Mama Rosa Mexican of CT opens Long Island outpost in Great Neck

Carlos Axilote learned the ins and outs of the restaurant business while working as a waiter, cook, bartender and busboy in Manhattan.

“I always observed, learned and thought to myself, ‘Maybe someday I will have my own place,’” said the 62-year-old owner of Mama Rosa in Great Neck. “I’ve had the good fortune to open one, then another, then another.”

The latest Mama Rosa, which opened in August on South Middle Neck Road, is a tribute to his mother. Rosa Evelia Montaño passed away three years ago, but her influence extends from the restaurant’s name to its most popular dishes.

“She would be at work in the kitchen and I would say to her, ‘Mama, how do you do that? How do I do that — the mole poblano, the chiles rellenos, all of that,” her son said in Spanish. “She showed me how to do it, gave me her recipes and all of the recipes in my restaurants come from her.”

Mama Rosa is Axilote’s third restaurant and the second to pay tribute to his mother. He recently renamed El Coyote in Monroe, Conn. as Mama Rosa and he also owns an El Coyote near his home in Jackson Heights, Queens.

A younger brother, Rolando, also owns a pair of restaurants in upstate New York and Connecticut. 

“My mother was never able to come to this country,” he said. “But she was so happy over everything I’ve been able to accomplish.

“She would be so proud to know that her son was able to open more than one restaurant.”

Axilote said he now splits much of his time between the Great Neck and Jackson Heights locations, sometimes managing to drop in on both on the same day.

He said the commute between the two restaurants usually takes him about 20 minutes and that the North Shore has so far been a good fit.

“I like the area, I like Long Island,” he said. “A friend showed me the place, I talked to the landlord and I figured, let’s give this a shot.”

Axilote, a native of Puebla who has lived in the United States for more than 40 years, said his mother’s recipes have been a hit in Great Neck.

Her chiles relleno recipe features roasted poblano peppers stuffed with cheese, chicken or beef after being dipped in egg butter and pan fried. The homemade mole, meanwhile, is used to stew chicken thighs. 

The restaurant also serves brunch on weekends and is host to a live mariachi band every Friday and Sunday night.

It all adds up, Axilote said, to the type of place he fancied owning someday when he was just starting out years ago at Italian, Spanish and Mexican restaurants in Manhattan.

“I love all the work in restaurants, no matter what I am doing,” Axilote said. “I like to take care of people, go by the tables and ask ‘How’s the food?’ I want them to be happy.”

He said he’s excited about being on Long Island, but has no current plans to expand the number of Mama Rosa outposts.

“It’s a tough business and I’m 62,” he said. “It’s no longer the same as when you’re 35 or 40 years old, but I really do enjoy what I do.”

Top: The dining room at Moma Rosa, which opened in August in Great Neck. (Credit: Moma Rosa on Facebook)