Remember the Warrenton Denny’s? It’s a Family Cantina Now: Casa Tequila
Revised October 11, 2026
Where is Casa Tequila Cantina & Grill and what does it serve?
If your map still sends you to the Warrenton outlet center, it’s out of date: Casa Tequila Cantina & Grill now cooks in the former Denny’s at 429 E Veterans Memorial Pkwy, (636) 377-1269. Its sister kitchen is at 905 Caledonia Dr in O’Fallon’s Winghaven, (636) 284-7385. Both open at 11 a.m. daily. Order street tacos, sizzling fajitas or the Trash Can Nachos, and ask for a 100% agave tequila in your margarita: a label that just says tequila only has to be 51 percent agave.
Keep reading ↓Remember the Warrenton Denny’s? Seventeen years of coffee refills and Grand Slams on Veterans Memorial Parkway, and then one afternoon the signs came down and the doors were locked. “Well guys, after 17 years at Warrenton Denny’s... We are closed for good,” a longtime employee wrote on Facebook.
It didn’t stay dark. Walk into that room now and it smells like charred peppers and lime; a skillet of fajitas comes hissing past your booth, steak and onions still spitting, and somebody at the next table turns to look. Jessenia Lopez and Leo Carmona, who run Casa Tequila Cantina & Grill, didn’t lease the old Denny’s. They bought it. “If this is like the long haul, and we’re gonna do this for the rest of our lives, we might as well just buy something,” Lopez told the Warren County Record. It’s the small-town turn people forward to each other: the diner closes, and the family down the road buys it so they never have to leave.
That move trips people up, so text this part to whoever’s driving: map apps may still send you to the family’s old unit in the Shoppes at Warrenton outlet center, and that unit is closed. The Warrenton kitchen is 429 E Veterans Memorial Pkwy now, the former Denny’s, and the sister kitchen is 905 Caledonia Dr in the Winghaven neighborhood of O’Fallon. Both open at 11 every morning.
Then order like a regular. Street tacos, carne asada, al pastor, barbacoa or shrimp. A skillet of fajitas for the table. The Trash Can Nachos, exactly as over-the-top as the name promises, with a margarita on the rocks, salt crusted on the rim and cold against your lip. Ask which tequilas behind the bar say “100% agave” on the label, because the word “tequila” alone promises less than people think: under Mexico’s official tequila standard, a bottle labeled just “Tequila” only has to get 51 percent of its sugars from blue agave, and up to 49 percent can come from other sugars, as the Tequila Regulatory Council spells out. Same glass, same salt, same lime, and nearly half the sugar that tequila was distilled from can be something other than agave. Screenshot that for whoever always orders the house margarita without asking. Those nachos are the dish people post about: Atly’s review-based roundup of Missouri’s best queso and nacho spots lists the Winghaven kitchen first. Ask for a to-go box early, because the portions win. And if you’re the one planning the graduation party or the backyard birthday, the same family will roll a taco truck up your driveway: email casatequilawinghaven@gmail.com with the date, the place and a head count.
Two kitchens, one family, one new address
Walk into Winghaven on a warm night and the patio is the first thing you hear. Casa Tequila Cantina & Grill is one restaurant with two kitchens on the western edge of the metro. Winghaven: 905 Caledonia Dr, O’Fallon, (636) 284-7385. Warrenton: 429 E Veterans Memorial Pkwy, (636) 377-1269. Both run 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 10 on Fridays and Saturdays. “Winghaven” isn’t a separate town, just the name of the O’Fallon store’s neighborhood.
The Warrenton story is the one locals repeat. The couple’s first home there, in the outlet center, came with little more than tables and booths; they built out a bar and bought about 90 percent of the restaurant equipment themselves before the Denny’s down the road came up for sale.
And if a friend says Casa Tequila closed, they’re thinking of Casa Tequila Bar & Grill in St. Peters, a different restaurant. Both Casa Tequila Cantina & Grill kitchens are open and cooking.
Both kitchens answer to the same couple, so the menu and the standards travel between them, and regulars order the same plate at either door without a second thought.
What to order when the skillet hits the table
Five things on the menu earn the drive out I-70 or down Caledonia:
Street tacos: carne asada, al pastor, barbacoa or shrimp, small enough that you order three and argue over the last one.
Sizzling fajitas: steak or chicken, arriving loud enough that the whole room knows what you ordered.
The Trash Can Nachos: the signature, and big; Atly’s review roundup calls the portion large, and it’s the plate that gets photographed before anyone touches it.
Carne asada and chunky guacamole: the guac comes cold and bright with lime against warm chips.
The margaritas: the reason the place is named for tequila, poured from a deep shelf that runs from a clean blanco to a slow-sipping añejo.
Portions run big enough that the to-go box is part of the meal, and the chips keep coming warm while you decide.
Eating at home? Both kitchens do takeout and deliver through the major apps, and tacos and fajitas ride out the drive across O’Fallon or out to Wright City better than most food does. On a weeknight when nobody wants to cook and everyone is tired of the pizza rotation, that’s the call.
Tequila: why “100% agave” on the bottle matters
The name isn’t an accident. Casa Tequila leans into its bar with a deep tequila selection - the kind of range that lets you drink your way from a familiar blanco to a smoky, sipping-quality añejo. If tequila has only ever meant the burn of a bad college shot, this is a good place to be gently corrected. Two label words do most of the work. “100% agave” means every sugar in the bottle came from blue agave; without it, the rules allow up to 49 percent other sugars. Then the age: under the same standard, a reposado rests at least two months in oak, an añejo at least a year, and an extra añejo at least three years, so the darker the pour, the longer it sat in the barrel.
The margaritas are the headliner for most tables, and regulars are loyal to them - classic on the rocks, blended with fruit, or built up into something more ambitious. Pair one with the Trash Can Nachos to start and you’ve got the platonic ideal of a St. Charles County Friday night. For anyone not drinking, the usual Mexican-restaurant standbys and soft options are on hand too, so the designated driver isn’t stuck with water. It’s the kind of bar program that makes the place work equally well for a casual weeknight and a birthday worth celebrating - you can keep it simple or make a night of it, and the room flexes to match.
A patio, a pitcher and a game on in Winghaven
Casa Tequila leans into a warm, upscale-casual feel - comfortable enough for a family dinner, lively enough for a night out with friends. The Winghaven location in particular plays up the social, patio-and-sports side of things, with outdoor space and an easygoing atmosphere that suits a summer evening and a pitcher of margaritas. It’s the kind of place where a quick weeknight dinner and a leisurely celebration both feel right at home.
Service gets consistent praise, which matters as much as the food for a neighborhood restaurant. When people describe why they keep returning, it’s usually some combination of the flavors, the generous plates, the drinks, and staff who make you feel like a regular even on a first visit - a rare combination that’s harder to find than it should be. That’s the quiet advantage of a family-run place: the owners are often on the floor, and it shows in how the room is run.
Waiting on the skillet? Lewis Place, back in the city, has a story worth the ten minutes.
Why the names over the door matter
It’s easy to default to a national chain when you’re hungry and don’t want to think. But there’s a real case for a place like Casa Tequila instead. When Jessenia Lopez and Leo Carmona own the restaurant, the quality is personal - their name is on it, their neighbors are the customers, and a bad night isn’t a data point on a corporate dashboard, it’s a face they’ll see at the grocery store. That accountability is exactly why independent restaurants so often out-cook their chain competition on flavor and care.
It’s also where your money goes further for the community. Dollars spent at a locally owned restaurant circulate back through the local economy far more than dollars spent at a chain, and the character it adds to a place like Winghaven or Warrenton - a real gathering spot, not an interchangeable box - is the kind of thing a suburb misses only after it’s gone. Choosing the family-run taco spot over the drive-thru is a small vote for the kind of town you want to live in.
First visit: chips, guac, then the nachos
Never been? Keep it simple. Start with chips and the chunky guacamole while you look at the menu, and put in an order of the Trash Can Nachos if you’re with a group - it’s built to share and it’s the signature for a reason. For the main event, the street tacos are the easiest crowd-pleaser (get a mix - carne asada, al pastor, barbacoa), while the sizzling fajitas make the whole table turn to look when they arrive. Add a margarita, pace yourself, and you’ve had the full Casa Tequila experience on the first try. Bring the family or a crew - the portions are generous and the room is built for a good time, not a hushed one. And if the weather’s good, ask about patio seating at the Winghaven location; a margarita outdoors on a warm St. Charles County evening is hard to beat, and it’s exactly the sort of small, local pleasure that’s easy to overlook until you make a habit of it.
Craving another basket of warm chips somewhere else in the metro? Our guide to the best Mexican food in St. Louis rounds up local favorites across the region - real places, real reviews, no algorithm deciding what you see.
If you’re the taqueria, the cantina or the family kitchen behind the sizzling skillets, the Gold plan keeps your address, hours and photos in front of more customers, so a move like Casa Tequila’s sends diners to the new door, not the old one.
Winghaven or Warrenton: which one to drive to
The two locations quietly cover a lot of ground on the western side of the metro. The O’Fallon store sits in Winghaven, a master-planned community of homes, offices, and green space in one of the fastest-growing parts of the metro - the kind of neighborhood with plenty of families looking for a go-to dinner spot that isn’t a chain. It draws easily from O’Fallon, Lake Saint Louis, Dardenne Prairie, and Wentzville, which has its own family-run favorite in Chimi’s Fresh-Mex on Wentzville Center Drive.
The Warrenton location, the original, anchors the western edge of the metro along the I-70 corridor, where good sit-down Mexican is genuinely harder to come by. For folks out that way - Warrenton, Wright City, and the surrounding towns - having a from-scratch, family-run cantina nearby is no small thing. Between the two, Casa Tequila has become the reliable answer to “where should we get Mexican tonight” across a wide stretch of the western suburbs and the I-70 towns beyond them.
The food truck, for your backyard party
Casa Tequila also runs a food truck for private events - a fun way to bring the tacos, fajitas, and margarita energy to a birthday, office party, graduation, or backyard get-together without anyone having to cook or clean up. There’s something about a taco truck pulling up to your own driveway that turns an ordinary afternoon into an occasion; guests remember it in a way they don’t remember a tray of grocery-store sandwiches. Rates and availability vary by date and event size, so the move is to email casatequilawinghaven@gmail.com with your date, time, location, and rough head count, and let them put together a menu that fits. It’s a simple way to make a gathering feel like a party without you doing the work.
Two addresses to save in your phone
Two spots to choose from, depending on your corner of the county:
O’Fallon / Winghaven: 905 Caledonia Dr, O’Fallon, MO 63368 - (636) 284-7385.
Warrenton: 429 E Veterans Memorial Pkwy, Warrenton, MO 63383, in the former Denny’s building - (636) 377-1269.
Both locations generally run Sunday through Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. As with any restaurant, hours can shift around holidays and private events, so a quick call ahead never hurts before you make the drive. Between the two locations you’ve got the western edge of the metro covered - and if you’re making a night of it near O’Fallon, historic St. Charles Main Street is an easy add for a post-dinner stroll.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Casa Tequila Cantina & Grill located?
Two places. The Winghaven location is at 905 Caledonia Dr in O’Fallon, (636) 284-7385. The original Warrenton restaurant moved out of the outlet center into the former Denny’s at 429 E Veterans Memorial Pkwy, Warrenton, (636) 377-1269. “Winghaven” is the O’Fallon store’s neighborhood, not a third restaurant.
What is the most ordered Mexican food?
Nobody keeps an official tally, but tacos are the everyday order at most Mexican kitchens, and Casa Tequila is no exception. Its street tacos come in carne asada, al pastor, barbacoa and shrimp, so a mixed plate is the easy first order. Groups usually add the Trash Can Nachos, which are built to share.
What is the healthiest Mexican dish to order?
Grilled protein with vegetables is the safest bet. At Casa Tequila that means steak or chicken fajitas, heavy on the peppers and onions and light on the cheese and sour cream, or a few street tacos with salsa instead of queso. Our guide to eating healthy at a St. Louis restaurant covers the menu words to watch.
What are the best restaurants in O’Fallon, MO?
It depends on the night. For Mexican near Winghaven, Casa Tequila is the family-run pick, with margaritas, a patio and a kitchen that cooks the same on a random Tuesday as on a packed Saturday. For the rest of town, from date nights to late nights, our guide to things to do in O’Fallon picks up from there.
What’s the best Mexican restaurant in St. Louis?
There’s no single winner, and anyone who names one is starting an argument. In the city, Cherokee Street is the classic taqueria crawl. Out west, Casa Tequila is the family-run favorite in O’Fallon and Warrenton. Our local’s guide to the best Mexican food in St. Louis maps the rest of the metro.
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