EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — A local favorite, Rosco’s Burger Inn, reopened on March 5 after a kitchen fire forced them close for 10 months. After a nearly one-year setback, they’re mounting an epic comeback.
“There were about 35 people in that line. It was like, ‘Oh man!’, but it was reassuring for them that everything was going to be OK,” said Rosco’s owner and operator Jacob Carrasco.
Carrasco said he was fortunate to retain his entire team, but added there was uncertainty among them about how the community would respond when they reopened.
“It’s been exhilarating. It’s nice to be back. It’s humbling the response that we’ve gotten from El Paso,” Carrasco said.
Since reopening, Rosco’s has had lines of customers even before their doors open with people anxious to try the famous burger they dearly missed.
“We have to have our Rosco’s; it’s been a while,” said Ivonne Villa, who was first in line with her family at 10 in the morning before Rosco’s opens for business on Saturday.
“Yes, it’s been a long time, long overdue,” said her husband Juan Carlos Villa.
“First chance we had today. We got up early and decided to show up and try to beat the line, but it didn’t seem like it worked,” said Keith Gutierrez, who despite showing early, wasn’t even in the middle of the line.
Carrasco’s back “in the trenches” as they say at Rosco’s, meaning he’s at the grill during peak hours, preparing their distinctly tasting burgers.
“Its taste takes me back to the 60s; it tastes like El Paso,” said Luis Fernando Ramos, who was second in line.
“Delicious food, especially the onion rings,” Villa said. “Gotta have the onion rings,” agreed his wife.
“That sweet onion taste man,” Gutierrez said.
Rosco’s will be pushing towards 70 years in business in July of 2025, and Carrasco said that made the last 10 months more challenging, having to undergo many updates and structural changes.
“It was just the snowball effect, if you will. Once they took care of this, then that created a new situation that needed to be addressed. Once we addressed that one, that splintered off into four others,” Carrasco said.
Short for Carrasco, Rosco’s legacy spans back to 1955 when Carrasco’s grandfather opened the business. The business was passed on to his father, and then on to him.
His mark will be bringing the business back on its feet after the fire.
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