Hours before kickoff on Sunday, wine was flowing at Ulloa Cellars for a pre-game party. This party wasn’t celebrating the teams, but the halftime performer, Bad Bunny.
Francisco Ontiveros attended the event.
“I think it's good to have representation," Ontiveros said. "I think the NFL overall is trying to expand not just for Latino voices but worldwide and kind of catching a moment.”
Owner Nancy Ulloa said she wanted to throw this party to celebrate Latino voices on the big stage. As a Latino immigrant herself, she said she wanted to create an event to honor Bad Bunny’s achievement as a Latino performer singing the halftime show in Spanish.
“I think that it's time for people to realize that we bring a lot to our communities, a lot of joy, a lot of work, a lot of light," Ulloa said. "For me to be able to host a space where people feel comfortable and happy and joyful, it's the most thing that I could ever ask for.”
Ulloa said she made it a pre-game so people can be at home to celebrate with their families once the game starts.
Ontiveros said he’s glad he found a space like this to celebrate Latino voices in Paso Robles.
“Paso's definitely wine dense," Ontiveros said. "So it's nice to find a niche and be able to be around people who feel the same way about stuff. Yeah, it's really enjoyable.”
During the game, Hannah Ford was watching from Beda’s Biergarten in San Luis Obispo.
“I decided to go out because I think it's more fun to watch with people who, like, are kind of new to me and all kind of are rooting for like different teams rather than just inviting a few friends over," Ford said.
Owner Beda Schmidthues said this is always a big day for them and they’re happy to bring people together.
“That's why we opened it," Schmidthues said. "We wanted community. You know, we have enough competition and stuff in the world. For us here, you come in here and you're just part of all of it.”
