Meet Elisa Moreno | Restaurant Co-Owner & Marketing Manager

We had the good fortune of connecting with Elisa Moreno and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Elisa, what inspires you?
My culture (Mexican) in which I grew up in, as well as my family.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Business: Call Her Martina (Mexican Restaurant)

What sets us apart from others: we’re authentic Mexican cuisine, cocktails and ambiance. We were born and raised in Mexico and this restaurant is the closest you’ll find in Arizona to a trendy restaurant in Mexico City.
We like to say our cuisine is “Mexican with a Twist”. Most of our dishes are inspired in traditional Mexican dishes but we have made some twists and fun ways to enhance them.

We opened about 9 months ago but the work behind it took so much more than that. Some of the challenges have been working as a family, it’s not easy but we enjoy it and have learned so much from that.
Another challenge we’ve encountered is trusting some people that ended up letting us down.
And lastly, there are always challenges in the Restaurant industry. Everyday there’s a new challenge, but there are always ways to overcome it by working as a team. Taking risks is also a big part of it.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Oof… this is my specialty. I love touring people around and people always trust me for recommendations in the city.

Breakfast:
Snooze (traditional breakfast)
Call Her Martina (boozy brunch, but also great Mexican breakfast food)
Sumomaya (unlimited booze at brunch and fun vibe)

Sights and Hikes:
Hole in the Rock (for a casual sunset spot)
Camelback Mountain (for a hard workout/hike)
Lou’s at Papago (for a sunset spot and casual drinks, their food is very good too)
Isabella’s Kitchen (same description as Lou’s)

Workout:
BODI (hiit training)
The Madison (cycling class)

Dinner:
Maple and Ash
EVO
Call Her Martina
Starlite BBQ (casual-weekday)
La Grande Orange (casual-weekday)
Kaizen (sushi and great happy hour)
Valentine (great date spot)

Cocktail Spots / Going Out:
The Beverly (best happy hour)
Scapegoat (wine and beer)
Gilligins (dive bar)
Rockbar (rooftop, kinda divey as well)

These are all the spots I would 100% recommend to anyone visiting.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
The women in my life. Both of my grandmas and my mother. Call Her Martina is all about them, their recipes, their strength and their unique personalities. All of this is to honor them. Another person that makes it all possible and deserves so much credit is my father. He’s the one that started this, motivated us and keeps working hard on it.

As an icon, we decided to grab inspiration from actresses from La Época De Oro (Golden Age of Mexican cinema) who were a big icon in this era, her personalities were strong, sexy and mysterious. We took this characteristics and created a character: Martina. That’s why the restaurant is called Call Her Martina. On the other side, we wanted to show this side of Mexico that a lot of people doesn’t know when they come to Arizona. They look for Mexican food and they only find this old school traditional restaurants with big rice and beans plates. We still like that food and think it’s traditional, but when you go to Mexico nowadays, the cuisine is so much more than that.

Website: www.callhermartina.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martinascottsdale

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/martinascottsdale/