GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The Coit Avenue corridor in Grand Rapids is welcoming back a beloved Creston neighborhood restaurant today. It’s the emotional conclusion to a months-long journey for a family that said they could not have done it without the support of their neighbors. 

The Oliveros family revealed the fruits of months of hard work today as they removed newspaper covering the windows of their new location at the corner of Coit Avenue and Dale Street. It’s been seven months since their restaurant La Huasteca was forced out of its place on Plainfield Avenue, 13 months since the death of their son — the new restaurant’s namesake — and just a week ahead of what would have been his 11th birthday. 

“We’re excited, we are happy. I saw my mom crying this morning, that’s how excited she is,” said Salvador Oliveros, owner of Iker’s Tacos and Iker’s father. “We are doing this to make my son proud and I’m sure he is.”

The new location was re-painted in Iker’s favorite colors, which wouldn’t have been possible without support from the Oliveros’ beloved customers, friends and community, who donated their time, money and even labor to help the family during a difficult year. 

“Day by day, people would donate more money,” Oliveros said. “We said, ‘We need this, or we need help painting’ and people would get it, and come and help paint. It was truly unbelievable how the community, people, customers and friends stepped up to help us.”

Now, they are building a broader community with neighbors of the Coit Street location who are excited to see a restaurant move back into the space.

“We don’t have a lot of restaurants within even walking distance from where we live in Creston so it’s awesome,” Alexis Glover, a nearby resident, told News 8. “Having a restaurant that is good money-wise, isn’t too expensive and is also really close by helps, especially with families.”

That enthusiasm from the neighborhood — and their relationships with past patrons — were among the many reasons the Oliveros family knew they had to stay close by. 

“We wanted to stay in the Creston area. We’ve been here for more than 10 years,” Oliveros said. “We had a couple more options in the summer to move, but we thought this was the right option. It was a no-brainer. We had about 80 or 100 messages just last night saying, ‘We can’t wait to eat your fajitas again and your enchiladas and tacos.'”

The restaurant’s hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday.