I first met Angy standing outside her food truck, talking through the window. I came to discuss a video. What stayed with me was how much she wanted to build something of her own: food that expressed who she is, a business she could be proud of, and a way to share her culture with people who might never have been to Chihuahua.
She’s sweet, and she’s driven. The more we talked, the more impressed I became with how much she had pulled together herself. There’s a lot of work between having an idea and standing inside your own food truck. Angy had clearly spent plenty of time doing that work.
And she has people around her. I met a couple of her girlfriends, women getting after their own projects while showing up for hers. That was the feeling I kept coming back to: women backing women. Friends who want to see each other succeed and are willing to help make it happen.
In her written account, Angy describes selling tortas from a friend’s garage. After a pause, she began again at her mother’s house, spending a year selling food while working toward the truck. She also describes spending months finding the right bread. That detail caught my attention. A sandwich gives you very few places to hide a bad decision, and the bread is a fairly consequential one.
The torta, the tacos, the cold café de olla—that part of my experience is still ahead of me. La General’s ingredient list gives me plenty to look forward to: pork, ham, cheese, smoked pork chop and a hamburger patty, with vegetables tucked into a telera. I’m going back hungry.
What I can speak to already is the experience of working with her. She took a chance on me and let me begin this first batch of videos with her. I’m unbelievably grateful for that trust. Being around the truck, hearing her story and meeting her friends kept giving me ideas. I left wanting to come back and keep filming.
Angy’s dream is a fondita—a welcoming neighborhood restaurant where families can gather and find something of Chihuahua at the table. I’m interested in watching how she gets there, and in the people who will be beside her along the way.
A few years from now, I hope we’ll look back at this first shoot together. There will be things we’ve learned, things we’d do differently, probably a few things worth laughing about. But hers will always be the first story I told. I’m happy it started at that window.
