It was very sad to see the news this morning about El Rey. We’ve enjoyed so many meals with family and friends in this Pauma Valley restaurant at the base of the mountain.
A gal by the name of Peg Henry owned the building in the mid 1970’s when we first lived on Palomar. It was much different then, catering to grove workers and could get pretty rowdy. One day Servando “Van” Cueva stopped in for a cup of coffee. He told us the dishwasher hadn’t shown up so he volunteered to pitch in. With his friendly smile, and strong work ethic, he scrubbed those dishes, worked his way up and eventually got his US citizenship. That opened even more doors and Peg made him the manager. Van was able to buy the store next door, then when Peg retired, he acquired the restaurant.
Van had the vision to turn the restaurant into a family friendly, very popular destination for Mexican food. He was often there, greeting folks at their tables. He knew so many people by name and when he would stop at our table, I would usually ask him to share how he came be the owner. It is such a great story of the opportunity available for hard working people to build a successful business in America. He eventually purchased the entire strip mall.
When telling the story, at this point, he would laugh and say “now I’m back to washing dishes”.
So many of us will miss lingering after a delicious meal, in front of the wood burning fireplace or enjoying the beautiful fountain out on the patio.
Our hearts go out to Van, his family, all the employees and folks impacted by the fire this morning.
Bonnie Phelps
Palomar Mountain News 
This is very sad! We had so many good memories and nice meals at El Rey since 2008 when we first started our Camp and Cabin on the Bailey’s Mountain Resort property. Dinners with mountain friends, dinners on the patio with our little dog next to the fountain on the way back home from weekends at the cabin. After we lost our cabin we still stopped by for lunches on some Saturdays on our way to our new Camp in the Julian mountains. So sorry for Van and Family for their loss and we will miss El Rey. It was a special place to us.
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By: Andi Babcock on September 26, 2023
at 7:17 pm
We are in disbelief & very saddened that our favorite Mexican restaurant, El Rey, is gone. We will miss our traditional stop there en route to the mountain. It holds fond memories of delicious traditional Mexican food with the friendliest service, always welcoming us, along with our late pet dog, Sheba. T & V
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By: Vicki & Travis on September 23, 2023
at 10:43 pm