7 things to know about Matt’s El Rancho as the Tex-Mex icon turns 70
You can count the number of restaurants with deeper Austin roots than Matt’s El Rancho one hand, and you wouldn’t even need all five fingers.
The restaurant Matt and Janie Martinez opened as a 40-seat homecooking spot in 1952 transformed over the decades into the city’s temple of Tex-Mex.
As the restaurant that made Bob Armstrong a household name celebrates its 70th birthday, we take a look at seven defining facts about the multigenerational favorite.
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On the move
Matt and Janie Martinez opened their original restaurant on East First Street (now Cesar Chavez Street) on July 7, 1952, and moved it to South Lamar Boulevard, where it currently resides, in 1986.
Taste transformation
The original menu included plate lunches, with dishes like chicken fried steak, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, black-eyed peas and cornbread. Initially, there were only a few Tex-Mex dishes, but those offerings grew as customer demand increased.
Pavement power
Martinez used to stand on the street and tempt diners to try his restaurant risk free: If they didn’t like their meals, he would give them their money back.
Size matters
The restaurant on South Lamar is one of the biggest in Austin, with seating for more than 500 guests.
Remembering the founders
Matt Martinez, who was an Army veteran and Golden Gloves boxer, died in 2003. Janie died more than a decade later.
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Legacy of love
The Martinez’s three daughters — Cathy Kreitz, Gloria Reyna and Cecilia Muela — continue their parents’ legacy as owners, along with their sister-in-law Estella Martinez, widow of their late brother, Matt Jr.
Gotta get a Bob
One of Matt’s most famous dishes, Bob Armstrong Dip, was whipped up in impromptu fashion as an appetizer when the late Texas land commissioner was dining at the restaurant. The dip is made of queso with guacamole and ground beef.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin Tex-Mex restaurant Matt’s El Rancho turns 70
