UPDATE: The Latin Effect officially set its grand opening date as Friday, Sep. 5, with customers welcome starting at 5 p.m. Below is the original story about the restaurant.
West Franklin Street is about to feature a new addition to the Chapel Hill restaurant lineup: Central American cuisine from a Triangle-based food truck team.
The Latin Effect, which has been operating out of Durham since 2020, is opening its first brick-and-mortar location at 504 West Franklin Street — with the goal of welcoming its first patrons in early September. Alberto Chedrani, who runs the food truck with his wife Rebecca, co-owns the restaurant with Happy Rathore, whose family company bought the space for $1.7 million in July 2024.
Chedrani, who goes by Bert, grew up in Kinston, NC and has lived in the Triangle since 2011. He transitioned to the food truck business after working as a property manager in Carrboro, having always loved cooking and being spurred into action after trying an over-priced food truck with Rebecca.
“I remember paying $15, $16 for three tacos,” he told Chapelboro, “and I said to my wife, ‘That’s crazy that I’m paying [that price] for something I can do.’ Believe it or not, that next morning I remember she was sitting downstairs and was like, ‘If you really think you can do something like this, Wake Tech teaches a class in how to start a food truck business…and I think we should sign you up.’ And it triggered right there — I said, ‘Let’s do it.'”
After completing the course, earning his certificates and buying a truck, Chedrani used the relationships to break into a food truck network to pick up shifts at different businesses, bars and events around the Triangle. Despite not having any prior culinary training, he says Latin American recipes run in the family. While his dad runs a restaurant in Honduras, Chedrani credits his mother for cultivating the love for the native meals and flavors he has showcased through The Latin Effect menu — and that he is excited to expand in the Chapel Hill restaurant.
“The fact that we’re offering food, to start off with, from Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Venezuela and a few Mexican entrees — so, about five different countries to start off with…I think that’s what’s going to attract people,” said Chedrani. “You could have food from Honduras, I could have food from El Salvador today.
“I think we’re bringing something unique,” he added. “That’s the biggest part: there’s food for everyone.”
Rathore’s family — who are known for running restaurants like NaanStop Indian Cuisine and Terrace Kitchen in Durham and the Naan House Indian Bistro in Apex — got to know Chedrani through mutual business partners. When the space on West Franklin Street became available with the Beer Study moving out last year, the group stepped in to buy the space and add a complimentary vision to the variety of nearby local businesses.
The Latin Effect will offer authentic and fresh Honduran fast-food from its truck menu like the popular baleadas, which are known for their homemade flour tortillas and variety of meats like carne asada, marinated chicken or carnitas. But the space will allow him to also offer favorites like pollo chuco, or “dirty chicken,” which features fried chicken, pickled vegetables and sauces piled atop fried green bananas. A variety of papusas from El Salvador, arepas from Venezuela and tacos will also be available for people to pick and choose between, which will be highlighted by the restaurant’s expanded catering ability.
The Latin Effect serves taquitos with a Honduran flare: fresh slaw, avocado, egg slices, cheese, and a drizzle of signature marinade. Twists and styles like this can be expected at its Chapel Hill location. (Photo via The Latin Effect.)
The new mural inside The Latin Effect captures the essence and atmosphere Chedrani is trying to create: a blend of several Central American countries’ culture to create a celebration. (Photo by Brighton McConnell/Chapel Hill Media Group.)
And the space will have bar service as well — which will highlight another way Chedrani takes pride in his business.
“I big believer in that… I think our food is good, but I think if you give good customer service, people come back,” he said. “I’ve done life and health insurance, property management, and now in the food industry… I think we do a good job of giving good service.”
“It’s going to take some work,” Chedrani added. “The beginning’s going to be tough, I expect it to be challenging. But once we get it rolling, I think we’re going to have something special.”
Once that happens, Chedrani plans a special welcome to his mother to the space. Right now, she still lives in Honduras, but when she visits the space, The Latin Effect co-owner hopes to hold a party and use the restaurant for her to offer cooking classes to help teach the different dishes that inspired him to join the food industry.
“She’s a big reason [for all this],” said Chedrani. “I think I’m living my dream through her too — I think her being here one day will be a pretty cool experience.”
Featured photo via Brighton McConnell/Chapel Hill Media Group.
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
