Los Hermanos
Spanish Street Food Sensations

The bright Los Hermanos logo says it all; two happy brothers, “one a trained chef and one a loveable genius”. They’re poised to fiesta, their innovative, full-flavoured street food offering raring to go.

Keeping it in the family, Los Hermanos is the brainchild of Michelin-star chef, Danny - who oversees all things cuisine - and his brother Nathan, who manages operations outside of the kitchen. Inspired by their Spanish father, Teo, this dynamic street food business serves up refined yet mighty flavour in oh so generous portions: a fusion Spanish feast brought live and direct to the UK’s thriving street food scene.

But is it challenging working with your sibling? Not according to chef Danny:

“We get on well and stick to our strengths, what we do best. With his background in computing, Nathan covers all the business side of things, while I do all the cooking. My expertise is in fine dining with experience in Michelin starred restaurants. Previously I was working at Casamia in Bristol, and in 2015 it came time for me to plan my next move. I wondered whether that would be at another fine dining restaurant but then I knew it was time for us to translate our passion for bold, delicious flavours into our own street food business.”

Founded in (2015), the Los Hermanos food popup can be found at a number of popular street food markets across Nathan and Danny’s hometown of Bristol where their delicious fare is very much in demand. Combining Danny’s mouth-watering menu with Nathan’s business savvy, together the brothers have developed a tenacious - all be it most amiable - brand. It’s no wonder they won second place in Bristol 247’s Food and Drink Awards in 2017 and were also voted one of the city’s favourite market stalls earlier this year.

One Twitter fan described Los Hermanos’ signature takeaway delights as “magic alchemy food” which sums up this unique - and perhaps sometimes difficult to classify - food offering perfectly. Both sophisticated and playful, Los Hermanos originality is precisely what sets it apart. Simply reading the menu is an open invitation to order everything on there - and just try to resist its charms a second, third, fourth… time around. Take the Pollo Loco, for example - a curry, honey and almond bap brimming with slow cooked chicken and salted pickles, smothered in roast chicken skin mayo - not to mention a smoked aubergine and tomato sauce. Or how’s about the El Petito - sugar cured pork belly, confit paprika onions and roasted red peppers, all doused in chorizo butter and roast garlic mayo and served in a golden brioche bun. There are veggie and vegan options too which are every bit as finely crafted as their meaty counterparts.  

“Our food is high-end, but accessible,” said Danny, “Sometimes customers aren’t exactly sure what we’re about. They look at our stall and wonder, ‘what exactly is it?’ It’s not a burger but it’s not your usual sandwich either. What is roast chicken skin mayo? But once they’ve tried, they’re glad they took the risk. It’s both my hobby and my job so I love to talk about the products to the customers.”

Los Hermanos have travelled to markets and festivals around the UK, but have found that it pays to stay in Bristol where the booming foodie scene sees them serve up to 100 customers a day.

With their superior brand offering, Danny and Nathan needed takeaway food packaging that could keep up the pace which is where labelling and plant-based packaging providers Planglow came into play. Los Hermanos started using items (a 24oz and 32oz street carton plus a burger box) from Planglow’s Street Food packaging range and saw an immediate rise in quality. What’s more, due to the products robust construction they could rest assured their mighty baps and sauces would not go south on customers.

With sustainability and food provence at the heart of the Los Hermanos ethos, Planglow’s environmentally-conscious, compostable products provide the perfect fit.

“All our suppliers are listed on the stall and we use free range, organic dairy and local suppliers - for instance our hot sauce is made by a local artisan. Obviously we use Spanish wholesalers, when necessary but otherwise we choose quality, regional ingredients and, as I cook to order, there is little food waste.

“Some food markets, especially in Bristol, are now asking vendors to stock compostable packaging so it’s really important to have access to plant-based packaging. The quality of Planglow products is great, you really get what you pay for, and the ordering process and delivery time have been perfect from the Planglow team.”

So, what does the future hold for Los Hermanos? No bricks and mortar restaurant will follow anytime soon as Danny and Nathan prefer to take their first-rate food offering to the streets:

“It’s more satisfying to come face-to-face with customers besides, it seems better to go where the party’s at! The street food scene can be challenging, especially in winter. Imagine serving up in the snow! But we’ve survived it and wouldn’t dream of changing our business. We do have a branded trailer if we need it and I love to move to different locations and meet people where they are.

“In terms of developing our business, rather than establishing ourselves in a restaurant, I see us moving in a different direction, perhaps by bottling branded sauces.”

That sounds like street smarts to us - what’s more, we’re sure Teo couldn’t be prouder.

You can keep up with what Los Hermanos are up to on Instagram at @los_hermanosgb or Twitter @LosHermanos_GB.

You can find out more about Planglow’s street food range here.