Subway Franchisee Mark Hernandez, in Los Alamitos, shares the story behind his Subway Restaurants and how it all began.
His parents, with his four brothers, plus himself and his one sister came to Southern California from Texas in 1969 – for a two-week vacation – and never went back.
“So, technically, we’re still on vacation,” he smiles, “We only had the clothes we were wearing and whatever we had in our car.”
Hernandez said that for three-months, he and his family lived in his mother’s cousin’s garage. “I was young; very young.”
After the first three-months, his parents found jobs and were then able to rent a house, where they lived for approximately the next year. “Then, my parents found a home in Santa Ana, which they purchased and we lived there for 28 years,” he said.
“My parents spoke Spanish, but I had to learn that here, as I had only wanted my mother to speak to me in English when I was younger; now I can speak both languages and speak to my Hispanic customers in Spanish – Spanish I learned here.”
In 1972, the Hernandez parents purchased a Mexican/Italian restaurant, also in Santa Ana.
“At the age of 7-years-old, I also worked in the restaurant. We attended a private school, where my dad would pick us up after school and take three to four of us boys and my sister to help out at the restaurant. After we did our homework on the restaurant’s preparation table in the back of the restaurant, we’d then help customers with whatever they needed.”
Hernandez shared that his specialty was making tacos. “I would make the taco shell in the hot grease and then put the ingredients inside of the taco shell and hand it up front to be given to the customers.”
The family did that for a few years until his parents sold the restaurant.
Fast-forward and he says he has now come full-circle – ending up back in the restaurant business. “It’s the circle of life.”
Hernandez said that the Subway, 10535 Los Alamitos Blvd., in Los Alamitos, was his first restaurant, where he’s been for four-years now.
“Before, that, I was involved with Subway at Corporate as a business consultant in Los Angeles County for eight years; from there, I came to Orange County and became a District Manager for the Development Agent of Subway; they are the people who purchase the areas for the different Subway restaurant locations.”
The person Hernandez was working for in Los Angeles, operated 21-restaurants at the time; Hernandez worked with him for seven-years and then was offered the Subway restaurant in Los Alamitos.
Hernandez has been in the restaurant business for more than 28-years; before Subway, he was also with Jamba Juice and one year ago, he also purchased the Subway in Buena Park at Valley View Street on Orangethorpe Avenue at 6122 Orangethorpe.
Both of Hernandez’s Subway Restaurants have recently been remodeled to look modern, bright, airy and more efficient.
Now, the menu board features numbered selections, which makes guests’ choices easier and it’s more efficient for staff as well, cutting down the wait time for orders to be delivered to the customers.
Once settled in Los Alamitos, Hernandez said he joined the Los Alamitos Chamber of Commerce and also got to know the people within the community; people from the Chamber, Los Alamitos High School and Police Chief Michael Claborn to show support for the police department and to be part of helping other people within the community; wanting to not only get involved but to give back to the community.
“I want to find out what the needs are in the community and how I can help,” he said. “What I get out of the Chamber is that it gives to me and I therefore want to give back and make myself available wherever I can.”
Hernandez said that for many people, their dream is to own their own business; “To me, this is ‘my’ dream.”
Both Subway restaurants offer dine-in, curbside pickup and no-contact delivery.
The Los Alamitos Subway restaurant may be reached at 562-430-9774 and the Buena Park location may be contacted at 657-239-0459
