Jesus Pena and his big sisters Carmina and Sonia knew the sights and sounds of the downtown Harlingen of their growing up years. 

They grew up on Monroe Street, within walking distance of downtown, as well as their schools, churches and stores. Jesus recalled a neighborhood barber shop on Van Buren Street where his father took him as a child. It’s just down the street from the former barber shop site where the siblings today own and operate Sir’s Martini Lounge on West Van Buren. Downtown Harlingen is a block or two away. 

The 4,000-square-foot upscale lounge with its eclectic mix of artwork tastefully hung and placed throughout two connected buildings is the brainchild of Jesus Pena. He has three decades of experience in the bar and restaurant business. Pena’s inclination was to go back to his roots – the downtown area – to open his own business.

“Some of my friends and other people I spoke with thought I was crazy,” Pena recalled. “They were skeptical about having a business in the downtown area.”

Those doubts proved to be misguided. Pena recalled his first night of business in November 2019.

“We had a full house,” he said. 

Sir’s has only grown since then with a recent expansion  in available space next door. It roughly doubled the square footage of the business to meet growing customer demand. With the expansion, Sir’s now also has an outdoor patio that has become a customer favorite. 

“We love it here,” Sonia Pinon said of the business she shares with her siblings. “We have such great memories of this part of town.”

Art & Beverage Mix

Sir’s has a beverage menu one would expect from a business whose owner has a long background in the business.

There are wide varieties of vodkas, whiskies, tequilas, beers and of course, martinis. The Sir’s Facebook page features one colorful photo after another of cocktails, beers and shots sure to liven the spirits. Beyond the adult beverage selections, there is also a dazzling array of diverse artwork found throughout the bar’s physical layout. It’s so eclectic in nature and presentation that at first glance it doesn’t seem to be a good mix. But it is once a visitor settles in and views the panorama from one of the many well-designed sitting areas. 

“It’s a mix of everything,” Carmina Pena-Mojdehi said. “Everything is for sale as far as the artwork we have, so we’re always mixing it up and changing things.”

The sitting areas of comfy couches and chairs are sprinkled throughout Sir’s in addition to the classic bar side seating. Anywhere inside or outdoors under a covered patio is a good spot to sit with friends and business acquaintances to contemplate the day’s events with a great drink in hand and artwork all around.

“Ambience is so beautiful and eccentric,” said one customer, Patricia Rodriguez Jackson on Sir’s Facebook page. “I love it!”

Family Pride

The added element from the perspective of Sir’s owners is one of family and the bond between them.

“We get along great,” said Pena-Mojdehi, who in one Facebook post lovingly referred to Jesus as “my little brother.”  

She referred to how the siblings collaborate and rely on each other with a trust reminiscent of close family members. Another sibling, Abelardo Pena Jr., helps out at the bar. There’s a younger generation of family members in the business as well. Sonia’s daughter, Armanda Hartley, plays a key operational manager’s role. 

The Penas are natives of Matamoros who moved to the Valley as young children, settling on Monroe Street in Harlingen. They each had productive careers in various fields before gathering later in life at a family business just blocks from where they grew up. Thoughts go to their late parents, Abelardo and Elisa Pena, and what they would think of their children now as they unite to run and own a business.

“They would be so proud,” Pinon said. “We’re all here together, working here, working together.”