A family cooks and rebuilds together at Teresa's Mosaic Cocina and Cantina

TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Inside this iconic westside restaurant, one family and their staff have churned out classic dishes from Oaxaca, Mexico, for 40 years.

An attic fire in 2022 almost closed Teresa's Mosaic Café for good, but the Matias family leaned on each other to rise from the ashes and rebuild.

Walk into the building, now Teresa's Mosaic Cocina & Cantina, and you'll notice the smell of fresh tortillas coming from the comal lingering in the air.

"It's the heart of the dining room," manager and principal Isaac Matias said.

Back in the kitchen, co-founder and namesake Teresa Matias is still busy after decades of perfecting recipes. Isaac said he knows that growing up with mom, no one was eating quite as well as he was.

Nowadays, Isaac is more than just a diner. As part of the management team with mom, and with dad, Alfonso Matias, they still work hand in hand. That love and passion helped them persevere to rebuild and rebrand the café.

"We made lemonade out of lemons," Isaac Matias said. "We took the opportunity to remodel and refresh the building. We're very proud of it."

Matias said there are a couple cosmetic changes that regulars may notice. The family lowered the dining room's ceiling to highlight the old wood beams, or 'vigas.' They also decided to replace their old mosaic tables with more standard square walnut furniture.

The classics, like black Oaxacan mole and chile relleno, are still on the menu. That, in part, is what Isaac said he felt kept loyal customers knocking on the restaurant's door as the Matias family was busy remodeling.

"A lot of people would drive through here and check in on us, to see how the progress was going," he said. "From when we opened our doors at the very beginning, everybody came back and said, 'We couldn't wait for you guys to reopen. We've been waiting.'"

Teresa Matias told KGUN 9 for her to do a proper mole, it takes three days from start to finish. "(We're talking) ancho chilies, cascabel chilies, black chilies," Matias said in Spanish. "You roast them, toast them and then you have to prepare a lot of spices."

Then, there's the family story behind the chile relleno, stuffed with shredded spiced chicken, then dipped and fried.

Years ago, Isaac wanted to make an impression on his then-girlfriend, so Teresa asked him what she'd like to eat. "I go, 'She likes chile relleno.' So my mom says, 'I'll make her a special chile relleno.'"

"She loved it so much," Teresa said. "I think that's why she eventually married my son."

Through all the highs and lows, Isaac Matias said he is grateful every member of his family has added a meaningful chapter in their ongoing story. "My dad always said, 'Together, we can do anything. All my family has contributed to this."

In this new chapter of Teresa's Mosaic, Isaac has taken charge coming up with brand new house cocktails, made behind a redesigned cantina bar. Matias also showed the new room the restaurant is now renting out for private parties, as a sign there is room to grow the business and bring in new diners from around Southern Arizona.