Rangels’ Last Rodeo
Couple bringing Tex-Mex flair to Archer City
Gino and Stacy Rangel are building a new Tex-Mex identity into Lucky’s Café in Archer City after their arrival to the restaurant in late 2022.
Gino came to Lucky’s Café as the kitchen manager in October following the closing of his restaurant, Thad & Paisley’s in Scotland, after nine years of operation. Stacy has been with Lucky’s Café since July.
Gino said he has been a cook all his life since beginning at his family’s restaurant, Freddy’s Casa Manana, at 15-years-old. The popular Mexican restaurant famous for the Red Taco was located on Old Iowa Park Road in northern Wichita Falls.
Following the closure of Freddy’s Casa Manana, Gino and his brother created Thad & Paisley’s in Scotland as their last business enterprise. The restaurant featured Casa Manana’s Mexican menu as well as
other favorites like chick- en fried steak and catfish.
“When we sold that restaurant, I was going to do different things,” Gino said. “But Stacy was manager here and I just wanted to come make this better for the community. And that’s what I’m trying to do.”
The kitchen manager recognized however that making the changes wouldn’t be possible without help.
“This kind of business it takes a team, a family, to make it happen,” Gino said. “So, you have to develop a relationship with those that work for you or work with you and you have to a community that will accept what you are doing and everything that goes along with it.”
Since coming to Lucky’s Café, Rangel has added more Mexican dishes to the menu including enchiladas, tamale, burritos and much more while also maintaining favorites like pizza, subs, hamburgers and other daily specials.
The cook added seeing his regulars and community are what keeps him cooking and what makes cooking fun.
“I love it, I love cooking and I love doing what I do,” Gino said. “I’m just trying to make it better and this is kind of like my last rodeo.”
You can catch Gino at Lucky’s Café on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and every other weekend.
“Somedays its just Gino in the kitchen and then somebody else will come in at 11 a.m. and work through the night shift,” Stacy said. “Somedays it’s Gino and Mandy (White) back there.”
