[dropcap size=big]W[/dropcap]eeks before the city went into lockdown last March, Buford Lewis III was still feeling the loss of his brother when two suspected coronavirus cases at the warehouse he worked at in Chino pushed the company to begin to institute masks and social distancing requirements.
On the same day, Lewis was forced to defend himself after a co-worker accused him of allegedly threatening them. (Lewis denied the claim). The following day, he decided not to go back to work. With $200 in his bank account, the father of four put his money on his passion for ceviche, and he hasn’t looked back since. “I haven’t had a job in a year,” Lewis, who goes by Mr. Ceviche Mann on Instagram, tells L.A. TACO. “I went to a supermarket in the [Inland Empire], and I said, ‘I’m going to make some ceviche.’”
Lewis’s passion for ceviche has been an 11-year journey
After someone showed him how to make what he describes as a “basic ceviche” more than a decade ago—being the kind of person who enjoys cooking and baking at home—in his downtime, Lewis began perfecting his recipe. “You always experiment,” Lewis said as he recounted the early days of learning how to make ceviche.
As his product improved over time, Lewis began sharing with close friends and family. “Family members started hitting me up saying, hey man, that ceviche you made yesterday was bomb.” Eventually, Lewis got the nod of approval from his friend’s “abuelitas.” Shortly before quitting his job at the warehouse, he began selling his ceviche to his co-workers.