Intricate designs of all colors adorn the walls of La Monarca Bar and Grill, a staple of King Street’s Mexican dining scene. A mural of butterflies dance across the room, their labyrinthine orange and black wings decorating the walls as customers chatter over the sizzle of flavorful meals below them.
Along with her parents, Raquel Cervantes and Rafael Hernandez, Miriam Hernandez owns and operates the restaurant. The butterfly motif can be found all over the restaurant, from their interior decoration celebrating the insect to menu items named after the titular creature.
“La monarca is the monarch,” Miriam Hernandez said. “Where we’re from, that’s where all the monarch butterflies migrate to, to Mexico.”
Taqueria La Monarca first opened in Boone in 2022 on U.S. 421. In July, the owners expanded with a second location downtown, La Monarca Bar and Grill.
While their first location has an emphasis on a familial space, with ice cream as one of their leading savors for customers, the King Street location aims to create a space that welcomes both college students and the broader Boone community.
“Anyone is welcome,” Miriam Hernandez said. “You know, everything is freshly made. We cook every day. We chop every day. We don’t freeze anything.”
Being within the city limits opens up several opportunities, including the ability to serve alcoholic beverages. Miriam Hernandez said this second location is for people who want to come by and enjoy a few tacos alongside a couple of ice-cold beers.
According to Miriam Hernandez, one of their most popular house-made drinks is the La Monarca Wings, a combination of Red Bull and tequila, its name a nod to the brand’s slogan “Red Bull gives you wings.”
Among several new food items is Monarca’s ACP — a chicken, rice and cheese-filled dish — the aroma of which fills the room when served. Additional meats such as shrimp and beef can be added by request, La Monarca’s take on the traditional Mexican culinary cuisine item arroz con pollo.
They have also added birria ramen, a mixture of ramen and birria stew served with three birria tacos, a traditional Mexican beef-based dish that requires over three hours to cook. Miriam Hernandez said she looks forward to enjoying a warm bowl of their birria ramen as cold winds and snowy days arrive in Boone. The dish isn’t just a way to stay warm for Miraim Hernandez, it’s a way to connect to her familial roots as well.
“All the recipes come from my grandma, you know, then my mom, then me,” Miriam Hernandez said.
The family’s culinary traditions have been passed down through generations and now form the heart of La Monarca’s menu, creating a reflection of family and heritage. Miriam Hernandez said that tradition isn’t just carried through flavor, but through presentation of the food as well.
“We have different types of colors in our food,” Miriam Hernandez said. “The caserias, they’re that bright red. You know, the tacos, different colors, the cilantro, the onions, all that kind of stuff is just very colorful.”
The vibrancy of colors extends far beyond the plates. Vivid murals paint every wall, and floral centerpieces decorate every table. Even the smallest details of color are intentional.
“We try to do everything fresh. Even when my flowers are dying, I try to bring fresh flowers,” said Miriam Hernandez.
The sense of care living within the food and atmosphere fuses into the kitchen, where teamwork and family values shape the work-life.
“That already comes naturally from them; we’re like, ‘Okay, let me help you, or do you need help?’ And that’s just the culture,” Miriam Hernandez said. “That’s just the culture that we have, how we were raised, you know, to help each other.”
La Monarca Bar and Grill is located at 784 W. King St. They are open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. six days a week and close at 9 p.m. on Sundays.