DENVER — Mezcal, a Mexican restaurant on Colfax Avenue in Denver, has gained a reputation from its customers for having good food and even better cocktails.
"They have great tequilas. The food is great. Great atmosphere," Rosa Chavez, a regular, said as she sat at the bar. "It's like my second home."
And what could feel more like home in a Mexican bar than a night en Español?
"We're here to speak Spanish," Chavez said in Spanish. "I moved here from Los Angeles and there would be weeks in which I didn’t speak Spanish. I wanted to speak Spanish. I found this group that allowed me to speak and practice [Spanish] and also meet people."
Every week, a table at Mezcal is reserved for the Spanish-speaking happy hour. The meetup, called "Tacos, Tequila and Talking," has been going on for nine years. Chavez has hosted it for six of them. Anyone on any Spanish-speaking level can join.
"Last week we had about 26 people," she said. "From beginners to native speakers, so many people come because they want to learn to speak Spanish or learn Spanish, get better or just to practice."
Practice is what Debbie Eliezer was looking for. The American moved back to the States from Costa Rica about three months ago. She knows between the libations, there are lessons.
"I speak very 'gringo' [Spanish] very well," she joked. "It is a goal of mine to speak Spanish one day. When I travel to other countries, people speak, one, two, three languages, and here many people speak just one."
Omar Angola, a native Spanish speaker, shared that sentiment. He said he has been coming to this happy hour for about seven years.
"One of the things that most surprised me about the meetups in Spanish was the amount of Americans wanting to speak Spanish," Angola said. "For me it was like a revelation. There was the belief that Americans aren’t interested in speaking Spanish. It definitely felt like they loved that language more than I did."
Angola said this group has become more of a family to him. While newcomers of all different language levels come every week, a solid number of people have been coming for years.
"Rosa and I have even spent Christmas together with other people from the group," he said. "Speaking from my own experience, we’ve accomplished creating meaningful connections, friendships, relationships that have grown over the past seven years."
Different languages don't necessarily mean different people. Angola said this meetup has allowed him to turn what was once a barrier into a bond.
"This might sound cliché, but when you take away the culture and religion, at the end of the day, human beings are all very similar," Angola said. "Honestly, most of the time when we’re fighting against other humans it’s due to simple barriers."
"I constantly meet new people because every week there’s someone new who comes, and I like meeting new people," Chavez said. "Since I don’t have family here -- my family is in California -- it’s kind of like having a family, and since they all speak Spanish, it feels more like family."
Spanish Speaking Happy Hour is every Thursday. Anyone on any Spanish-speaking level can join. People are encouraged to RSVP if they plan to attend.
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