In September 2024, a coffee trailer opened behind a yellow historic house at 1005 S. Rock St. Two years later, the trailer's owners hold the lease on the house itself. Three food businesses now park in the backyard where the trailer used to be.
Rose & Dagger Coffee Co. opened inside the house on Sept. 5, 2026. The backyard came first, then the food trucks, then the building, and every business there with posted hours closes by 3 p.m.
A menu written in an apartment in 2020
Owners Madison and Jackson Vacek told Community Impact that they met working at a coffee shop as teenagers. During quarantine in 2020, they asked each other what they'd do if money were no object. Both said they'd open a coffee shop.
"We sat there in our apartment and came up with the whole menu and the whole concept of Rose & Dagger," Madison Vacek told Community Impact.
The trailer was never the original plan, she said. It was what worked at the time, and she called it "a great stepping stone." Early in the summer of 2026, the couple got the chance to take over the lease on the house in front of their trailer, and they took it. Jackson Vacek called it a "full circle moment" in the same interview: "Knowing we started in the backyard … to have the lease of the house, and our own coffee shop."
The renovation turned into a bigger job than they expected. No food business had operated in the house before, so it needed a lot of work to function as a coffee shop. The finished shop serves handcrafted lattes, teas and refreshers. It also sells art, flowers and candles made by local residents.
Who parked in the backyard
The space behind the house is called The Grounds, and Community Impact describes it as shaded by a massive pecan tree. Its three food businesses all arrived over one summer, between July 1 and Aug. 1, while the house was still being turned into a café.
Sanford Sourdough Bakery came first, on July 1. It's a Round Rock bakery, and its Georgetown trailer sells San Francisco-style sourdough. The menu covers artisan and sandwich loaves, a lunch menu of sandwiches and soup, sourdough starters, and frozen goods to bake at home.
El Hombre Tacos followed in late July. Owner Eric Thornell parked one of his catering trucks behind Rose & Dagger as a permanent location. The signature Hombre Taco is steak and melted cheese on a flour tortilla, and the truck also serves nachos and street tacos on corn tortillas.
Churros ATX moved over from the Tasty Trails food truck park on Aug. 1, owner Cesar Velasco confirmed to Community Impact. Longtime customers may remember it as I <3 Churros. The truck fills churros with dulce de leche, serves a churro loop with ice cream, and sells chicken and beef empanadas.
Coffee, a bakery, tacos and churros cover breakfast, lunch and an afternoon treat. The three with published schedules keep daytime hours only.
The hours tell you when to go
Here is what each business lists on its own site as of mid-October 2026:
| Business | Days | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Rose & Dagger Coffee Co. | Monday to Saturday | 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. |
| Churros ATX | Tuesday to Saturday | 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. |
| Sanford Sourdough Bakery | Wednesday to Saturday | 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. |
| El Hombre Tacos | Check before you go | Check before you go |
Coffee, churros and sourdough all overlap Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday is coffee only. Rose & Dagger lists itself as closed on Sunday, and none of the three published schedules include Sunday. Everything listed wraps up by 3 p.m.
That afternoon cutoff sets The Grounds apart from the Square's holiday calendar. Many of the season's big downtown events happen at night: First Friday Music on the courthouse lawn, the First Friday Ghost Tours, and the Lighting of the Square. A gathering spot that runs from morning coffee to a late lunch covers the part of the week those events leave open.
The backyard has hosted more than food before. In March 2026, Community Impact reported that Root to Rise Plant Co. shared the rear event space with Rose & Dagger and held second-Sunday yoga and wellness events there. Root to Rise's website now lists its Georgetown storefront as permanently closed. For what comes next, Madison Vacek told Voyage Austin in July that she hopes to expand The Grounds with more events, workshops, live music and pop-ups. She described the outdoor space as a place for food trucks, pop-up shopping, workshops and time together. Those are plans for now. There's no regular calendar yet, so Rose & Dagger's Instagram, @roseanddaggercoffeeco, is the place to watch for announcements.
Where it fits in downtown's holiday season
Several dates on the downtown calendar fall during The Grounds' daytime hours. Those are the easiest days to pair a stop on Rock Street with the season's events:
- Saturday, Nov. 14: Second Saturday Market Days runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. around the Square, with vendors and live local music.
- Saturday, Nov. 21: Pistons on the Square brings classic and other cars and motorcycles downtown from 8 to 10 a.m. It's free, and it starts the same hour Rose & Dagger opens.
- Saturday, Nov. 28: Shop Small Saturday and the Coffee & Cocoa Crawl. The crawl runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., advance tickets are $25 and include a keepsake mug, and the first 300 Shop Small shoppers get a tote.
- Saturday, Dec. 5: The second day of the 45th Annual Georgetown Christmas Stroll. The parade starts at 10 a.m., and festivities run until 9:30 p.m. This year's theme is "Hometown Christmas Stroll: A Season to Gather."
The rest of the season's big moments happen after The Grounds closes for the day:
- First Friday Music on the Square, Friday, Nov. 6, from 6 to 8 p.m. on the courthouse lawn. It's free, and shops and restaurants stay open late.
- The Williamson Museum's First Friday Ghost Tours, which Visit Georgetown lists through Nov. 7.
- The Lighting of the Square, Friday, Nov. 27. Entertainment runs from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., the lights come on around 6 p.m., and they stay lit every night through Jan. 1.
- The Christmas Stroll kickoff on Friday, Dec. 4, from 4 to 9:30 p.m., and its final day on Sunday, Dec. 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For the busy Saturdays, the city's downtown parking garage at 502 S. Main St. has 315 spaces. It opened Nov. 21, 2025.
Built the slow way
Each piece of 1005 S. Rock St. was added once the last one had proven itself. The trailer opened first, in 2024. The food trucks came in summer 2026, and the house followed in September. Madison Vacek told Voyage Austin that Rose & Dagger is meant to be a place where people can slow down and connect. Jackson Vacek told Community Impact that small businesses in Georgetown want to see each other succeed. Their address shows it. A sourdough baker from Round Rock, a caterer's taco truck and a churro truck from Tasty Trails all share one pecan-shaded yard, and the coffee shop that started it now has a front door on Rock Street.
Small businesses like the ones on Rock Street are a big part of what gives a Georgetown address its character, and Bridget Ramey keeps a close eye on that kind of change. If you'd like to talk about what's changing downtown and what it could mean for your plans, schedule a private consultation.