Modesto legacy business prepares to close doors after 50 years
MODESTO — In 1970, Alfredo Durant opened Modesto restaurant, naming it after his daughter Marcella.
Marcella's Mexican Restaurant has been open off Tully Road ever since.
At 13, Marcella Garcia was hired by her father as a hostess, after which she went on to be a waitress and bartender.
"I remember taking the little stems off the jalapenos and busting little tables and so on," Garcia said.
In 2018, Durant passed away and left Marcella's Mexican restaurant to his daughter.
"This is all my life. I mean, I've tried and tried and everything's been good, except these last few years. It's been hard," she said. "It's been hard trying to pay everything. Everything is expensive. I just paid $4,000 on PG&E, and then rent."
Increasing costs have weighed up against Marcella's Mexican Restaurant, which has stayed in the same location under the same name since its opening.
"The pandemic was one of them. We took a couple of loans out to pay to keep above the rent," Garcia said.
Garcia's children and husband decided to step in and help by creating a GoFundMe page.
"They're nervous because they don't know what I'm going to do. This is all I know what to do," Garcia said.
The generational restaurant has brought generations of customers. One regular customer, Fred Warnock, said his father knew Durant and helped place the bar that stands in the restaurant today.
"There's a lot of history here," Warnock said. "We're hoping that maybe she can hopefully find a smaller space."
Garcia is set to close her doors on January 31. The address to Marcella's Mexican Restaurant is 3507 Tully Road in Modesto.
