BUSINESS
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 3, 2020
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A7
Nada Sewidan joins
Hermiston Herald
as summer intern
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
Staff photo by Jade McDowell
The tables at La Laguna Sports Bar are still covered in bubble wrap as the restaurant waits for the day it switches from take-out
only to a sit-down sports bar.
La Laguna brings fusion of fl avors to Hermiston
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
A cuisine trend that
started in Mexico and
moved to California has
now made its way to
Hermiston.
La Laguna Sports Bar,
which opened in April on
Main Street in Hermiston,
offers a Mexican-Japanese
fusion dish the restaurant’s
owners have christened
“Sin-Ushi,”
short
for
Sinaloa Sushi.
All of the rolls on the
menu are similar to tradi-
tional Japanese sushi, but
with a Mexican-inspired
twist using fl avors from
familiar Mexican dishes,
such jalepeños or guaca-
mole. The rolls feature
cooked shrimp, chicken or
beef.
While the restaurant
does have a $2 Taco Tues-
day each week, co-owner
Jaime Ruelas said most
of what people will fi nd
on the menu is more
unique, including the sea-
food dishes known as
mariscos, such as the spicy
shrimp and lime juice dish
aguachile.
“If you go down to Mex-
ico to Sinaloa or Mazatlan
and ask for aguachile, this
is exactly what you would
get,” he said. “All that’s
missing is the beach.”
The location at 285 E.
Main St. was gutted and
renovated, and the inside
now features rows of tables
Staff photo by Jade McDowell
Staff photo by Jade McDowell
Staff photo by Jade McDowell
La Laguna Sports Bar off ers
Mexican-Japanese
fusion
sushi like this Laguna roll.
The new La Laguna Sports
Bar off ers sushi with a
Mexican twist.
Several kinds of aquachile
are on the menu at the new
La Laguna Sports Bar.
with 12 large fl at-screen
televisions lining the walls.
While the COVID-19 pan-
demic has caused the sports
bar to be take-out only for
now, Ruelas said eventually
people will be able to come
and eat while watching six
different sports games.
“I know the pandemic
is not the time to do this,
but the thing is, everything
was ready. The cooks were
ready. I couldn’t tell them
no,” he said.
For now, people can
order take-out until 7 p.m.,
but Ruelas said eventually
the sports bar will be open
late and will be closed to
minors after 10 p.m.
The name and logo of the
restaurant was inspired by
Ruelas’ father’s hometown,
Laguna de Alcazahue, in
Mexico. The town was near
a crocodile ranch where
crocodiles were raised for
their skin. At some point,
Ruelas said, the operation
went out of business and
the owners abandoned the
animals there. When they
began to overrun the town,
the state stepped in and
created a wildlife refuge
where the crocodiles could
safely live.
Ruelas said he is excited
to bring a trend to Hermis-
ton before it comes to some
bigger cities in the Pacifi c
Northwest.
“Usually the Tri-Cities
gets all the new stuff, and
Hermiston follows, but this
time Hermiston gets some-
thing new,” he said.
The Hermiston Herald
and East Oregonian will
have an extra pair of hands
helping out in the news-
room this summer with
intern Nada Sewidan.
Sewidan
comes
to
the
Hermiston
news-
room through the Charles
Snowden Program for
Excellence in Journalism,
which pairs student journal-
ists from universities in Ore-
gon with local newspapers.
She graduated this spring
from Portland State Uni-
versity with a master’s of
fi ne arts degree in creative
writing and nonfi ction, and
hopes to launch a career in
journalism.
“I fi nd the work that
journalists do really import-
ant, as an avenue to discuss
community issues, for com-
munity engagement and
truth,” she said.
Sewidan grew up in
Alexandria, Egypt, before
moving to California, and
then to Portland for her
studies at PSU.
“From my experience
in Egypt, not everyone has
freedom of the press, and so
that’s something I value,”
she said.
After
starting the
internship
on June 1,
she said she
has already
learned a
Sewidan
lot
about
how newsrooms operate
outside of a student news-
paper setting. She said stu-
dents tend to have easier
access to sources for their
stories, through professors
and other university staff,
so it will be a challenge
learning to develop sources
while reporting in a wider
community.
Sewiden described her-
self as a shy person, but said
she feels that is a strength
as a reporter, because being
soft spoken can help build
trust with people.
“It’s important that peo-
ple trust me as a reporter,
that I’m here to do what’s
best for the community,”
she said.
Sewiden wrote her fi rst
story for the Hermiston
Herald about storm damage
throughout the region, and
will report on miscellaneous
topics in Umatilla and Mor-
row counties throughout the
summer.
HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY, KYNLEE!
You are a fun, curious, sweet, kind and beautiful
10 year old! You make life happier, brighter,
sweeter and a whole lot more
fun! Love how you do it!
You are always in our
thoughts...
love, Grandpa and Grandma
Powell
ELEVATE YOUR
DINING EXPERIENCE
IN BRIEF
Lifeways plans
open house for
Aspen Springs
Lifeways is holding an
open house and tours for
its new Aspen Springs Psy-
chiatric Hospital, located at
1212 W. Linda Avenue.
The celebration will be
held June 24. The day will
start at 9 a.m. with guided
tours of the hospital, with a
ribbon-cutting ceremony at
11 a.m. Tours will continue
through 3 p.m.
The 16-bed hospital for
acute psychiatric care for
adults will begin accept-
ing patients after the grand
opening.
“Aspen Springs Psy-
chiatric Hospital is located
near the Good Shepherd
Health Care campus, allow-
ing Lifeways to provide
care for those experiencing
severe and persistent mental
health challenges no mat-
ter their entry point into the
health care system,” a news
release stated. “Patients will
receive high-quality, indi-
vidualized care in a state-of
the-art facility designed
to provide a safe place for
psychiatric stabilization and
recovery.”
The patients will be
provided 24-hour super-
vision and services, such
as medication manage-
ment, therapy, skills train-
ing, therapeutic activities,
and support in community
reintegration.
For
questions,
call
541-289-2340.
Dining room and patio now open!
Enjoy scenic views of the beautiful Blue Mountains
MONDAY thru SUNDAY 5pm-close
wildhorse resort - second floor next to the cineplex
for reservations 541.966.1610