Red Deer's stately McIntosh House is getting spicier with live music and Latin-American style foods.
The Sabor-Latino restaurant has been operating out of the historic Ross Street residence since May. Lunchtime guests are served tortillas, empanadas, tacos, burritos, flatbreads, charcuterie and other fare.
Local musicians have been creating some live music events at the house.
And from noon to 5 p.m. on every first Saturday of the month, a Latin food and artisan market sets up on the front lawn.
It's all part of an evolution since the property was purchased by Anna Solorzano in 2016.
The native Salvadoran, who was born in Mexico, is continuing to operate the Solorzano Spa at the house on 4631-50th St. But a cafe and wine bar she started turned into a full-service restaurant and was getting too much for her to run on her own.
Solorzano, therefore, brought in Sabor-Latino chef William Siliezar, to take over preparing the menu. Siliezar also runs a Sabor-Latino (which translates to Latin Flavour) catering service and food truck in the city.
The restaurant at McIntosh House is open every day for breakfast and lunch. Solorzano said evening special events are mostly scheduled on Fridays through Sundays, but the restaurant can open any night if people make advanced reservations.
The next scheduled musical event will be a performance by local folk-roots musician Mike Szabo on Aug. 23.
McIntosh House also has a couple of private bookings for a small wedding and a 65th birthday party, are also planned for August, said Solorzano.
The gabled brick house on Ross Street was built by Julius McIntosh, a Red Deer bricklayer, in 1906. Julius's grandfather Allen and great-grandfather John had helped develop the famous McIntosh apple in Ontario in 1811.
More recently, Solorzano noted that Apple's Macintosh computers were named for this apple. The computers are even emblazoned with an apple logo with a bite taken out — a tongue-in-cheek reference to gigabytes.
She thinks it's pretty cool that Red Deer's McIntosh House is loosely linked to these influential inventions, even as the property continues to evolve as a place of business.
"I love this house," said Solorzano, who first moved to Red Deer in 1993 (her family had first emigrated to Grande Prairie from Mexico in1990 but could find no employment there).
At that time, the central Alberta Latino community was very small. "Now there are so many I don't know them all," added the business owner, who is pleased to add to Red Deer's diverse South and Central American food and cultural offerings.
Someday, she even hopes this community can revive a Latino festival in the downtown.
