Jul. 3—Ronnie and Sandra Saenz, the husband-and-wife team behind Spanky's Burgers, a Brownsville institution, are celebrating their 20th year in business this month by taking the Fourth of July weekend off.
It's a rare break for the couple, interviewed July 2 at their comfortable Palm Boulevard eatery with its Americana-meets-British Invasion décor, shoulder patches from Ronnie's 20 years with the Cameron County Sheriff's Department prominently displayed on the wall, along with classic Hollywood and Beatles posters, opposite portraits of Elvis, John Wayne, Laurel and Hardy and such.
If July 4 weren't typically a slow weekend the Saenzes would likely be putting in the hours, a work ethic they say is the reason they've managed to navigate the hard times — including a recession and a pandemic for instance — and keep serving their loyal customer base.
Ronnie said he'd always wanted to own a burger joint, though his only business experience was two years working behind the counter at Dairy Queen when he was in high school. It proved invaluable in his own venture, and together with Sandra he took the plunge into the burger business after leaving the sheriff's department.
Spanky's Burgers opened its doors on July 4, 2001, in a former store at 1355 Palm Blvd. The stretch of road saw heavy traffic when Amigoland Mall was still in operation on Mexico Boulevard, though the mall was shuttered and the traffic gone by the time the Saenzes opened their restaurant, jumping in with both feet and vowing to stick it out no matter what. Still, the early years were tough, and sometimes they thought about throwing in the towel, the couple admitted.
"It was extremely difficult," Sandra recalled. "The first week we sold less than $250."
Ronnie said they struggled for about five years to stay afloat before things started to turn around.
"There were many days, Sandra and myself, we would be here by ourselves, cooking and mopping," he said. "But that's what it takes. We just didn't give up. We kept moving forward."
The Saenzes' business model was based on a consistent, quality product, with locally sourced ingredients and hand-pressed hamburger patties, and Spanky's has never deviated from that, Ronnie said.
By year six, sales began increasing slowly, which he credits to a combination of advertising and word-of-mouth. Business was good enough that the couple — Brownsville born and raised, both of them — opened a second location in Harlingen, though with the name Main Street Grill. Then came 2008 and with it a global recession.