our story by posting content and photos.”
4. Connecting with Customers
Miguel and Daniel said that most of their new customers come to Vaquero Taquero based on recommendations from other people. This word-of-mouth marketing is key to their success, but it’s not the only way they connect to the public. They also rely on their social media platforms to reach out to audiences. “It all comes down to human connection,” Miguel said, adding that their messaging doesn’t always have to be about tacos. “If there is a social or political issue, we’ll speak about it a little without any fear of repercussions. It’s like when you’re drinking a beer with someone, you talk about these things. It’s an element of just being who you are. It makes you approachable.”
5. Practicing Conflict Resolution
Miguel and Daniel admit that it’s sometimes difficult to work so closely with one another on business issues, especially since they have such different personalities. They have their conflicts but are always able to resolve them by talking them out. Together, they make a good team. “Without Daniel, we wouldn’t have the quality of food we have,” Miguel said. “Without me, we wouldn’t have the finances we need to do that.” If anything, the conflict that the brothers might experience with one another makes their relationship stronger because it builds trust. “I know that Daniel will never give up on this business, and he knows I won’t ever give up either,” Miguel said. “We always come together to make things happen.” Plus, the Cobos joke, it’s helped that they’ve never gotten into a physical fight with one another. “We’ve never punched each other in the face,” Miguel said laughing. “So, that’s always a good thing.”
Sideconomics is a Remezcla initiative presented by Cricket Wireless that offers valuable insight and advice from successful Latine entrepreneurs who transformed their side jobs into sustainable main gigs. Cricket’s reliable network connects customers to their passion projects and support systems to help the Latine creator community thrive.
