LOS ANGELES — The moment Hilary Mejia sets foot in her San Pedro restaurant, The Original Las Brisas, she is constantly in motion, training an employee, reading the latest customer review online or checking on her 75-year-old dad, Gilberto.

He’s the face of this restaurant and to this day, handles all the cooking and prepping, even after a surviving a drunk driving accident with his wife last year.

“He is still working in the kitchen,” Mejia said. “He worked through his injuries. I mean, to me, my parents are my biggest heroes.”

Mejia’s parents started the restaurant in 1982 before she joined in 2010, leaving behind a career in IT. These days, Gilberto’s smiling image is everywhere — on restaurant t-shirts, takeout bags and coffee mugs.

Mejia said customers have been coming in for decades and the restaurant is an integral part of San Pedro’s community. But with such a small team, it has been tough keeping the doors open for over four decades.

“We got inflation, we got COVID, we have wage increases,” she said. “We have rent increases, all these things.”

Mejia is worried about remaining competitive when hiring new employees in the face of the new $20 an hour minimum wage for fast food workers. She is also struggling to pay back a pandemic-era small business loan for over $130,000.

So she’s looking to a new LA City program called Legacy Business Program that helps boost small businesses that have been open for at least 20 years in their community.

According to the city, there are at least 50,000 of them and many face increased competition and rent expenses and encroaching gentrification. Keeping a business open for more than 20 years is no small feat. 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 45% of businesses will fail within five years and only a quarter of businesses survive 15 years or more.

“Those small mom-and-pops are what drives pedestrian traffic in local, commercial districts,” said Carolyn Hull, general manager for the city’s Economic and Workforce Development Department. “The purpose of this program is to look for those businesses that essentially have five or less employees. In fact, most businesses within the city of Los Angeles have 20 employees or less. We’re really looking to highlight those gems that really make our communities vibrant.”  

Hull said businesses that have been around for 20 years are more are eligible to participate and applications are open in the fall.

The program will provide $20,000 grants to small businesses with one to five employees and $10,000 grants to shops with six or more employees.

Business owners will receive access to additional financial resources, marketing, technical help and government connections.

Mejia said she’s already planning to apply and, if awarded a grant, would hire at least two more employees. But for now, she is trying to remain optimistic about keeping the restaurant going, especially for customers.

“The biggest satisfaction that I get is when I read a review that says, 'This reminds me of my abuelita’s tacos,'” she said. “Because it’s a heartwarming feeling, and that to me is like, 'Wow, we got this.'"