Who founded the famous San Antonio Tex-Mex restaurant Ninfa’s?

Ninfa Laurenzo founded the famous San Antonio Tex-Mex restaurant Ninfa’s.

Laurenzo opened the original Ninfa’s in Houston in 1973 after converting a former textile factory. The restaurant became known for its fajitas and helped popularize the dish nationally, especially through its use of grilled skirt steak served with tortillas and accompaniments.

Ninfa’s became one of the best-known names in Tex-Mex restaurant history. Its success also contributed to the broader American restaurant habit of presenting sizzling grilled meats with tortillas, onions, peppers, and table-side garnishes.

The restaurant’s name is sometimes confused with the dish itself, but Ninfa’s is a restaurant brand named after its founder. The original location was in Houston, not San Antonio, despite San Antonio’s major role in Tex-Mex culinary history.