Looking like a bright pink Mexican dahlia, Lorena Cantu greets us as we enter her bright, cozy shop, Padrino’s Pops. Nestled between The Well coffee house and the Copper Kettle, the shop lined with steel freezer cases is a bit of a surprise. But don’t pass it by: These are some of the best Popsicles or “paletas,” in town.
Today Cantu is hosting Beth Whitman’s Spanish 4 Honors Class from Lipscomb Academy across the street. Whitman loves to bring her class to visit Cantu, who speaks minimal English, and converses in Spanish with the class. “It’s a perfect fit, as Lorena is in a similar place with her English as the students are with their Spanish,” says Whitman. The group of mostly juniors and seniors pile in and suddenly the store seems even smaller.
Cantu starts with a slide show of her family’s history in the business, how the two paleterias in Saltillo, Mexico, were purchased by her grandfather, Jose Mendoza, in 1978, Her father, Geronimo Mendoza, carried on the business in Chihuahua, Mexico, and now she follows suit in Nashville. As a girl, Cantu helped her dad in the paleteria, learning the business inside and out. However it’s much easier to make paletas in America, Cantu says. In Mexico, the water has to go through extensive and expensive filtration to be used in paletas. “We’re in America, we have good water,” Cantu says. “Everything is handmade, everything is fresh.” Indeed. Her fruit paletas are made with in-season fruit and water, and, in some cases, sugar. Cream paletas are fruit and cream, and occasionally sugar. No artificial flavors. She makes watermelon paletas in April when Mexican watermelon is in season. In July and August, she offers strawberry and blackberry paletas.
