I’m An Artist, Not A Salesman Podcast
Steve Ruiz on Betting on Yourself, Puerto Rican Food, Family, and Building a Business That Lasts
What happens when you spend 27 years building a career in healthcare , then decide to bet on yourself and build something of your own? For Steve Ruiz , it meant leaving the comfort of a long career, trusting his instincts, and turning a passion for Puerto Rican food into a growing family business. On this episode of I'm An Artist, Not A Salesman , host Luis Guzman sits down with Steve Ruiz, co-owner of Mama D's Empanadas , to talk about entrepreneurship, Puerto Rican culture, family, risk, resilience, and what it really takes to build a business from the ground up. Steve's journey is anything but predictable. Growing up in Bushwick, Brooklyn , he dreamed of playing professional baseball and even had an opportunity to try out with the Minnesota Twins. After suffering a serious knee injury and experiencing a heart attack at just 18 years old, his path took a completely different direction. He eventually found his way into the medical field, where he spent 27 years working at Hospital for Special Surgery. But while Steve had a stable career, he and his wife, Diana, were building something on the side. What started as a food truck grew over six or seven years, introducing customers throughout New Jersey to authentic Puerto Rican empanadas and cuisine. Eventually, people kept asking the same question: Where can we get your food all the time? That question helped push Steve and his family toward opening Mama D's Empanadas , a brick-and-mortar restaurant in New Jersey. Making that leap wasn't easy. Leaving a 27-year career meant giving up security, taking on risk, learning an entirely new industry, and figuring out how to run everything from food preparation to equipment repairs and customer service. Steve explains why he believes failing is easier than succeeding . Failure can teach you what went wrong and give you another chance to improve. Success brings a different challenge: figuring out how to repeat it and keep moving forward. That mindset has helped Steve approach entrepreneurship with patience, accountability, consistency, and a willingness to learn. A major part of the conversation is the importance of Puerto Rican culture and storytelling through food . Steve isn't simply selling empanadas. He's sharing the food, traditions, memories, and family stories behind them. Mama D's is designed to make people feel at home, whether they're Puerto Rican, Latino, or someone experiencing Puerto Rican cuisine for the first time. Puerto Rican food and culture as a foundation for building a business Leaving a 27-year healthcare career to pursue entrepreneurship Growing from a food truck into a brick-and-mortar restaurant Why consistency and quality matter more than gimmicks Learning from customers and constantly developing new empanada flavors The importance of research before taking a major financial risk Why Steve chose to buy the building instead of simply signing a commercial lease Building a business that can become part of the family's long-term legacy The conversation also gets personal. Steve talks openly about fatherhood, raising his children, and the lessons he shared with his daughter before she entered the U.S. Space Force . His daughter went on to become a cybersecurity expert working with satellites, while his son built his own career in Connecticut. Steve's approach is simple: give your children the tools and guidance they need, but don't force them into the family business. Let them create their own path. Listen to IAANAS Podcast: I'm An Artist, Not A Salesman , hosted by Luis Guzman , for real conversations about creativity, business, culture, personal growth, and the messy road to building a life on your own terms.
