EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Two El Paso brothers recently celebrated their fifth grand opening of “The Shack Wings and Brews,” a local business that initially started in 2008 in Horizon and has grown all over El Paso.
The Shack Wings and Brews had its fifth grand opening last week at 7700 Price Stanley Place in West El Paso.
Adrian Soto and Michael Soto own the business and were born and raised in El Paso.
Adrian Soto says the business started in 2008 after their mother had a small Mexican restaurant in Horizon.
Adrian Soto says the Mexican restaurant wasn’t performing well, and they ended up turning the spot into a wing shack.
“We decided to make it a simpler concept and focus on the wings, burgers, and beer, and have a food bar experience. We decided that was a better choice. There’s a lot of competition with Mexican restaurants. We’ve always loved chicken wings,” Michael Soto said.
Adrian Soto shares that they repurposed their mother’s Mexican restaurant in order to provide for their family and pay the bills.
“Back in the day, I was in high school, and unfortunately, due to family issues, I was forced to drop out of high school. So I started working in restaurants and I started as a dishwasher, moved up to prep and cook, and I worked at one of our El Paso’s staples which was Track One and I was a cook there for a couple of years and working at that place just made me fall in love with the industry,” Soto said.
After working at Track One, Adrian Soto says he told his brother that he wanted to open up a wing shack, which is when they repurposed their mother’s restaurant.
Initially, the Soto brothers chose “The Wing Shack” as the name for the franchise. However, that name was taken, and they decided to rename their franchise “The Shack Wings and Brews” so that they could nationally trademark the brand.
“Our brand is nationally trademarked in the U.S., and now we can grow all over the U.S.,” Adrian Soto said.
After a couple of successful years in Horizon, the Soto brothers then decided to move their business to McRae in East El Paso, and that’s where they began to see a lot of success.
“McRae is really where the success happened. We’ve been there for about 15 years, and that’s really where the word of mouth got out. People knew us. Horizon back in the day was a smaller town, so the people loved us out there, but we decided to move to McRae, and it was the best move we made. It was a blessing,” Adrian Soto said.
Even though they initially moved their first location to East El Paso, Adrian Soto says they opened back up last year in Horizon.
“But now we’re back in Horizon. Last year we opened back in Horizon, so we’re happy to be back in our roots,” Adrian Soto said.
The Soto brothers say the Shack Wings and Brews’ atmosphere is different as they cater to everyone and offer affordable prices. They also have a scratch kitchen that uses high-quality ingredients.
“We don’t like to price-gouge because we want our customers to come here and enjoy our restaurant without stressing over money. Our food is what put us on the map. We make everything from scratch. Our chicken wings are never frozen. They’re fresh with no hormones. Our burgers come in fresh and are 100 percent Black Angus,” Adrian Soto said.
Adrian Soto says they also have a sister company, the Shack Slice and Brew, which focuses on pizza and alcoholic beverages. Together, the businesses employ from 600 to 800 people.
“El Paso rules and is king of local businesses. We have so many local restaurants and brands that are stronger than chains, which we have great chains here too. We support them all, but I’m proud to say El Paso is very strong with local talent, and I’m happy to be a part of that success,” Adrian Soto said.
Michael Soto shares that running a successful business with his brother is nothing new to him due to their relationship being unique.
“Me and my brother have always been very close. So it’s nothing new to me. We’ve always been best friends, so we’ve always gotten along, and a lot of people tell me ‘How do you work with family?’ It’s just something unique that we have. Not everybody can say the same, but working with family for me has been the best,” Michael Soto said.
The Shack Wings and Brews has five locations in El Paso. The Shack Slice and Brew has three locations in El Paso.
To learn more about their hours, locations, and menu, click on the links displayed above.
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