Not to El Chubby's, not to Bubba Chinos or bubbachinos. And not even to the original Chubby's, which Stella Cordova opened at 1231 West 38th Avenue in the late '60s, when she bought the Chubby Burger Drive-In where she'd worked for two years and filled the menu with Mexican specialties.
Stella fed her green chile to generations of fans. And she also fed many, many offspring -- she had ten children -- some of whom got into the business.
Julian Cordova, Stella's grandchild, for example, who opened a place named Original Chubby's at 8330 Washington Street in Thornton, and is opening that spot on Kalamath. But while Julian Cordova has registered the names "Original Chubby's," "Original Chubbys Mexican Food" and "Chubbys" with the Colorado Secretary of State's office, these two restaurants have no actual connection -- besides blood -- to the Chubby's on West 38th. "Julian followed in his grandmother's footsteps, cooking up batches of grandma's recipes," according to the website for the Original Chubby's, ilovechubby's.com. "He and his family opened the Original Chubby's located on 83rd and North Washington in 1987....in 2013, expect to see the newest addition to the Original Chubby's locations in the Art District on Santa Fe!"
Stella passed away in June 2009, but her restaurant -- and her chile recipe -- live on. Today another grandson, Danny Cordova, a cousin to Julian Cordova, runs the original original Chubby's on West 38th. And the webside is very clear about that. "There have been many imposters over the years," it warns, "but there is only one original - Grandma's, The Original Chubby's."
