OUR STORY

Our Story

I never really planned on owning a restaurant in San Miguel de Allende.

Actually, I’m not sure I ever really planned on owning a restaurant at all.

But apparently life had other plans for me. And honestly, looking back, I’m not sure I would have believed you if you told me what the next few years were going to look like.

My name is Keli Silveyra, and together with my husband, Ruben, we built Silveyra’s from the ground up.

Ruben is from Veracruz, Mexico. I’m from the United States. Between the two of us, we somehow created a restaurant that feels a little bit like both worlds — Mexican, American, family-style, comfortable, casual, and most importantly, welcoming.

But getting here was anything but easy.

In 2019, Ruben was deported from the United States.

That was one of those moments where life basically says, “Okay, let's see what you're made of.”

It changed everything.

We had to figure out what our family was going to look like, where we were going to live, how we were going to make a living, and what the hell we were going to do next.

So I came to Mexico.

And eventually, somehow, the idea of opening a restaurant started becoming a reality.

We started Silveyra’s in January of 2020.

And then, because apparently we didn't have enough going on, a worldwide pandemic showed up.

😂

Seriously.

Who opens a restaurant in January and then gets hit with COVID a couple of months later?

Apparently, we do.

Starting a restaurant is hard enough without adding deportation, moving countries, a pandemic, and all the other curveballs life decided to throw at us.

But we kept going.

We worked. We cooked. We served. We cleaned. We learned. We made mistakes. We fixed them. We probably made some new ones.

There were good days, terrible days, and plenty of days when we wondered what the hell we were doing.

But quitting was never really an option.

Eventually, Silveyra’s became much more than a restaurant.

It became a comfortable gathering place where people came to eat, drink, listen to live music, dance, celebrate birthdays, meet friends, bring their families, watch sporting events, and sometimes just sit at the bar and talk to somebody.

We started small, with our family, our own plates, our own table, and a whole lot of faith.

Then came more adversity.

We lost locations.

Not once.

Not twice.

We eventually found ourselves opening Silveyra’s for the **fourth time.**

Every time we had to leave a place, it hurt.

Those weren't just buildings.

They were years of work, money, sweat, tears, arguments, laughter, sleepless nights, broken things, fixed things, good memories and probably way too much caffeine.

We poured everything we had into those places.

So yes, losing them felt like losing a piece of our home.

But here's the part I don't think we'll ever forget.

People showed up for us.

Friends. Customers. People we barely knew. Members of the San Miguel community.

People shared our story. People helped us financially. People checked on us. People encouraged us. People told us not to give up.

And some people literally helped keep us alive as a business when we weren't sure we could do it ourselves.

That meant more to us than I can ever really explain.

And somehow, after everything, here we are.

**Zacateros #41.**

Silveyra’s is still standing.

And honestly?

I think this is the best version of us yet.

This location gave us things we didn't have before, including the ability to offer liquor. That opened up an entirely new side of Silveyra’s.

Now we can offer the whole experience — good food, drinks, live music, dancing, sporting events, parties, our terraza, our two bars, and a place where people can actually hang out and enjoy themselves.

Today, Silveyra’s is not just about food.

Yes, we have a ridiculous amount of food. 😂

We make it from scratch, we serve big portions, and we try to keep our prices reasonable because we know what it feels like to work hard for your money.

But food is only part of what we do.

We have music.

We have dancing.

We have sporting events.

We have parties.

We have fundraisers.

We have our terraza.

We have two bars.

And we have people from San Miguel sitting next to people from all over the world.

We also try to give back whenever we can.

If a local family needs help, a school needs something, an organization is raising money, or somebody in our community is going through a difficult time, we try to find a way to help.

We don't always have a lot to give.

But we've learned that you don't have to have a lot to make a difference.

Sometimes you just have to be willing to open your doors.

And we have.

All of our children have worked with us, and some of them still do.

We also have employees who have stayed with us through the moves, the closings, the uncertainty and the chaos.

They aren't just employees.

They're part of our story.

And then there are our customers.

Some started as customers and somehow became friends.

Some became family.

Some have been with us through every location.

Some have watched us lose everything and somehow start again.

Those relationships are the part of owning a restaurant nobody really tells you about.

I never wanted Silveyra’s to be one of those places where you walk in, eat your food, pay your bill and leave.

I wanted people to feel like they belonged here.

Maybe you come in for dinner and end up dancing.

Maybe you come for the live music and discover your new favorite meal.

Maybe you come to watch a game and stay for another drink.

Maybe you come by yourself and leave having made three new friends.

Maybe you're a regular and everybody already knows your name.

Or maybe it's your first time here.

Either way, Bienvenidos 

Our terraza and dining spaces have become places for birthdays, family gatherings, celebrations, work events, live music, parties and all kinds of special occasions.

And then there's the view.

You can sit on the terraza, look toward the Parroquia, have a drink, eat some good food, listen to music and watch San Miguel doing what San Miguel does.

Sometimes I actually have to stop and think about how crazy it is that we're here.

Because there were plenty of times when I didn't know if we'd make it.

There were times when I was angry.

Times when I was exhausted.

Times when I cried.

Times when I wanted to throw my hands in the air and say, “Okay, that's enough. I'm done.”

And then I'd get up the next morning and go back to work.

Because apparently I'm stubborn as hell.

😂

This restaurant has survived deportation, moving countries, a pandemic, losing locations, financial struggles, uncertainty, bureaucracy, heartbreak and more than a few moments where we seriously questioned our life choices.

But every time something knocked us down, we got back up.

Sometimes bruised.

Sometimes broke.

Sometimes completely freaking exhausted.

But we got back up.

So when you walk through the doors at Silveyra’s, you're not just walking into a restaurant.

You're walking into years of hard work, mistakes, laughter, heartbreak, friendships, crazy nights, good food, live music, sporting events, fundraisers, parties, beautiful views, family, community and a whole lot of stubbornness.

You're walking into something Ruben and I built with our own hands, alongside our children, our employees, our friends and the people who believed in us when we weren't sure we believed in ourselves.

And we're still building it.

We're still figuring it out.

We're still making mistakes.

We're still laughing.

We're still working way too much.

And we're still here.

**That's Silveyra's.**

**Our story isn't finished yet.**