In historic downtown, you’ll find the Root Cellar Café and Brewery, one of the coolest places near TRACE and a San Marcos institution. Before the restaurant opened its doors on the first floor of the historic Donaldson Building in 2005, the building housed G.W. Donaldson and Co. Hardware Store. Later in the 1930s, the hardware store turned into Bond’s Café and Restaurant.
Since then, many businesses have come and gone including the original Paper Bear and Wesray’s Café. Root Cellar Café and Brewery is more than a restaurant. Located on a scenic corner filled with four shops, flanking the Café are a bakery, catering store, and Rhea’s ice cream shop.
Root Cellar Bakery
Follow the sweet smells of the bakery where you can enjoy a wine bar, warm pastries, coffee, decadent desserts, savory items, cheese boards, artisan bread, and more. The bakery can fulfill your requests for custom cakes and gluten-free items.
Rhea’s Ice Cream Parlor
Craving hand-churned ice cream? Head next door to Rhea’s Ice Cream Parlor (pronounced Ray’s) for a variety of flavors ranging from traditional vanilla and mint chocolate chip to unique like Circus Animal Cookie and Avocado Coconut. They even offer Mermaid as a flavor of the month, which tastes like Blueberry Cheesecake.
The original Rhea sold the shop to the owner of the Root Cellar Café. The owner underwent months of training and learning the secret recipes to maintain the quality, flavors, and legacy for which Rhea is known.
San Marcos Brewery with Local Crafted Beer
The Café has its own brewery brewing up Texas craft beer. In addition to beers offered daily, they rotate seasonal brews and change up the selection. They also serve gluten-free beer and flights of beers where you can try smaller amounts of different beers to find your new favorite.
What Makes the Café Extra Special
The San Martians who run Root Cellar take pride in their city and river. In fact, they have a mermaid mural on the wall behind Root Cellar Bakery. As the mascot of San Marcos, the mermaid serves as a reminder of conservation, stewardship, and that the river is the heart of San Marcos.
The café does its part by using sustainable goods. They’re also members of the Mermaid Society, the organization behind the annual popular SMTX Mermaid Splash.
For the café’s staff, every day at work feels like a vacation. They ensure everyone feels at home while enjoying their meal. Follow the Café on Facebook and Instagram for the latest news and photos of their yumlicious food.
Root Cellar Café is one of many places that make San Marcos marvelous. Here are a few more:
- Know where to shop in San Marcos
- Visit San Marcos wine and breweries
- Experience the best outdoor activities in San Marcos
- Find awesome Food Trucks in San Marcos
Looking for a new home in San Marcos close to this café? TRACE in San Marcos is only 8 miles from all this deliciousness.
