Rod’s Grille opened its doors in December of 1955 by Mariano and Margret Rodrigues and family. Rod’s Grille has been a staple in the Warren community for over sixty-four years; which is when Margret first introduced Warren to its now famous hot wiener sauce. Mariano and Margaret dedicated all their time to build a family-friendly diner, except for Sundays. Mariano always said that Sundays were for the staff to dedicate to church and spending time with their family. Which is why to this day Rod’s Grille continues to remain closed on Sundays. Mariano and Margaret built a strong foundation that has continued to be built upon by the next three Rodrigues generations. The Rodrigues family is so thankful for all Mariano and Margaret have done and are grateful for the opportunity to continue to serve their community the way Mariano and Margaret would want them to.

Raymond and his wife Eleanor were the second generation to own Rod’s Grille. In 1955 Raymond (the son of Mariano and Margaret) and his wife Eleanor, along side other family members, decided to help Mariano and Margaret open Rod’s. In 1978, after two decades of dedication to the business, Mariano and Margaret decided to sell the restaurant to their son and daughter-in-law. Raymond and Eleanor owned and operated Rod’s Grille from 1978 to 1993. Raymond worked at the restaurant up until he passed away in 1998. His wife Eleanor, a Rodrigues by marriage, continued to dedicate her life to the restaurant. Eleanor worked there from its very first day until she was 89 years old when she retired in the summer of 2019. It was a tough decision for her to leave because Rod’s was her life but she knew that her son and granddaughter would continue to dedicate themselves just like she always did.

Currently Raymond Jr. and his daughter Meghan run the day-to-day operations together. Raymond Jr. and sister, Sandra Rodrigues, are the third generation of the Rodrigues family to own and manage Rod’s Grille. Raymond Jr. has worked at Rod’s since the late 70’s and has owned it since 1993. Through out the years Raymond has continued to give his customers the best service, food, and cleanly environment at Rod’s. Meghan is Raymond’s youngest daughter and she is the fourth generation of the Rodrigues’ to help manage Rod’s. She is a graduate of Southern New Hampshire University with a Bachelors Degree in Restaurant Management and Pastry Arts. Meghan is proud to follow in her father’s footsteps and looks forward to keeping her family’s business running for future generations. Together Raymond and Meghan take pride in giving Warren, RI and its surrounding areas the best food and service that they can give!

The Original Location

FUN FACT: Rod’s was not always located at 6 Washington Street in Warren, RI. It was in 1975 that Mariano and Margret decided to move their restaurant’s location to Washington Street. In fact, it was originally just around the corner on Main Street, where you can now find the Handkerchief Factory parking lot. Now, the only things that remain of the original location are the stories our customers still tell, and a few photos; including this photo of a horse relaxing outside waiting for their owner to be done eating at Rod’s!