Armando Hernandez will soon expand his food and beverage empire. Later this month, the taco trailblazer will take possession of the Oro Brewing Company space in downtown Mesa, where he plans to launch a microbrewery and taproom called Mesa Brewing Company.
With his wife and business partner, Nadia Holguin, Hernandez is the founding owner of Tacos Chiwas (currently with three Valley locations, including Sky Harbor), along with Cocina Chiwas, Espiritu and Main Burgers. He tells PHOENIX the brewery will supply his own style of beer to each of his restaurants within a couple of weeks.
“We have an ambitious timeline,” Hernandez says. “We’ll start brewing as soon as possible and the goal is to open [to the public] middle of February or early March.”
He says brewing will be a collaboration with Downtown Mesa neighbor Cider Corps and one of their brewers, Andrew Ortega, who won multiple Arizona Craft Beer Awards medals during his time at Uncle Bear’s Brewery. Customers can expect a tap rotation of seasonals, one-offs, three to four mainstays and mostly Mexican-style lagers.
Hernandez also plans to modify the taproom to include more TVs and have a more sports-oriented motif. He’s buying the space from Dave Valencia, the Oro Brewing Co. owner who’s been there since 2016.
“I have a lot of respect for Dave,” Hernandez says. “He saw what Downtown Mesa could be and we love this whole corridor, obviously since this will be our fourth concept on Main Street.”
Oro’s final day of taproom service is January 25.
