West New York has an array of delicious food to offer the Hudson County community — and many local joints have a great story at its core. One of the town’s most beloved restaurants, The SPOT Mix Grill, is a hidden gem that was started by two best friends who knew they would succeed together with a clear vision and solid bond. Keep reading to find out why The SPOT Mix Grill, located at 5310 Park Avenue, should be next on your list of must-try spots.
{Photo credit: @thespot_mixgrill}
How The SPOT Got Started
{Photo credit: @thespot_mixgrill}
Established in 2015, The SPOT Mix Grill {known as The SPOT for short} was opened by West New York natives Manuel Valerio and Felix Sacerio. The two friends met at Memorial High School where they both played for the football team {go Tigers!} and after high school, they knew they wanted to leave behind a legacy in West New York.
“We were presented with an opportunity in our hometown and we had to seize the moment,” said Manny. “With Felix’s experience in the restaurant industry and my love for the kitchen, as well as his banking industry insights — it was a winning formula.”
The two friends enjoy spending time together outside of work rooting for their favorite football team, the Baltimore Ravens, and with their lovely families {Felix welcomed a baby girl in April 2020}.
Read More: A Guide to Cuban Restaurants in Union City + West New York
The Experience
{Photo credit: @thespot_mixgrill}
The SPOT’s cozy and intimate design is something that locals have always enjoyed about the restaurant. Students from nearby schools grab lunch on a daily basis {pre-pandemic saw The SPOT always full of people} as well as faculty.
The decor is very distinctive and emulates Memorial High School’s Tigers mascot colors — orange, black, and white. There’s also another significance to the owner’s decision to go with the bright orange hue. “The color orange is our way of enlightening the spirit of every customer,” Manny says. “Scientifically, the color orange is associated with, and embraces creativity, warmth, happiness, success, and freedom.”
The owners of The SPOT have a specific goal when it comes to the mission: to connect with the community. “We love to truly get to know our customers. We treat every customer as if it was the first time we service them. We are nothing without our customer fan base and every employee we train is instilled with this mentality — it is part of our company culture.”
The Menu
{Photo credit: @thespot_mixgrill}
The restaurant’s menu is not extensive, but is packed with tasty dishes that include breakfast, lunch, and drinks sections.“Our menu is small purposely,” Manny says. “Our mission is to bring out the best flavors of every menu item, hence, it is why our customers tend to try it all.” Some customer favorites include the Mix Platter which comes with yellow rice, lettuce, pita bread, and your choice of protein, as well as the Giant Steak Sandwich. The fruit smoothies are delicious and the Horchata Frappe is the perfect sweet treat. Order your next meal on The SPOT’s website.
Dealing with COVID
{Photo credit: @thespot_mixgrill}
Like many other businesses this year, The SPOT has made some adjustments in order to cater to the continuously changing protocols. “We have had to assure our employees and customers that the SPOT is a safe and healthy environment,” said Manny. “By doing so, we have been able to stay in business and it amplified our delivery/takeout business. Due to this shift, we have had to change the way we are set up since people prefer to take the food home or order delivery via UberEats, Grubhub, and DoorDash which are platforms we participate in.”
See More: Dos Amigos: Delicious, No-Frills Food in West New York
2020 did bring a positive addition to the business when the owners decided to host the first annual Spot 7 days of Giveaways which saw winners taking home a Nintendo Switch, free meals, a Powerbeats Pro, an iPad, and much more. “It really makes us happy to know that we were able to give back during these horrific times and spread holiday cheer despite it all.”
The Future of The SPOT Mix Grill
The owners were recently able to open a new location at 1711 Summit Avenue in Union City with plans to continue expanding. “There has been a lot of interest expressed in the past few months and franchise opportunities will be available in the future.”
The original West New York location will soon be revamped sometime later this year. “We plan to enlarge our griddle size by 2 and output food much faster. It is time we reinvest into the location that made our dreams come true!”
Follow along The SPOT’s Instagram account to stay up-to-date on all of the news!
