Mucho Gusto Is Opening Soon In Bel Air

BEL AIR, MD — A new Mexican restaurant is planning to open in the next week in Bel Air.

Mucho Gusto will feature authentic cuisine as well as Americanized versions of Mexican dishes.

"We have a very authentic Mexican chef," owner Nelson Ruiz said.

"There are a lot of people that would like authentic Mexican food, but we also realize that there are people that are more used to the typical enchiladas, tacos, burritos, chimichangas, so we're going to offer those as well," Ruiz said.

One menu item may be a trailblazer in the state of Maryland, according to Ruiz.

"We will be the first, I believe, Mexican restaurant in Maryland to offer a Mexican crabcake," Ruiz told the Harford County Liquor Control Board Wednesday, as he presented the concept for the restaurant while applying for a liquor license. It was granted.

"The drink menus are going to be a lot of fun," Ruiz said.

Mucho Gusto will not have bartenders. Instead, staff will be called mixologists.

"They're very up to date on the newest and trendiest things going on throughout the country," Ruiz said, so they will create the drink menus, which will always be evolving.

"Everything we make at the restaurant is from scratch," Ruiz said. "Even the house margarita comes with fresh-squeezed limes and agave." All drinks will be made in front of the customer.

While there will be some staples on the drink menu, "We like to change the drink menu constantly," Ruiz said.

The chef spent 18 years cooking in New York, but Ruiz challenged him to make menu items that would appeal to the palates of people in Bel Air.

"He's never really heard of Old Bay," Ruiz said. "I've given him some Old Bay, and he's come up with some recipes ... There is a very high loyalty and importance of being local in this area, and I thought it would be a big miss if we didn't incorporate that."

The local theme is reflected in the design of the restaurant at Mucho Gusto.

An interior designer from Fallston helped shape the concept for the restaurant space.

"We have sort of an industrial-modern feel to the restaurant — minimal design, unfinished ceiling," he said.

The interior at Mucho Gusto is also "very artistic," Ruiz said.

"One of the things that was important to us was to incorporate the use of local talent and people that are relevant in the Bel Air area, so we used local artists to paint a lot of the murals and a lot of the artwork you see in the restaurant," Ruiz said.

Handcrafted bottles that are used for lights over the bar were also made by a local artist.

"Anywhere that we could, we used local people to create the look that we were going for," Ruiz said. "Even the chandeliers were painted by a local artist."

Pending use and occupancy and health department permits from Harford County, the restaurant could open as early as Friday but will most likely be open by the middle of next week.

Hours will be as follows:

• 11 a.m.–10 p.m. Monday to Thursday
• 11 a.m.–11 p.m. Friday
• 9 a.m.–11 p.m. Saturday
• 9 a.m.–9 p.m. Sunday

Mucho Gusto is at 1209A Bel Air Rd., Bel Air, MD 21014.

Initially, Ruiz said the restaurant planned to open without the patio.

"Pre-COVID," the idea was to "get the kitchen up and running" before adding seating outside, Ruiz said.

Now, "with the restrictions placed on us," Ruiz said the newly built patio will be open when the restaurant opens. As of June 25, Maryland is in stage two of reopening, with restaurants allowed to have 50 percent capacity indoor dining with tables 6 feet apart.

"We understand service is very important to people in Bel Air," Ruiz said, so "we felt it was important to open the patio with some additional seating."

Related:

• MD Reopening Restaurants For Outdoor Dining, Stage 2 Nears: Hogan
• Indoor Dining, Gyms, Malls: Hogan Outlines MD Stage 2 Reopening
• Harford County Enters Phase 2: What That Means