Casa Rodriguez | Photo provided by Sophia Rodriguez
Casa Rodriguez, located at 202 W Logan St. Celina, Ohio, started in February of 1981 under the care of Ignacia and Tolentino Rodriguez. The restaurant has served the Celina community for over 40 years by providing authentic Mexican dishes and a welcoming environment.
Casa’s history
Casa’s founders, Ignacia and Tolentino, are not as involved as they once were as their daughters Margaret and Sophia have stepped up to help the restaurant business.
The restaurant started after the Rodriguez couple had a taco stand at the Mercer County Fair. It was there when Ignacia fine-tuned her cooking skills in bulk cooking.
“I remember being at home and my mom was making all of this food, all these different types of food, and inviting people over. Little did I know at the time, they were testing some of the items that they wanted to sell at the restaurant,” Sophia Rodriguez said.
According to Casa’s website, all of the recipes and special seasonings you enjoy at Casa Rodriguez began in a one-room, self-standing kitchen located in China, Nuevo León, Mexico. It had a dirt floor, no running water or electricity and the smells of food cooking from the chiminea filled the air along with the warm coals that made the magic happen.
Casa provides the community with a wide variety of authentic Mexican dishes that are sure to hit the spot.
Community support
According to Sophia Rodriguez, the coronavirus pandemic helped the business grow over the past year.
“What it did was force us to create new ways in which we engage with our customers. We developed a social media frenzy with customers by doing Facebook Lives and including the customers that came through after we shut down,” Rodriguez said.
Casa prides itself on being a safe and friendly place for the community to gather.
Coldwater native Jake Meyer visits the restaurant when he is home from college.
“I always like the authentic food that they have there. I don’t know what it is, but their rice and beans are my absolute favorite around,” Meyer said.
According to Shannon Woeste, another Coldwater local, she and her family visit from time to time and enjoys the comfortable atmosphere that Casa provides.
Casa Rodriguez can be found on their website https://casarodriguezcelina.com/ and on Facebook.
