FORT WORTH, Texas — In Fort Worth, there's a Mexican restaurant that’s popular for its wide variety of specialty enchiladas, and while there are a lot of good Mexican food options all over North Texas and beyond, this restaurant is attracting a different kind of foodie — one with feathers.

Co-owner of Enchiladas Olé Mary Vasquez is the kind of business owner who’s very proud of what she has to offer. The slogan for her two Fort Worth locations is "Mexican Done Right."

“People love our food because we make it the way I remember making enchiladas with my mother. We’re the real deal,” said Vasquez.

She knows what it takes to keep her customers coming back with the constant fresh rice, beans and sauces made daily.

“We might do between 20 and 30 skillets of rice all day long; your rice and beans have to be good,” said Vasquez as she tended to a large skillet of sizzling rice. 

She’s known as the "Saucy Lady." She started her business selling jars of her homemade enchilada sauce from the trunk of her car more than a decade ago. Now, two restaurants later, she has a fan base.

“I lived in Mexico for a summer and it’s the closest thing to Oaxaca Mole I’ve ever tasted here in the United States,” said one of her customers.

It’s that love for good food that has her up and coming with her sauces. She’s now on Walmart shelves and has dreams of one day becoming a national brand. Currently, she has interest from the U.S. military to become a supplier to commissaries across the country.

In addition to all of her success, including thriving during the pandemic, she's known for her generosity. 

“She has that spirit in her,” said her husband Manny Vasquez. “She wants to give back to the community. She wants to give to everything she could possibly give, and this bird is just another sign that she had that touch.” 

On a hot day in June, Mary Vasquez found a small sparrow on the ground outside the restaurant, dehydrated and near death. She acted fast. As a lover of birds, this wasn’t her first rescue.

“I took him in our bathroom and had him drink some water, and I put water all over him, and he came back to life!” said Mary Vasquez. “As I was holding on to him, his little tail came off, so that’s how we know him because he has no tail. That’s the name we’ve given him, No-Tail.” 

Almost a month later, No-Tail comes to visit on a daily basis and responds to the tweets Vasquez calls out. 

“He recognizes my voice,” she said. “It’s so cute. He comes and has breakfast with me. We all want to belong to somebody or somewhere or with someone.” 

As Mary Vasquez speaks about the bird, it’s clear she’s a romantic. She’s a self-proclaimed "lover" and goes out of her way to make her customers feel that love with her hospitality.

“Cancer patients, widows and widowers, military, first responders, police officers - they all eat here for free,” boasted Mary Vasquez.

It’s a business model she and her staff have practiced since the opening of her North Richland Hills location in 2013, and now she’s added birds to that list. 

Piles of bird seed can be seen scattered around the outside dining area of her Fort Worth location where No-Tail can be found. 

“Whether she’s feeding people or birds, to know her is to know her huge heart,” said Manny Vasquez.

They’d known each other for decades, but only in passing. Their romance wasn’t sparked until 2020 when Manny started to pursue Mary during the height of the pandemic, and they moved fast. They were engaged and married within a year.

They’d both been previously married and knew what they wanted.

“We didn’t even date. I told him I’m not a dater. You have to marry me or bye!” said Mary Vasquez with a sassy eye-roll. “I’m just not a dater, so it was more like courting.”

The couple now has plans to open a Spanish-style Paella bar next year in downtown Fort Worth.

Mary Vasquez said the stress from the pandemic was their year to realize how short and valuable time is, and this little bird reminds her of that.

“This year, birds have played a big part in our love story,” she said. “I don’t know if it's a sign from God or my mother, or whatever you want to believe in, but I feel like there’s some significance there. There’s a peace about birds. Whatever meaning, it makes me feel good, it makes my soul feel good.”  
   
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Share your ideas with DFW human interest reporter Lupe Zapata: Lupe.Zapata@Charter.com