Tex-Mex Makeover

Q. So you dropped that and went Tex-Mex?

A. Like many restaurants, we're trying to accommodate our clientele. In this case, it's meant shifting to a more Tex-Mex-y menu.

Q. What's behind the name change?

A. Well, I had to tear down the sign out front to make room for our wonderful new patio, so I thought that's as good a time as any to change the name.

Q. Yes, but why change the name at all?

A. Oh, I see. Because the restaurant itself has changed, and that's a way to let people know that. We're still Sabor, but not exactly the Sabor that Sabor was when Sabor first opened, so I changed it to 1308 Cantina. That's our address, you know -- 1308 Montrose.

Q. Didn't it change from Sabor to "Jon Paul's Sabor" first?

A. That only lasted about eight hours. We were just playing around, amusing ourselves.

Q. But the name change to 1308 Cantina comes with new partners, too? The Laurenzo family?

A. Dominic Laurenzo is the executive chef now, yes.

Q. Just Dominic individually? Or the whole Laurenzo operation -- Roland and Joey and Jack?

A. Well, the family, I guess.

Q. How'd that come about?

A. They used to come here to eat, and we'd chitchat about the business. They're very experienced with the Tex-Mex scene, and we wanted to change in that direction, so boom-boom-boom one thing led to another.

Q. And Sabor has become another El Tiempo?

A. I wouldn't say that. This is still my restaurant.

Q. Your restaurant with the Laurenzos?

A. They're hardly ever here. Mostly it's just Dominic, in the kitchen.

Q. But this seems a whole lot like an El Tiempo Cantina. You have that same creamy tomatillo salsa that came from Ninfa Laurenzo. And you're using those little metal grills that are an El Tiempo signature. What do you call those, anyway?

A. I call them...um, little metal grills.