Mexican fare, with a family touch

Bartender Max Cruz with a hefty raspberry margarita, at Casa Blanca. (Maureen Costello for the Boston Globe)

Casa Blanca Mexican Restaurant & Cantina
99 Chelmsford Road (Route 129)
Billerica
978-262-9030
casablancamexican.com
Open: Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.- 11 p.m.
Full bar
Major credit cards accepted

The beauty of opening a business in a new space is that you're starting over and not being forced to renovate, remove, or recycle someone else's décor - be it good or bad - into your grand design.

Silvia and Margarito Cervantes used this to their advantage last winter when they converted a corner of a new Billerica strip mall on the Chelmsford line into an illusion of a chic resort from their native Guadalajara.

In March, soon after their daughters put the final brush strokes on the decorative chair rail, the family opened the doors to Casa Blanca Mexican Restaurant & Cantina. Though its name is Spanish for the White House, this restaurant is anything but presumptuous. Warm shades of orange and blue complement each other on the dining room walls. Clay rooftops cover spacious Spanish-style booths along the walls. The staff is exceptionally welcoming and, yes, the food is quite good, too.

After being greeted in Spanish, the first language of the staff, we were seated and served a basket of crispy thin chips and salsa. The salsa has a distinct taste: pleasantly spicy at first, then settling into a smooth yet robust consistency before the whole chip is even crunched. I was immediately reminded of salsa I fell in love with at Ixtapa Mexican Restaurant & Cantina in Lexington.

No coincidence here. Both restaurants, as well as 13 Acapulcos Mexican Family Restaurant & Cantinas throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut, and Casa Blanca restaurants in Billerica, North Andover, and Bedford, N.H. are the brainchild of restaurateur David Brambila.

A gifted chef and native of Guadalajara, Brambila first opened a successful line of restaurants called Casa Deoro in the Spokane, Wash., and Idaho area in 1985. He sold that line and in 2001 brought his recipes for success east, an area starved for high-quality authentic Mexican cuisine at reasonable prices. Menu items are a blend of family recipes from different regions of Mexico and popular dishes relished by Americans while visiting Mexican resorts.

Keeping with the family theme, all of Brambila's restaurants are run by family. Silvia Cervantes is his wife's cousin. Silvia and Margarito Cervantes moved to Chelmsford last December with their son and two daughters to manage the newest addition to the family.

"Everyone who works here is family," said Silvia Cervantes. "That is very good because I know they are going to take care of the business. They are part of it."

Guests don't have to be family, but they sure are treated as such. The Fiesta Platter ($10.50), was a more than sizable appetizer for three, featuring nachos, mini-quesadillas, taquitos (deep-fried corn tortillas), mini-flautas (deep-fried flour tortillas), plump chicken wings, fresh guacamole, and sour cream. There may have been a few shreds of lettuce left on the platter when we finished.

This being the White House and an election year, I was compelled to sample the el presidente margarita ($8.50). This was a hand-shaken on-the-rocks concoction of fresh lime juice, Cointreau, and Cuervo 1800 tequila.

I enjoyed the aroz con pollo, ($14.50) a delicious meal of chicken breast sautéed with large chunks of mushrooms, onions, and green bell peppers, served over Spanish rice. Monterey Jack cheese was melted on top.

The Casa Steak with garlic shrimp ($17), a flame-broiled strip of New York sirloin topped with sautéed onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms, was mouth-watering to look at and simply fabulous to taste. Entrée portions were not only generous, but beautifully presented with a balanced mix of texture, colors, and flavors.

Vegetarians won't leave hungry, nor will diners with less adventurous appetites. The menu features five meat-free spicy entrées such as spinach-stuffed quesadilla ($10) topped with lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, and guacamole.

Whatever you choose for dinner, stay for dessert. We had an order of churros ($4) six crunchy and twisted sticks of fried dough rolled in cinnamon. Dip these in the homemade strawberry sauce and whipped cream on the side and you have the perfect ending to a traditional Mexican meal.

MAUREEN COSTELLO