The owners of Taqueria El Rey in Augusta and La Cocina De El Rey in Grovetown have a new restaurant concept on the horizon on Walton Way.
“We want to do different types of menus,” said co-owner Ramiro Galvan about the source of the name of his new concept, The Munchies Lab. “We don’t want just Mexican or Japanese or Indian.”
The idea and its moniker represent an emphasis on culinary exploration. Galvan is already running several Mexican restaurants in the area with his wife, parents, sister and brother, but notes that this limits the variety of items they can use on their menus.
MORE: In The Kitchen With Vera: Visiting Columbus
The name refers to both unconventional, but ample, culinary appetite (“munchies”) and a sense of experimentation to go along with it (“lab”). Not only will the dishes be non-traditional, but the menu will regularly switch.
“We try to grab a plate or a dish and add crazy flavors to it to create a new flavor profile,” said Galvan.
Some of the menu items came from mix-and-match dishes Galvan and the kitchen staff came up with or found on social media.
Even fare as simple as a hot dog becomes a site for creative investigation. One prospective menu item called “The OG” is a gourmet style frankfurter made of pork belly, topped with hollandaise sauce and fried egg.
MORE: ArtScene: Beyond Van Gogh, Sacred Heart reception, Terry Rowlett works
Another dish, called the “Dracula,” offers grilled garlic steak, chicken and baby shrimp with sauteed onions and smothered in buffalo ranch and nacho cheese.
“It’s flavors that you normally won’t put together,” Galvan said. “But when you put them together, you’re like, ‘OK, you know what, that’s actually pretty good!”
Galvan says that the versatile eatery has been in development for quite some time, but that the process of launching has gone on for just three or four months. Its Facebook page has already garnered of following of Augustans eager to try out the colorful scene.
He and his family already have a set location at 1022 Walton Way, Ste. A. Right now, he says they’re waiting for county approval and hope to open close to the end of May.
For more information and updates on The Munchies Lab, visit its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/munchieslabaugusta.
Skyler Q. Andrews is a staff reporter covering education in Columbia County and business-related topics for The Augusta Press. Reach him at skyler@theaugustapress.com.
