This old steakhouse transforms into SoCal's hottest salsa dancing hub by night

In the working-class metropolis of Commerce, wherever cars velocity past connected highways and the Citadel Outlets operation implicit neighborhoods, determination is simply a steakhouse named Stevens. By day, it’s a classical and charming aged edifice wherever moving radical spell for quiet, hearty meals.

But each Sunday night, the extracurricular satellite disappears.

As waiters whisk astir successful starched button-ups, couples pb each different by the manus toward the creation level successful the restaurant’s ballroom, wherever Stevens’ contented of Salsa Sundays has been bringing the assemblage unneurotic for 73 years.

At 7 p.m. each Sunday, beginner lessons commencement astatine Stevens Steakhouse.

(Emil Ravelo / For The Times)

An eight-piece set plays brass, electrical guitar, bongos and timbales, filling the country with euphony arsenic dancers twirl successful a dizzying array. One attendee, 29-year-old Amy Hernandez, greets a fewer acquainted faces earlier she steps onto the creation floor, spinning successful assured steps with a wide grin connected her face.

Hernandez is portion of a revival that’s been getting younger radical excited astir salsa euphony — and flocking to Stevens. She grew up watching her begetter creation salsa but started diving backmost into the genre connected her ain to find comfortableness during the L.A. wildfires earlier this year. She credits Bad Bunny’s “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” for re-sparking her interest.

“It was precise healing for me,” she says of the album, which blends old-school Puerto Rican boricua samples with Latin creation and reggaeton influences for an affectional imagining of Puerto Rican identity.

For decades, Stevens has brought friends, couples, and families unneurotic for unrecorded euphony and dance.

(Emil Ravelo/For The Times)

When assemblage friends recommended Stevens arsenic an affordable spot to dance, Hernandez mentioned it successful passing to her dad. “He laughed and said, ‘I retrieve that place. I utilized to creation determination too,’ ” Hernandez says.

The progressively mainstream artists of Latin fusion genre reggaeton are returning to tradition. Along with the euphony of Bad Bunny, who’s headlining the upcoming Super Bowl halftime show, you tin find classical salsa references successful reggaeton prima Rauw Alejandro’s latest album, “Cosa Nuestra,” and successful Colombian popular prima Karol G’s multi-genre summertime album, “Tropicoqueta,” which volition beryllium astatine the halfway of her headlining Coachella set.

“You tin consciousness the younger energy,” says longtime Stevens salsa teacher Jennifer Aguirre. “It makes maine truly blessed to spot a younger procreation instrumentality connected salsa. Because I was disquieted for a bit. I didn’t cognize however salsa is going to continue.”

Los Angeles has a unsocial narration with salsa, the Afro-Caribbean creation calved from Cuban mambo. In cities similar Miami and New York, salsa arrived with Cuban and Puerto Rican immigrants. Instead, L.A.’s salsa power came from Golden Age Hollywood, wherever Latin creation successful movies produced a singular, flashier Angeleno style, characterized by speedy turns and theatrical movement, according to salsa historiographer Juliet McMains.

The 1990s were different precocious constituent for the genre, erstwhile West Coast pioneers similar the Vazquez brothers and their first-of-its-kind creation squad Salsa Brava sparked a section creation craze. The Vazquezes introduced the “on-1” measurement and innovated a flashier, melodramatic benignant of salsa successful L.A. that brought crowds to competitions and congresses done the 2000s. Legendary precocious promoter Albert Torres founded the L.A. Salsa Congress successful 1999, the archetypal legislature connected the West Coast, drafting a worldwide assemblage to Angeleno salsa.

Opened successful 1952 by Steven Filipan (and located connected Stevens Place), Stevens successful Commerce became a section hub for Latin music. “The absorbing portion was that the country wasn’t Latin astatine all,” says Jim Filipan, Steven’s grandson and present the third-generation proprietor of the restaurant. “My gramps had a foresight that this genre would beryllium the future.”

Jim Filipan recalls his puerility increasing up successful the restaurant. “We would person hundreds of radical connected Sundays,” helium says. “The ballroom, the restaurant, everyone was dancing salsa, and it was incredible. My dada took implicit successful the ‘70s, and I was moving it with him successful the ‘90s.”

Yet by the 2010s it was evident that different genre was taking clasp of the Latin creation scene: bachata, ushered successful by smooth-singing New York stars similar Prince Royce and Romeo Santos. Salsa rapidly went from being considered hep to alternatively old-fashioned.

During a Stevens creation lesson, guests larn however to rotation connected the creation floor.

(Emil Ravelo / For The Times)

Aguirre, the Stevens salsa instructor, witnessed firsthand arsenic the nationalist mislaid involvement successful the genre. “It was similar an contiguous switch,” Aguirre says. “Salsa conscionable wasn’t arsenic fashionable anymore, and radical would locomotion implicit to the different broadside of the edifice to instrumentality the bachata lessons.”

The pandemic besides dealt a ample stroke to section salsa clubs, arsenic peers successful the long-standing creation nine manufacture fell to little attendance rates and rising rents. And successful the past year, 2 historical venues, the Conga Room and the Mayan, closed permanently.

Stevens astir had the aforesaid fate. The fiscal burdens during the pandemic made Jim Filipan see closing for good. Yet helium couldn’t assistance but see the work of his family’s bequest and the peculiar spot Stevens holds for section dancers.

“It’s precise affectional for maine due to the fact that I person 4 generations successful this restaurant, and present my girl works here,” helium says.

When Stevens reopened, the assemblage came backmost successful droves, ushering successful a caller epoch of enthusiasm for salsa.

These days, astatine the opening of each class, creation teacher Miguel “Miguelito” Aguirre announces the aforesaid rule.

“Forget astir what happened today, hide astir your week, hide astir each the atrocious stuff. Leave it astatine the door,” helium says. “It’s going to beryllium amended due to the fact that we’re going to creation salsa.”

Dance teacher Miguel Aguirre, right, mans the DJ booth alongside DJ Pechanga, different longtime worker of Stevens. Every weekend, the duo brings Latin euphony to the forefront of the space.

(Emil Ravelo/For The Times)

Aguirre has taught salsa astatine Stevens for 30 years. In galore ways, the steakhouse has shaped his life. It’s wherever helium discovered his emotion for teaching creation and overmuch more.

“I started coming present successful the ‘90s, sneaking successful done the backmost door. I was a teenager, truthful not aged capable to amusement my ID, but 1 day, Jim conscionable said, ‘You guys cannot travel successful done the backmost anymore. You tin travel into the front,’” Aguirre says. “And past 1 time helium said, ‘Hey, we are missing the instructors. They’re not coming in. Can you guys thatch the class?’ And, I’m inactive here.”

Jennifer Aguirre, a chap creation teacher astatine Stevens, is his wife. She met him 1 time astatine Stevens’ yearly Halloween party.

“He asked maine to articulation his people due to the fact that they ‘needed much girls,’” Jennifer says, laughing.

Now Jennifer teaches the beginner’s class, portion Miguel is connected intermediate. But erstwhile 10 p.m. hits, it’s societal dancing time. The full level comes unneurotic and a acquainted assemblage converges. If attendees are lucky, they mightiness drawback Jennifer and Miguel, a smooth-dancing duo, letting loose, stepping and dipping effortlessly.

On a caller Sunday night, the low-lighted ambience of the edifice met the purple lights of the creation room, with radical seated each astir to cheque retired the moves connected display. The aroma of buttery steaks and potatoes cooking successful the room tinged the aerial arsenic the creation level came live with women spinning successful dresses and men successful shining shoes gliding to the bushed of the music. Miguel Aguirre manned the DJ stand, asking 2 singles if they knew each different and encouraging them to dance.

Gregorio Sines was 1 of the solo dancers connected the floor, swaying partners easy nether Miguel’s encouragement. Years ago, his friend, who frequented Stevens, dragged Sines retired to creation socials, telling him it would beryllium the champion mode to conscionable radical and unfastened up.

As idiosyncratic who began with anxiousness to creation successful beforehand of others, Sines present performs successful Stevens’ creation showcases. He says consistently returning to the steakhouse’s historical level and immersing himself successful the supportive assemblage not lone changed his creation game, but brought him retired of his shell.

“I archer anyone, if you’re frightened to dance, you conscionable person to get retired there,” Sines says. “There’s a assemblage waiting for you.”