“It’s something that I always wanted to do, and when this spot opened up, I took it,” said Robinson Perez, the owner of Sazon Dominicano, 215 Bridge St., Catasauqua.

The restaurant had a soft opening Aug. 10 at the eatery, which was the former Bridge Street Family Restaurant.

“We had some people come through, and everyone liked coming in to try what we had,” he said.

Perez is operating the restaurant with a limited staff. Menus are still on back order, and he is taking time to get the new place organized. He has an arrangement with Weyerbacher Brewery for special events.

The building’s owner, Wilbur Hill, is happy with the new restaurant owners.

“This is a long-standing restaurant, and my mother always ran everything. I am so happy we have someone who has great food and will keep the tradition of a family restaurant on Bridge Street,” Hill said.

With the government restrictions on restaurants all around the state, it takes quite a leap of faith to open a new restaurant at this time.

“People like the food we make. There is always something here, so you can do take-aways. We are willing to work hard to make this a successful restaurant,” Perez said.

Many family restaurants fall back on staples you can make at home, but Perez is looking for a special touch. His signature item is the Cuban sandwich.

“People all over the Valley come here for the Cuban. I make the best one. Have others bring in their best Cuban, and they will walk away humbled when they taste my Cuban,” he challenged.

Perez is working with his son Alexander and his partner Yancarla Botier.

“As we grow, we can add more staff. Right now, we want to serve good food well,” he said.

As for drinks, “We have a good selection of Dominican soft drinks, and we have fresh passion fruit drink,” he said. “It’s like Punta Cana without the sunburn and the long flight.”

While Sazon is waiting on menus, they also have outdoor seating on order. Outdoor space is limited, but Perez and Hill are working together to create outdoor seating.

“We want to have a grand opening when we get the outdoor seating here,” Perez said.