KENNETT SQUARE—La Peña Mexicana is open every day, and most days Julian Peña himself is there to welcome customers. This award-winning restaurant, a Kennett Square landmark that Philadelphia Inquirer restaurant critic Craig LaBan describes, with all affection, as “striped like a bumblebee in a Mexican flag,” feels cozy and familiar. The bilingual staff greet customers with menus and friendly smiles. “When I’m here—which is almost always—I work to make people happy so they come back,” Julian says. He loves to talk with his customers and sing while he’s cooking. “I don’t mind if people think I’m crazy,” he says. “It makes me happy.”