First Look: Step Inside a Stunning Birmingham Tex-Mex Spot that Will Transport You to Europe

Ever eaten Tex-Mex in a moody European-style café? No? Here’s your chance: El Royale Café in Birmingham’s Lakeview District, opens May 24 in a converted greenhouse chock-full of design details that whisk diners across the pond and back again. 

“We really wanted to create an unexpected space for this type of cuisine,” says acclaimed celebrity photographer Miller Mobley. After years creating and shooting the perfect scenes for the likes of Time, National Geographic, and of course G&G, the Alabama native wanted to breathe three-dimensional life into his ideas. He joined forces with hospitality executive Sol Andrews and real estate developer Carter Hughes to found hospitality group Mobley & Partners, and El Royale is the trio’s debut venture. 

“We hope people walk into the restaurant through the antique French gates and feel like they’ve entered a cinematic set,” says Jeremy Clark, the new group’s designer, who headed up the interiors to create a sun-soaked patio on one hand and a moody bar on the other. “First, there’s this garden where I feel like I’m lost in a European courtyard. But when I go inside, there’s a sense of mystery and revelry.”

Below, take a peek at El Royale’s interiors—and don’t miss the frozen margaritas, cheesy hamburgers, and sizzling fajitas if you stop by in person.

“We wanted the bar to have a divey spirit and a lot of personality,” Clark says. That translated to stained glass from a local artist, lacquered wallpaper inspired by Dutch marquetry, and red neon lighting for an edgy punch.

An architect based in Nashville and Birmingham custom-designed these window-paned columns, which feature a mirror hand-painted by decorative artist Michael Swann. “Then we added in these sconces with lampshades, and we found this fringed trim at a local textile store and glued it on ourselves,” Clark says. Behind the column, an oxblood-red banquette peeks out; the cozy accent color pops up throughout the space as a nod to European cafés.

Wicker bistro chairs imported from France sit on the red-and-white-checkerboard floor of the outdoor dining terrace. A custom-made fountain serves as the centerpiece of the courtyard, and antique lanterns dangle overhead. 

“This was a greenhouse, and we had no choice but to use it for what it was,” Mobley says of the main dining room. The team created tile platforms to display potted plants, giving the room a bohemian feel. “We don’t want the place to feel pretentious or formal—and the plants and lighting help it feel comfortable and inviting and warm.”

Though craft cocktails will abound, Mobley and Clark hope the margaritas, both on the rocks and frozen, will become an El Royale staple. “We wanted to create a bar that someone could come and spend hours at without feeling like there was anywhere else to be,” Clark says. “To me, it feels both timeless and nostalgic.”