But customers won't find him at the restaurant as of late. He had surgery on Monday after doctors found two tumors in his brain and one in his spine.
Friend and employee Tara Lanphear set up a GoFundMe page to help Taus and his wife, Janice Taus, with the loss of wages while they're off work. The fundraiser also urges people to support the restaurant by dining there.
Reached by phone on Monday night, Lanphear said surgeons removed most of one baseball-sized tumor in Taus’s brain but weren’t able to take out the other one, and the one on his spine is inoperable.
Another employee, McKay Robinson, said in a phone interview that Janice Taus reported that her husband “was up talking, cracking a lot of jokes” after the operation and was in good spirits.
“Everyone is very optimistic,” Robinson said. “He had a very good doctor and a lot of support coming through, which is nice to see.”
During his time away, Taus' dedication to his longtime business remains strong.
“He called the restaurant earlier to let us know about online reservations that came in that we don’t see here," Robinson added. "He said he didn’t want to disappoint anybody.”
While the Tauses are off, Lanphear said, all of the employees will pitch in and keep the restaurant on track.
“Everything’s going to stay the same,” said Lanphear, who has worked for Taus since 1991. “I’m going to jump in and run things and get Janice to focus on taking care of herself and taking care of Romeo. There’s just nothing I wouldn’t do for them. They’re family to me."
Taus immigrated to the U.S. from Romania in 1973 and attended Wayne State University in Detroit where he earned an engineering degree and worked for Chrysler. He moved to the Valley planning to open a drugstore and ended up working under Nick Ligidakis, who opened and closed a string of restaurants in the 1980s and 1990s. Taus owned a stake in one of the restaurants, Golden Cuisine of Southern Europe.
In 1991, Taus set out on his own to open Romeo’s Euro Cafe with 11 tables in a strip mall at West Southern Avenue and South Longmore in Mesa. At the time, the area was bustling with the popular Fiesta Mall and other retail. Soon, he expanded the space to 6,800 square feet, which included a theater for local acts, and a gift shop.
By the early 2000s, business began to decline and the restaurant couldn’t compete with the proliferation of incoming chains. In 2004, Taus relocated to a smaller space in Gilbert’s Heritage Court. He saw the potential after Joe Johnston opened Joe's Real BBQ and envisioned what was then a sleepy downtown becoming a dining and entertainment hub.
Taus brought his gargantuan 20-page menu with giant portions to the new location and was known for refusing to make substitutions, instead giving diners plenty of choices with dozens upon dozens of appetizers, pita sandwiches, subs, pasta and main dishes. The menu has been whittled down to 10 pages instead of 20, Lanphear said, and Taus does allow changes and substitutions.
A warm and gregarious personality who thrives on interacting with people, Taus is also renowned for holding court and regaling guests with stories at the restaurant’s regular food and wine-pairing meals. He offers a Taste of Romeo’s Cafe every Thursday in the private dining room with sample portions of five dishes and wine pairings along with a three-course menu with three wines on the third Tuesday of each month.
Lori Hassler, chef and owner of downtown Phoenix’s The Farish House, said Taus is a good friend who worked with her on creating Chef Off competitions in the past.
“The man is all about food. Thinking constantly of new combinations, hunting down ingredients, making the most for his restaurant," she wrote in an email. "He lives and breathes it every day.”
Hassler was diagnosed with stage four cancer three years ago, and noted that she's here and fighting.
“I wish him the same and more," she said. "Go eat there! Let’s get them through this.”
