Our Story
Two cultures. One table.
Tikka Tequila brings two great food traditions together on West Franklin Street. From India come the spices, the marinades and the slow-simmered sauces; from Mexico, the tortillas, the salsas and the spirit of a shared meal. That’s how tandoori chicken ends up in a taco, masala in a margarita, and gulab jamun next to a churro.
Our name says it plainly. Tikka is the Indian tradition of spiced, marinated pieces cooked over fire. Tequila is Mexico’s spirit, distilled from blue agave. You’ll find both in our logo: the flame-kissed skewer, the agave leaves, and a shot glass with a slice of lime.
Led by former White House Chef Roberto Mendoza, our kitchen also travels across Latin America, with pupusas, arepas, Peruvian ceviche and pollo a la brasa, from breakfast at 7 AM to dinner at 10 PM, every day.
Welcome to our table.
Meet the Chef
Chef Roberto Mendoza
Former White House Chef · Culinary Innovator · Humanitarian
Highlights
- White House Chef for Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama
- Beverly Hills Hotel and Academy Awards culinary events
- Chef of the Year, UNC Charlotte and the Mint Museum
- Food and nutrition programs at 34 U.S. universities
- Hispanic Pride Award, Washington, D.C.
- Founder, The Chef Heaven's Kitchen
Chef Roberto Mendoza's career has taken him from the White House kitchen to some of the most celebrated tables in the country. As a White House chef, he cooked for Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, along with international leaders, dignitaries and distinguished guests. He went on to lead in prestigious hospitality settings, including the Beverly Hills Hotel, and to work on high-profile culinary events connected to the Academy Awards.
His work has always reached beyond the restaurant. Chef Mendoza has developed food and nutrition programs at 34 U.S. universities, bringing healthier, better-tasting food to campus dining. Fluent in Spanish, English, French and Hebrew, he has worked with chefs, businesses and communities across many cultures and countries — an outlook you can taste in a menu that brings India and Mexico to the same table.
For Chef Mendoza, food has always been about more than the meal. Through his nonprofit, The Chef Heaven's Kitchen, he works to feed people experiencing homelessness, children and families in need, in the U.S. and abroad. As he puts it: “Food can be a bridge between compassion and action.”
At Tikka Tequila, he brings all of that experience home to Chapel Hill.