HIGHLANDS - There are not many restaurants in New Jersey that can testify to the fact that they are a favorite of rock legend Bruce Springsteen the way Chilangos in Highlands can.

“I came into contact with Bruce’s personal chef, Jacob Varela, after a chance meeting in my restaurant in 2000,” said Leo Cervantes, owner of the Mexican restaurant. “Jacob invited me to his birthday party where Bruce would make an appearance. I met him and he told me that he was starting a tequila collection. He liked the selection I had in my restaurant and was very impressed with the types that I carried at that time.

“Not long afterwards, Bruce decided to throw a party at my restaurant for my employees and I,” Cervantes said. “Bruce and his wife Patti showed up to the party and told me how much they loved the food. After talking with Bruce extensively about my own life story, he told me that my journey was the true definition of the American dream. Since then, we have been good friends and he continues to browse my tequila collection, which includes almost 300 different types.”

Cervantes' American dream started on the outskirts of Mexico City. It was not an easy experience.

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“We grew up poor and our neighborhood was very rough,” Cervantes said. “We would walk to school everyday with torn shoes, which was very hard for my siblings and I. Fortunately, my mother, who is my hero, strived everyday to make a better life for our family, no matter what it took.

“She was hard working and very positive, so she started out making clothes for me and my brothers and sisters,” Cervantes said. “Afterwards, for the most part, we had nice clothes to wear and she kept doing that for a while just to take care of us.”

Cervantes began working for himself at a very young age to help support his family.

“We did a little of everything,” Cervantes said. “We washed cars, worked with mechanics and things like that. I even had my hand in plumbing for a little while. We started with practically nothing, as far as our living space went, and we built our house from the ground up. It took some time, but we were happy once everything was done.”

At one point, Cervantes’ mother, Abigail, took it upon herself to open a convenience store and had a couple of different locations.

“We started a little store in Mexico,” Cervantes said. “My mother had a friend who initially opened the stores, but because she was good friends with my mother, she told my mother that she would help her by having her run these stores. Even though we were really young at the time, we helped out in the stores and it kept us out of trouble.

“As my siblings and I grew up and eventually moved to the United States, my mother began to close the stores, as she had no concrete reason for keeping them open, other than to provide for myself and the rest of our family,” Cervantes said. “I am the baby of the family, so when I was old enough to go out on my own, my mother closed down the last store and had enough money to live on her own.”

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Dishwasher in Asbury Park

At age 19, Cervantes came to the United States and lived in Asbury Park. He got a dishwashing job at The Cypress Inn in the Wanamassa section of Ocean Township and would bicycle back and forth.

“I remember my first day there,” Cervantes said. “As soon as I got to the kitchen, I saw how hectic and fast-paced everything was and I was instantly right at home. I really loved the atmosphere. I saw the chefs screaming and yelling and sweating. I knew it was definitely for me. I am a hyper guy.

“As I worked there day after day, I got better at the job and my boss began to notice my work ethic,” Cervantes said. “He told me that he wanted me to make more money, so he gave me a job as a bus boy. I told him I didn’t speak English at the time, but he told me that I would learn.”

Cervantes worked his way up. “Some of my co-workers had originally coached me little by little on learning English, once I got to the kitchen,” Cervantes said. “I would go on to have an issue at my job that would change my experiences with speaking English forever. My English was still a little rough around the edges at the time, even though my early experiences included me listening to the Beatles as a kid and reading the lyrics on the back of the inside packaging.

“It was one day when I was running errands for my boss at The Cyprus Inn that really got me serious,” Cervantes said. "I was told to go to a local supply store and pick something up for my job. I basically botched that errand and totally picked up the wrong item because of a lack of understanding. When everyone saw the mistake I made, they were laughing and thought it was funny. After that, I straightened up my approach to knowing how to speak English and vowed to never let something like that happen again.”

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Starting Chilangos

After The Cypress Inn closed, Cervantes started working at the Shadowbrook Restaurant in Shrewsbury. Cervantes started as a cook and moved up to a chef after he worked hard and got along well with his boss.

“Even though I did great work at Shadowbrook, I got together with my brother and we decided to open up our own restaurant in Long Branch, which would serve as the first location for Chilangos Restaurant,” Cervantes said. “After a year, my brother decided to call it quits and go off on his own, while I continued to work at Shadowbrook and operate Chilangos Restaurant.

“I eventually got a letter from a Realtor about a business opportunity in Highlands for a restaurant for a large sum of money,” Cervantes said. “Although I did not have that amount of money, I was eligible for a loan and I applied for it. I was successful with the loan and I ended up quitting Shadowbrook and leaving my original location that was Chilangos. I gave the business to a friend of mine, who ran it for four years before ultimately selling it, so I could focus on the Highlands location a thousand percent.”

Since opening his Highlands location in 2001, Cervantes couldn’t be happier.

“I have worked so hard to be where I am now and everything that I have ever dreamed of has come true with this business,” Cervantes said. “I started from the bottom and worked my way right to the top, but I couldn’t have done it without all the love and support from my family and friends over the years. I couldn’t have imagined what has been made possible through all of the relationships I have formed and great people I have met. It’s been a team effort right from the beginning and I couldn’t have done it alone.”

Cervantes prides himself on the quality and variety of the food he serves.

“Although the food is all Mexican, we still like to be different,” Cervantes said. “When you come here, you are going to find certain ingredients that really stick out, compared to other places. Some of our most notable dishes come right from my mother’s recipe and we make is interesting. With our cuisine, you will find a lot of stuff not typically found in other Mexican restaurants.”

Cervantes does not plan to go anywhere anytime soon.

“My mom recently asked me how long I plan to keep Chilangos around,” Cervantes said.  I told her that I feel like a boxer going all thirteen rounds in the ring.  I basically said I do it for the passion, just like a fighter, and I am a fighter that never gives up.”

Chilangos

Owner: Leo Cervantes

Location: 272 Bay Ave., Highlands

Phone: 732-708-0505

Website: www.chilangosnj.com

Hours: 4 to 10 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays; noon to 10 p.m. Fridays through Sundays

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Chilangos in Highlands NJ: American dream in Mexican restaurant