Today we’d like to introduce you to Tara Royer Steele.
Hi Tara, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I live in Brenham, Texas, but at times I feel I live in Round Top. I love Jesus and fall in love with him more and more every day. He amazes me with his love, mercy, kindness, and grace. I married Rick Steele in 2006, he’s my best friend, my business partner in everything, and he leads so well. We have two boys, Brayden and Bentley!
They are a joy. Joy. Joy. They are straight-up boys—dirt, friends, baseballs, dirt, footballs, video games, and full of snuggles for their momma. In 1987 my parents took a leap of faith after an offer to take over the Round Top Cafe in Round Top, Texas. My dad had been out of work from the oil bust of the 80s; what did they have to lose?
I have three younger brothers, I was 12 then, and we all began working in our new family business, Royers Round Top Cafe. The cafe was a hole-in-the-wall joint that served two pie flavors at the time. Through hard work, perseverance, endurance, and the grace of God, he revealed himself through pie. Pie is what brings people through the door. Through the years, I learned about gathering around the table, the importance of customer service, loving all, and keeping it simple.
I eventually owned the cafe for 18 years before selling it to my brother and sister-in-law in 2015. Rick and I have Royers Pie Haven in Round Top, Texas; the pie haven is a place to rest, eat yummy pie, & build relationships around the table. Little did we know it would be a haven for customers, employees, and me. In 2018 we bought 7 acres, now called All Things Acres, in Brenham, Tx, and moved our commercial kitchen, The Bake Shop, from Gidding, Tx. The Bake Shop is where we bake the pies & pastries for Royers Pie Haven and our mail order.
In 2020 we had to pivot because the pie business wasn’t a need at the time. So we figured out where the need was and what we had to offer. God spoke to us to create a Facebook group called, Feed His People, and we began serving our community with casseroles! It has continued to grow, and we still do weekly meals, catering, and events!
Our non-profit, Gather n Grace, assists, empowers, encourages, supports, and equips men, women, children, and couples to be His best for their lives. We hold 5-day retreats for women called Rest. Restore. Roar. (hopefully, couples, youth, and men soon) at All Things Acres. We gather, rest, and do the hard work to strip back the layers the earthly world adds and return to who God created us to be.
In the last year, we’ve begun a community-wide family dinner in Brenham. It’s a simple meal around the table where everyone is welcome, a place to build trust around the table. Family dinners and retreats are just the beginning of the vision God has given Rick and me for the non-profit, and on May 11, 2023, we will hold our first dinner to share that with everyone! I also wrote a book, Eat. Pie. Love!! It’s an illustrated devotional full of recipes too! It’s my story in devotionals and, of course, pie!!
Over the last 35 years in Round Top, I have gone through hard tests & when I truly began to KNOW & understand God and his plan, there was a shift in everything. I was able to learn from my life experiences and share them with others. I love to meet people right where they are & love. That is our hope for all things Acres & Royers Pie Haven, to love people, meet them where they are on their journey & serve HIM BIG through pie, food, gatherings, workshops, and retreats.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh gosh no!!! For many years I believed that all the trials in our family business were my fault. I was a people pleaser and wanted to make everyone happy, and just keep the peace! That would keep me “safe” for a few days, but the problem was always there.
Financial strife, closed businesses, divorce, body shame, alcoholism, betrayal, bankruptcy, and a bitter narrative consumed my life. Not until I completely surrendered it all to God and got out of his way did it become easier. Yes, there were always struggles and trials but I knew that He would get me through.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Funny! Sometimes it’s easier to say what I don’t do. But, I am most passionate about creating a safe space to gather, eat, write, connect, encourage, and art! I love cooking, and creating new pies or recipes, especially when I’m building a catering menu. Catering gives me an outlet to be creative with food! I love to sit quietly, turn on my praise and worship music and let The Holy Spirit move me to paint or write.
In the mornings I’m most creative! When we moved to Round Top we knew nothing about PIE, but I always loved to bake bread and cookies and sell them at church. That entrepreneurial spirit has always been there!! I am so grateful to have continued to persevere through the trials, and continue in our family pie business but have put my own creative spirit into it!
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Gosh, that’s a hard one! I’m an open book.
Contact Info:
- Website: tararoyersteele.com, royerspiehaven.com, allthingsacres.com, and gatherngrace.org
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/royerspiehaven/ and https://www.facebook.com/allthingsacres/
