Jesús Guizar is a professional baseball player in Mexico.
During baseball season, the 39-year-old Guadalajara Grill bartender drives to Sonora on the weekends to play first base for the Santos de Santa Ana.
"Everybody plays baseball in my family," he says. His eight siblings have all played either professional or college baseball or softball.
And his dad, Hector Manuel Guizar, was a baseball coach known for organizing little leagues in Mexico.
"In San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, they have a street named after him and a baseball stadium," he says. "He was the first guy in Nogales, Sonora, to win the championship in college."
Jesús Guizar says he plans on writing a book about his dad, who immigrated to Mexico from Spain by boat when he was 7 with two cousins.
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Guizar, who has worked in restaurants for about 18 years, also has a side job training the employees of new eateries in Sonora.
He initially moved to the United States to study and work in Tempe. He has lived in Tucson for more than three years, and he says he enjoys being closer to Mexico so he can play baseball.
Do people recognize you here?
"Some people that come as customers from Mexico, they recognize me and one of my brothers, Francisco Guizar. He played for the same team for over 20 years, the Vaqueros de Agua Prieta."
Is there a theme to the items hanging on the wall next to the bar?
"They are pictures of Mexican generals like Francisco ("Pancho") Villa, (Emiliano) Zapata and their rifles, guns and sombreros."
What's your favorite dish here?
"Shrimp pasta. It's a little spicy. It's got a little bit of chipotle; it's creamy; it has no Alfredo sauce."
The restaurant has a trio that plays every night. What songs are the most requested?
"They play a lot the birthday song obviously, and 'La Bamba.' "
What is the weirdest drink anyone has ever ordered?
"There was a guy that asked for a Margarita and a beer, and he mixed them."
Have you invented any drinks?
"It's the Herradura Margarita. It has Herradura tequila, sweet and sour mix, a splash of cranberry juice, and the recipe of the house of the Herradura bar. It's part of the restaurant La Reforma in Agua Prieta, Sonora."
What are your plans for the future?
"I want to open my own bar in about a year. My margaritas are going to be different — the taste, the color. I've got all my secrets ready. I would prefer it to be on the north side (of Tucson). "
What's it going to be called?
"I think Azules. It's going to be a sports bar with appetizers. And every single item on the menu is going to be 100 percent good. There will be old pictures of my dad. We're talking about the '40s, with the big uniforms and stuff like that."
Guadalajara Grill
• Where: 1220 E. Prince Road.
• Phone: 323-1022.
• Bar hours: 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.
• Happy hour: 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 p.m. to midnight Friday. All beers and house margaritas are half-off.
• Live music: 6 to 10 p.m. daily.
• Web: www.ggrill.com
More online
• Read more about Tucson night life at go.azstarnet.com/ sceneatnight
• If you know a bartender who serves a mean cocktail, tells a good joke or has an attentive ear, tell us about him or her at aznightbuzz.com (click on "nightlife").
