Architecture in Fort Worth
The relocation of Fort Worth’s oldest eatery, The Original Mexican Eats Café was confirmed in a statement sent out by the restaurant’s owner Robert Self, Monday. The 4713 Camp Bowie Boulevard location that started it all will be relocating and consolidating its operations at its newest restaurant The Original Del Norte, located at 1400 North Main Street in March.
This news comes in light of a recent lease agreement issue that left the restaurant in a legal bind. According to court documents released last year, there has been a dispute between property owner Joe Frank Muzquiz and Original owner Robert L. Self over the restaurant’s lease since it was signed in 2003. It was Muzquiz’s mother, the late Leticia Grimaldo who signed the 2003 lease agreement and it was Muzquiz who inherited the property from her in 2014. Last year, the El Paso state of appeals court heard the lease agreement and returned it for a future hearing in Tarrant County. The 8th Texas Court of Appeals in El Paso ruled that the lease is not “perpetual” and can end.
Self wrote in a statement sent out to the media Monday:
“After dishing out authentic Tex-Mex cuisine for nearly a century, the Camp Bowie restaurant will serve its final meal Friday March 31, 2023. We cherish the five generations of loyal customers who have supported us through many decades, and we thank them for loving out enchiladas, tacos, tostadas, Margaritas, and laid-back ambience. We recognize and regret that this is the end of an era for Fort Worth’s West Side. The Original is dedicated to carrying on the atmosphere and traditions at the North Main Street location. All employees will be offered jobs there.”
The Original Mexican Eats Cafe on Camp Bowie is the oldest remaining Fort Worth restaurant, having set up shop at its current location in 1926. Since then, this Cowtown institution, has had its share of celebrity clientele, which include former President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and his son Elliot, who has a plate on the Original’s menu named after him. This famous menu item entitled the “Roosevelt Special” includes — one cheese enchilada with chili, one beef taco and one bean chalupa.
Restaurant founders Lola San Miguel Piñeda from Múzquiz, Mexico, and her husband, former Spanish soldier Gerónimo Piñeda of Barcelona, moved here via Laredo and Waco and opened The Original in 1930, according to Star-Telegram archives and census records. (Self has cited a 1926 opening date.)
“We recognize and regret that this is the end of an era for Fort Worth’s West Side,” Self wrote on social media. “We want to emphasize that we are dedicated to carrying on the Original’s fabulous food, fun atmosphere, and long running traditions at our North Side location.”
