Vincent Arriaga, son of owner Rosie Arriaga, displays many of Rosie’s Tamale House’s signature dishes. Photo by Joe Olivieri/Community Impact Newspaper[/caption]
Rosie Arriaga and her husband, Joe, began selling tamales out of a gas station at the corner of Hwy. 71 and RM 620 in the early 1970s, Rosie's son Vincent said.
"From 1973 to 1984 they went from a window and two tables [at the gas station] to a five dining room-restaurant," he said.
Since 1984 the Arriaga family has served authentic Mexican food from family recipes at their 13436 W. Hwy. 71 restaurant in Bee Cave.
Rosie's has served celebrities such as musicians Willie Nelson and George Strait, University of Texas football coach Darrell Royal and former Gov. Rick Perry as well as many loyal customers whose photos cover a wall of the main dining room, Vincent said.
"Some customers said, 'Hey, we're celebrities too! Why aren't our pictures on the wall?' So we started putting them up. Some [photos] are over 30 years old."
The restaurant's recipes came from Joe, but the restaurant's signature dish—the tamales—came from Rosie's mother, Vincent said.
The menu has expanded to include popular dishes such as quesadillas.
"We started out serving 'authentic Mexican food,'" Vincent said. "Then we served 'Mexican' food. Then it was 'Tex-Mex.'"
Vincent recommends Rosie's Combination Plate No. 1 to first-time visitors. He described it as a sampler of what the restaurant serves. It includes guacamole salad, a crispy beef taco, chile con queso, an enchilada and a tamale for $11.95.
Tuesdays and Saturdays are fajita nights, he said. On Tuesdays the restaurant opens for a few hours and offers its barbecued marinated beef and chicken dishes.
The restaurant serves breakfast including breakfast tacos and offers lunch specials from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Joe died in 1997. Rosie and her children remain involved in the business.
Vincent said he hopes to add an outdoor patio to the property in the future. He would also like to see the BYOB restaurant serve beer and wine.
However, the recipes and the service will not be changing any time soon.
"If we changed anything at this point, people would be upset," he said.
Menu options
- Chile relleno plate—beef or chicken served with guacamole and chile con queso ($9.65)
- Chalupa compuestas—crispy shells of tortilla with beans, meat, cheese, lettuce and guacamole ($8.65)
- Willie's Plate—one taco, chile con queso, guacamole and one beef enchilada with hot tortillas served on a platter ($9.65)
- Rosie's Fajitas—marinated beef or chicken fajita with guacamole, sour cream, onions, lettuce, cheese, pico de gallo, beans and flour tortillas (single order $11.95, double order $21.90)
- Rosie's Combination Plate No. 2—guacamole salad, a crispy beef taco, an enchilada and a tamale ($10.95)
- Nachos compuestas—six bean spread, meat and cheese nachos, guacamole, sour cream and jalapenos ($7.25)
