Tia Juanita’s Fish Shop moving into old Lufkin Posados building

LUFKIN, Texas (KTRE) - A Tia Juanita’s Fish Camp restaurant is coming to Lufkin, and it will be in the old Posados building located at 3102 S. John Redditt Drive.

Ricky Martinez, the majority owner in a chain of the restaurants in Southeast Texas, said their original target opening date was April 1. However, he said they are a little behind schedule because the flooding in Winnie delayed the opening of that Tia Juanita’s Fish Camp. As a result, Martinez said they hope to open the Lufkin location by mid-April or early May.

The leadership of the Tia Juanita’s chain filed a building permit with the City of Lufkin on Jan. 14.

Martinez, who is originally from Canton and graduated from Tyler Junior College, described Tia Juanita’s food as “Mexi-Cajun,” or a fusion of Mexican and Cajun dishes. He said the restaurant has dishes like fish or shrimp tacos, gumbo, New Orleans-style barbecue shrimp, ribeye steaks, and quesadillas with seafood or boudin.

Martinez said they’re going to add their trademark sea-green exterior to the old Posados building. He said they will be building an outdoor patio and extending the existing bar. The interior will have an eclectic mix of decor ranging from pirate and diving themes to “pop art” and Mexican- and Mardis Gras-themed decorations.

Lufkin’s Tia Juanita’s Fish Camp will have live music on the patio Wednesday through Saturday, Martinez said.

“We’re serious about our food, and we sell a good time,” Martinez said.

Martinez said they rely on word-of-mouth from their satisfied customers. He added that they have been named the best restaurant in Beaumont for four years in a row. The most recent time was last year.

The chain currently has restaurants in Beaumont, Lumberton, Port Arthur, Jasper, and Winnie. The first Tia Juanita’s Fish Camp opened in Beaumont in April of 2014, and Martinez said it was an old Dairy Queen building.

For more information on the Tia Juanita’s Fish Camp restaurant chain, visit their Facebook page.

Lufkin’s Posado’s Cafe closed on July 30, 2019. Before the restaurant closed, it had been a fixture in the community for 10 years.

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