**EXHIBIT 31.1**

 

CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO SECTION 302

 

 

**CERTIFICATION OF  PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER**

 

I, Frederick F. Wolfe,certify that: 

 
|   | 1. | I have reviewed  this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal period ended March 27,  2005 of Real Mex Restaurants, Inc.; |
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|   | 2. | Based on my  knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material  fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made,  in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not  misleading with respect to the period covered by this report; |
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|   | 3. | Based on my  knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included  in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial  condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and  for, the periods presented in this report; |
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|   | 4. | The registrant’s  other certifying officers and I are responsible for establishing and  maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and  15d-15(e)) for the registrant and have: |
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(a) Designed suchdisclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls andprocedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that materialinformation relating to the registrant, including its consolidatedsubsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularlyduring the period in which this annual report is being prepared;

 

(b) Evaluated theeffectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures andpresented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of thedisclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by thisreport based on such evaluation; and

 

(c) Disclosed inthis report if any change in the registrant’s internal control over financialreporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (theregistrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that hasmaterially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, theregistrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and 

 
|   | 5. | The registrant’s  other certifying officers and I have disclosed, based on our most recent  evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s  auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or  persons performing the equivalent functions): |
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(a) All significantdeficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internalcontrol over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adverselyaffect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and reportfinancial information; and

 

(b) Any fraud,whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have asignificant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

May 10, 2005 

 

 
|   |   | By:    | /s/ FREDERICK F.  WOLFE                                    |   |
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|   |   |   | Frederick F.  Wolfe*President and Chief Executive Officer* |

 

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