The matriarch behind Buda’s iconic Helen’s Casa Alde was Helen Alcala. Alcala died in June 2017.
In 2005, Hays Free Press reporter Jen Biundo had the pleasure of interviewing Alcala. Below is a reprint of that interview.

By Jen Biundo

Above is Helen Alcala, left, working as a cook for the Hays CISD in 1968.

There’s something special about the tortillas at Helen’s Casa Alde. At first glance, you’ll see they measure about three times the thickness of a store-bought torti...