News
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
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El Cocinero
offers extensive
Mexican menu
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
PRAIRIE CITY — Fer-
nando Leal is back in busi-
ness, running El Cocinero
Restaurant in Prairie City.
Leal is “El Cocinero” —
Spanish words that translate
to “the cook.”
He’s been cooking in restau-
rants for 20 years, whipping up
a wide variety of dishes.
He opened El Cocinero in
John Day in 2006, and after
the city of John Day bought
the property where his restau-
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station, he closed down and
moved out of the area for a
time.
Leal found the new lo-
cation in Prairie City when
another Mexican restaurant
switched locations.
The building was also once
El Cocinero is a family restaurant in Prairie City
with a Mexican flair.
Eagle photos/Angel Carpenter
Fernando Leal of El Cocinero in Prairie City serves a customer a crispy taco
salad on Jan. 11.
home to the Branding Iron
Restaurant and Lounge, and
still features the familiar brands
from local ranchers, along with
Latin American decor.
The El Cocinero menu has
remained the same, and there
are still daily specials.
Customer favorites include
macho burritos, molé enchi-
ladas and crazy chicken, Leal
said.
Other menu items include
chimichangas, carne asada,
fajitas, tostadas, tamales,
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selections, as well as Mexican
desserts.
If a customer prefers, Leal
also has hamburgers and
steaks available.
Leal said he enjoys ev-
ery aspect of the restaurant
business: cooking, serving
customers and cleaning the
dishes.
He still has a sombrero for
birthday celebrations.
“I like it when people
choose my restaurant for their
birthday — I’ll sing ‘Happy
Birthday’ to them,” he said.
“Business is good, so far,”
Leal said, adding the pace is
busier with a bar at the back
of the family restaurant.
“I appreciate everyone’s
support of the business,” Leal
said.
El Cocinero is open from
11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Mondays
through Saturdays, at 137 W.
Front St. in Prairie City. For
more information, call the
restaurant at 541-820-4414.
TOWN
Continued from Page A1
City Recorder Corry Rid-
er, whose office is across
the street, said, “We have an
outrageous park.”
Rider doesn’t live in Can-
yon City, but said, “I defi-
nitely feel like I’m part of
the city.”
“It’s a great place to
work, with a great coun-
cil and great people,” he
said.
Canyon City’s biggest
annual gala is the ’62 Days
Celebration in June com-
memorating the discovery of
gold in 1862.
The celebration includes
the Gold Rush Run and Walk
and McKalee’s Walk and
Jog. Organized by the Whis-
key Gulch Gang, ’62 Days
has been held every year
since 1922.
Other events in recent
years have included the Ore-
gon State Cowboy Fast Draw
Championships, which will
be held this year the first
The Eagle/Cheryl Hoefler
This mural that graces the Guernsey building
north of Sproul Park in Canyon City is one of
two painted in 1996 by Larry Kangas. It depicts
a Fourth of July parade making its way down
Canyon City’s Washington Street in the 1890s.
Kangas based the painting on a photograph of an
1886 Canyon City parade he found in a Portland
museum.
weekend in June, and the
Aces for Faces Motorcycle
Poker Run.
Humbolt
Elementary,
part of Grant School District
No. 3, has an enrollment of
310 students in grades K-6.
Canyon City is also home
to Grant County Child Care
Center, which offers pre-
school education.
The town has the notori-
ety of burning three times in
its history — in 1870, 1898
and 1937. Each time, the re-
silient residents rallied and
rebuilt their community.
Today, Canyon City
is governed by Mayor
Steve Fischer, City Coun-
The Eagle/Cheryl Hoefler
Sproul Park is the site of summer concerts and other community events
throughout the year.
cil President Jim Johnson
and Councilors Rachelle
Simmons, Don Mooney,
Jason Hatfield and Diane
Blake.
City council meetings are
held the third Tuesday of the
month.
For more information,
call Canyon City City Hall
at 541-575-0509.
Need help with auto insurance?
Suspension, DUII, tickets,
no insurance?
Let us at Consumer Insurance Services
get you going!
Emma Hettinga
Blue Mountain Eagle
on your retirement,
Lane!
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Dawson Quinton
E LKS SCHOLARS ANNOUNCED
By Angel Carpenter
Congratulations
Bend: 541-383-1733
Redmond: 541-504-2134
Toll Free: 1-888-898-sr22
each of them,” Wood said. “I
really appreciate the time they
take to help with this.”
JOHN DAY — The John
Day Elks Lodge No. 1824
scholarship chairman, Connie
Wood, announced the Elks
Most Valuable Student Schol-
arship winners.
Out of 10 Grant County ap-
plicants, three boys and three
girls will advance to the district
level to be judged with other
Eastern Oregon senior students.
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son Quinton of Grant Union,
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Hettinga of Dayville School.
They each received a check for
$250 from the lodge.
Other winners are: Ama-
ya Zweygardt of Prairie City
School, Jamie Waltenburg of
Dayville School, Garrett Hitz
of Prairie City School and Wy-
att Weaver of Grant Union.
Judging the applications
were Ken Peterson, Nita Van
Voorhis and Vera Shoberg.
“I want to say thank you to
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