Archive for the ‘Restaurants’ Category

Arkie’s Grill: 3/5

Saturday, January 16th, 2010

arkies-exterior
Rating:

3 out of 5

3 out of 5


Address:
4827 East Cesar Chavez Street| Large map
Austin, TX 78702

Phone: 512- 385-2986

Hours:
Monday -Friday, 5am-3pm

Price range: $8 - $12

Location: East Austin (Cesar Chavez)
Type of restaurant: Diner
Payment accepted: Cash, Cards
Good for: Inexpensive and homemade food, diner crowds
Meals served: Breakfast and lunch

Arkie’s Grill is a legit small-town diner — and by small-town, I mean east Cesar Chavez, where the lumber companies and grassy fields make you feel like you haven’t escaped your boring hometown for Austin. I mean that in a good way, though.

arkies-chickenAmongst the traditional, cowboy-hat-sporting diner crowd, we split a $6.99 “One-Half” (4-piece) fried chicken meal that comes with fries (plentiful and hot), green salad (average diner salad) and rolls/ cornbread (too dry). Excellent price for a 4-piece combo.

Here’s their fried chicken menu:

________________________

Fried Chicken
No Backs ~ No Wings
Served with French Fries, Green Salad & Hot Rolls

One-Half Chicken
Crisp & Juicy $6.99

One-Quarter Chicken
Crisp & Juicy $6.29

All White Meat, add $1.20
________________________

See full menu

See full menu

The fried chicken was hot, juicy, well-battered and beautifully textured, but severely lacked salt. Sans gravy, it was almost tasteless.

arkies-interiorInexpensive, but bland.

We also ordered a side of gravy, 2 sodas, two coffees and a slice of mediocre coconut cream pie. It came out to a little over $18.00.

Had we just gotten the chicken meal, though, and not splurged on dessert fluff, it would have been about $8, to feed two hungry fried chicken fiends. Nice.

I’d go again. I recommend Arkie’s for a decent, inexpensive fried chicken lunch.

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Top Notch

Saturday, October 10th, 2009

top-notch

4 out of 5

4 out of 5

Address:
7525 Burnet Rd. | Large map
Austin, TX 78757

Phone: 512- 452-2181

Hours:
Monday -Saturday, 11am-8pm

Price range: $8 - $12
Location: North Austin, Burnet Rd.
Type of restaurant: Fast food, Sonic-style curb service
Payment accepted: Cash only (ATM inside)
Good for: Families, old folks
Meals served: Lunch and dinner

Driving up to Top Notch’s burger sign and throwback architecture, you know why Robert Rodriguez (correction below) shot its facade for Dazed and Confuzed. Upon entry, the burger grill wildly flares up 3 feet behind the hunchbacked cashier, Frances, who’s the most endearing old lady ever. She’s the owner, so when her gargled voice takes your order, you feel genuinely welcomed. The placed is packed, upbeat and boasts old-school, rustic decor.

Onto fried chicken: Top Notch offers 2, 3 and 4-piece meals that come with either dark, mixed or white meat–all sided with fries, coleslaw and Texas toast. We split a 3-piece mixed, which comes with a thigh, leg and wing. We tacked on  small mashed potatoes and gravy for $1.99.
Total: $9.03.

The fried chicken was golden-orange and fresh as hell. Juice dripped all over my hands. It was so juicy that it almost soggied up the crispy, abundant batter. The fries were fast-food style (stringy, yellow). The slaw was… slaw. The cream gravy’s salty bang overpowered the instant-taters’ drabness. Perfect for chicken-dipping. The Texas toast was actually just-toasted and buttery. Average sides, but awesome fried chicken.

North Burnet–not so cool. But Top Notch–a gem. Middle-aged food bloggers claim this place is truly 1970’s. I’ll take their word on it. Far from chain fast food quality, Top Notch offers fresh, juicy fried chicken in a stimulating, old-fashioned atmosphere.

Correction: Richard Linklater directed Dazed and Confused. I so knew that. I’m a huge Linklater fan and feel really dumb for that slip-up.

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Hoover’s Cooking

Monday, September 14th, 2009
2.5 out of 52.5 out of 5

Address: hoovers-facade
13376 Research Blvd. #400| Large map
Austin, TX 78750

Note: Only the Northwest location has fried chicken, and it’s only served on Sunday

Phone: 512- 335-0300
Fax: 512-335-0306

Hours:
Monday -Thursday, 11am-9pm
Friday, 11am-10pm
Saturday, 8am-10pm
Sunday, 8am-9pm

Price range: $8 - $16
Check out its to go menu for more prices

Location: East Austin (Manor Rd.) and North Austin (Research Blvd.)
Type of restaurant: Sit down
Payment accepted: Cash, Cards
Good for: Southern food with an American atmosphere, families
Meals served: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

Anna and I heard about this place by searching the web for southern food, which is a daily activity for us. So we were pretty excited as we drove up north to see what the chicken gods had in store for us. What we saw when we arrived appeared to be an old Shoney’s building. For those who don’t know Shoney’s serves below average food to families.hoovers-chicken

Hoover’s, sadly, continues this tradition.

We got to Hoover’s about 7 p.m., and we were sat at a table by a teenager, and then we were greeted by a teenager who became our server. He told us the chicken we came for was served all day until they ran out on Sunday only at this location on Research Blvd. The chicken special was a 3-piece meal that came with 2 sides. It cost $9.99. It cost $2 less if you didn’t get sides, and if you wanted to split the special with someone, they would tag on an extra $3.

We each ordered the special and a margarita with no salt, which was an expensive $6. Yes, $6 dollars for a margarita from a place on Research Blvd. that serves fried chicken. I will acknowledge that we should have skipped the rita for a more southern drink, but for me, Austin is a city where margaritas should be consumed everywhere. Oh and they forgot to not put salt on the drinks.

While we waited for the chicken we were treated to jalapeno corn bread and sweet potato biscuits. They were the best thing to distract us from the incredibly boring decor of the restuarant. It looked like a funeral home mixed with an antique store mixed with several houses occupied by grandmothers.

Our chicken came out fast. It wasn’t made to order. But that is alright. A lot of restaurants do that and get away with it. However, it clearly makes the chicken taste worse. Overall, the chicken was decent. It tasted like the basic fried chicken you would get at a grocery store or gas station, expect that it had a little more black pepper in it — and it kind of tasted like sausage. I altered the waiter to this, and he said it must have something to do with the kitchen serving more sausage than fried chicken.

The chicken was also very greasy, which is fine. But when you serve fried chicken on paper, people are going to notice it and maybe have second thoughts as to why they are eating it. We did not.

We don’t plan to go back to Hoover’s Cooking. The atmosphere is so so, and the food is worse. I mean, the fried chicken wasn’t terrible. I’d eat it again, I just can’t recommend a $10 plate of chicken that doesn’t kick ass.

hoovers-grease

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Honduras

Friday, July 24th, 2009

honduras-trailer

3.5 out of 5

3.5 out of 5

Address:
2538 Elmont | Large map
Austin, TX 78741

Phone: 512- 740-5580

Hours:
Thursday, 11am-10pm
Friday, 11am-11pm
Saturday, 9am-11pm
Sunday, 9am-9pm

Price range: $8.50 - $12.50
(the fried chicken is the most expensive item on the menu)

Location: Riverside
Type of restaurant: Trailer
Payment accepted: Cash
Good for: Real Central American food, hipsters, late-night bites
Meals served: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

honduras-drumstick“1000% Honduras” reads the bold, blue text on this little mid-Riverside trailer. Honduras offers a uniquely Central American version of fried chicken: covered in a creamy sauce of mustard, mayonnaise, vinegar and various other condiments, the two-piece chicken dish comes with green bananas and a heaping salad of cilantro, onion and other vibrant vegetables that we had a hard time identifying. After the first bite, our taste buds were jumping with surprise and delight.

The trailer’s parked at Food Stop, a rundown gas station and convenience store. Located at the heart of the (arguably) most Mexican part of Austin, Honduras faces Mexican shopping center El Gran Mercado, a Mexican flea market and student apartments. Honduras offers a fresh break from all of the Mexican food in Austin.jessica

Some tips for maximizing your Honduras visit:

  1. Everything is cooked to order (nice!) and takes 15-20 minutes (boo). Don’t wait in the heat; go in the evening or at night.
  2. Actually, call and preorder.
  3. The creamy sauce gets too rich after the first piece of fried chicken. Ask for sauce on only one piece of chicken.
  4. Bring cash. The fried chicken is $8.50.
  5. Unless you already know you love green bananas, don’t order extra. They taste like bitter, unripe bananas.
  6. Order the Tamarind drink. Honduras extracts the sweet-and-sour pulp from this Mexican seed and turns it into an addictive beverage. At whole foods, this would be 6 bucks. At Honduras, it’s $2.

Co-founded and owned by sisters (and Honduras natives) Jessica and Mimi, this little joint not only serves up authentic Honduras grub, but also boasts stellar customer service. Jessica entertained us the whole time, letting us snack on her bag of Tamarind seeds, showing us how they purplefy the onions (by soaking them in juices from other strong-hued veggies), and talking to us about her 2nd job as a nanny.

Overall, Honduras’ fried chicken is well worth a trip to Riverside. Just don’t go when it’s 105 degrees.

honduras-chicken

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Hyde Park Bar and Grill

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

Note: They only sell Tony’s Southern Comfort Fried Chicken on
Monday-Tuesday, 5:00 - 10:30hyde-park-bar-and-grill-1

Rating:

3 out of 5

3 out of 5

Address:
4521 West Gate Blvd. | Large map
Austin, TX 78745

Phone: 512- 899-2700

Hours:
Sunday-Thursday, 11:00am-10:30pm
Friday-Saturday, 11:00am-Midnight

Price range: $10 - $20
Location: South Austin, Ben White and 360
Type of restaurant: Casual dining
Payment accepted: Cash, credit cards
Good for: Dates, late-night dinners
Meals served: Lunch and dinner

Sans the bland strip-shopping center location in the middle of Ben White/ 360/ Lamar/ Mopac hell, Hyde Park Bar and Grill’s south location does everything–well, almost everything–right. hyde-park-bar-and-grill-2

The service was good; our waiter even engaged in mine and Tyler’s squabble over the proper way to devour fried chicken. When I asked for gravy, he promptly brought a fat 3-oz container of it.

The atmosphere was appealing and clean: Paintings hung all around, and they actually weren’t shitty. They were good. How often are restaurant art exhibitions actually good?

And, most importantly, the chicken was steaming hot and clearly cooked to order. The batter was thick and salty. The meat was plentiful and bulky. The recipe is Tony Herring’s of the late Tony’s Southern Comfort Restaurant–the former go-to fried chicken joint in Austin. I got a breast and a wing, and Tyler got a breast and a leg. We gorged. It was scrumptious.

The downside: The fried chicken is $9.99.

You have to order it as an entrée with two sides, too; we both went with green chile cheese mashed potatoes and Hyde Park fries (voted best fries in Austin by the Chronicle). All too much? Yes. Still worth it, especially after a margarita or two? Yes. But only as a one-time or occasional outing. $9.99 and 4,000 calories a day isn’t compatible with surviving.

Hyde Park Bar and Grill is good for dates or birthdays, but I wouldn’t go there for a quick fix: For a couple pieces of steamy, cooked-to-order chicken for a few bucks, go to Bill Miller’s instead.

hyde-park-bar-and-grill-31

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Terry’s Seafood and Chicken Revisited

Thursday, June 25th, 2009
3.5 out of 5

3.5 out of 5

Address:
1805 Airport | Large map
Austin, TX 78702

Phone: 512- 477-3233

Hours:
Monday-Thursday, 10:30am-7pm
Friday-Saturday, 10:30am-8pm

Price range: $0 - $10
Location: East Austin
Type of restaurant: Fast food
Payment accepted: Cash, credit cards
Good for: Quick bites
Meals served: Lunch and dinner

A peep inside Terry’s, and you know it’s legit. Cheesy, jazzed-out-swamp-creatures window murals, bumpy piles of grease-smelling fried chicken and fish, metal shelves and an undersized counter… Pavlov’s response transpiring, we were ready to stuff our faces with some southern fried cookin. We explored the little fast-food menu and ordered.

Two pieces of chicken and a roll is under 3 bucks. You don’t get a choice in what pieces you want. We both ordered that deal, along with a side of fries and hushpuppies. Hushpuppies are 15 cents each; no package orders. Ordering hushpuppies individually was a very weird experience.

The fried chicken wasn’t steaming hot or cooked to order, but still boasted tasty, traditionally flavored batter and tender meat. Peppered perfectly, the batter was thick, fatty and scrumptious. Miles beyond Popeye’s. Terry’s only offers thighs, legs and wings, which is OK because the fat-fist-sized wings and thighs make up for the no-breasts downer.

The fries were alright—better and thicker than fast food fries, but not quite up to par with standard casual dining fries. The roll was cafeteria quality; you know—clearly filler, but a decent little starchy munchie.

The hush puppies were long and fry-shaped, which, as a half-cajun, freaked me out. They tasted good, though.

Southeast Airport Boulevard isn’t a fun area; in fact, it’s pretty empty, secluded and uglified by 70’s apartment complexes.

Terry’s breaks that brown-tan clutter with its endearingly vibrant, wooden cigar-smoking catfish posts that decorate each parking spot. The same cartoons adorn the interior as murals. The indoor dining area is pretty tiny—there’s about twenty seats in all. There’s plenty of picnic tables outside, though, if you want to chomp on some fried goodness and watch the sun set over Airport.

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Terry’s Seafood and Chicken

Thursday, June 4th, 2009

terrys-seafood-chicken4
Rating:

3.5 out of 5

3.5 out of 5

Address:
1805 Airport | Large map
Austin, TX 78702

Phone: 512- 477-3233

Hours:
Monday-Thursday, 10:30am-7pm
Friday-Saturday, 10:30am-8pm

Price range: $0 - $10
Location: East Austin
Type of restaurant: Fast casual
Payment accepted: Cash, credit cards
Good for: Quick bites
Meals served: Lunch and dinner

We walked into Terry’s at about 7:10. The Chronicle says it closes at 9—lies! It closes at 7. So early! Nonetheless, the friendly counter worker gave us late folk the last 5 wings (for the price of 3), and we also ordered a piece of fish and fries. The whole thing was $7. Pretty sweet.
terrys-seafood-chicken3
The chicken, while obviously not cooked to order (because we walked in so late), still boasted tasty, traditionally flavored batter and tender meat. The fish was cooked to order, and it was piping hot and crispy-crusted; I assume that same excellence abets the chicken before overtime hours. The fries were alright—better and thicker than fast food fries, but not quite up to par with standard casual dining fries.

Southeast Airport Boulevard isn’t a fun area; in fact, it’s pretty empty, secluded and uglified by 70’s apartment complexes.

Terry’s breaks that brown-tan clutter with its endearingly vibrant, wooden cigar-smoking catfish posts that decorate each parking spot. The same cartoons adorn the interior as murals. The indoor dining area is pretty tiny—there’s about twenty seats in all. There’s plenty of picnic tables outside, though, if you want to chomp on some fried goodness and watch the sun set over Airport.

We’ll have to go again, sample the other chicken pieces and repost, but for now, I’ll just say it’s worth going—if you can get there on time after work.

terrys-seafood-chicken5

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Lucky J’s Chicken & Waffles

Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009

Lucky J's Chicken and Waffles

Rating:

Lucky J's Chicken and Waffles

2 out of 5

Address:
5703 Burnet Road | Large map
Austin, TX 78766

Phone: 512-296-9914

Hours: Monday Closed
Tuesday-Thursday 11-8
Friday-Saturday 11-9
Sunday Brunch 9-4

Website: http://www.luckyjs.com/
Email: info@luckyjs.com

Price range: $0 - $10
Location: North Austin
Type of restaurant: Trailer
Payment accepted: Cash
Good for: Hipsters, one-time experience
Meals served: Brunch, lunch and dinner

“Chicken for the strength, waffles for the speed,” reads the front of Lucky J’s hidden north Austin trailer. Actually, I felt like a slothful, faded lump of blubber after shoving some ripped fried chicken breast with a little hot sauce, all taco-wrapped into a syrup-and-butter-drenched waffle, into my face. It stuck all over my cheeks and fingers and I had to ask the owner, Jason, for an extra big wad of napkins. It was pretty sweet.Lucky J's Chicken and waffles

On the bad side, however, our chicken was cooked two hours before we got there, so it was re-cooked and ended up different shades of burnt. Dry on the inside and almost black on the outside isn’t a happy mix. But combined with the sticky fingers and a partly cloudy May evening, Lucky J’s was a worthwhile experience. I don’t think we’ll be returning, though. You can get better chicken at Church’s or at home.

The tiny red trailer is sandwiched in between an Amy’s Ice Cream, Home Lumber Co. and an HEB parking lot. There’s a few wooden picnic tables under a large pecan tree, and we witnessed a few groups of 20-somethings roll through and sit down for a quick bite.

The menu includes three items: fried chicken, waffles and sweet tea (brewed by Jason himself). You can order chicken by the piece and add on $1.99 8-inch waffles, but it’s funner to order the specials, including:

  • Short Stack—breast or thigh and 1 waffle ($5.99)
  • The Deal—half a chicken and 2 waffles ($7.99)
  • Baller—whole chicken and 4 waffles ($14.99)

Lucky J’s will soon expand its dining area into the obsolete building next door at 5701 Burnet Rd: There will be public restrooms, garden seating out back and a bigger stage for musicians.

There’s live gospel music every Sunday.

BRING CASH. It’s cash-only, and the nearest ATM is a 10-minute walk.

Lucky J's Chicken and Waffles

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Bill Miller Bar-B-Q

Monday, June 1st, 2009

Bill Miller fried chicken in Austin

3.5 out of 5

3.5 out of 5

Address:
8103 Burnet Rd
Austin, TX 78757 | Large map

Phone: 512-458-3244

Hours:
Monday - Saturday
6 a.m. to 9 p.m. in-house, 9:30 drive-thru
Sunday
8 a.m. to 9 p.m., 9:30 drive-thru

Location: North Austin, Burnet and Teakwood

Click here for a list of the
restaurant’s other locations

Price range: $0 - $10
Type of restaurant: Fast casual
Payment accepted: Credit cards, cash
Good for: Quick bites
Meals served: Breakfast, lunch and dinner

I wasn’t expecting much from this fast-food style restaurant, and maybe that’s why I was so surprised by it.

We arrived at the Bill Miller’s on Burnet Rd. around 7:30 p.m. It smelled like Wendy’s. The first you’ll see when you enter is an assortment of pies and cobblers. Then you’ll look up and see a huge beige menu behind a maze of steel pipes directing you to the counter. All this reminds you that this is not a sit-down place.

We glared at the menu for a few minutes as an employee bargained with the counter girl for some chicken. “That’s a good sign,” I thought to myself. “If the employees like it, it can’t be complete ass-food.” We each order a meal: A three piece with fries and a two piece with mash potatoes. However, we were told that they were out of chicken breasts, and if we wanted some, we would have to wait about 15 minutes. We agreed. The counter girl gave us a free drink for our troubles.

Bill Miller fried chicken in Austin

About 20 minutes later our food was brought out on little brown trays. Another bonus for the wait – free peach cobbler. The chicken looked nothing short of bangin. The breading was generous and a perfect color, and the size of the legs, breasts and thighs was natural. My first bite reveled the chicken was juicy, crunchy and almost too hot to eat. I was sold. It tasted made to order. Now I don’t know if this common place, but I hope it is, because I expected brown frown and got golden train wreck.

We devoured the chicken. I smothered some in provided hot sauce while keeping tabs on the restaurant’s environment. The place was completely empty, minus the one or two 50-somethings chowing down not making a fuss about their little lives. My fries were nothing special. In fact, they were shitty. Anna’s potatoes were tolerable. She says they were probably half instant and half real.

Outshining all was the chicken, and I’m for real real about this when I say it was exceptionally good and definitely filled up that little spot in me that clucks for some fried goodness. I recommend this place for a quick bite when you got to get your fix. I wouldn’t take a date or my mom there, though.

Bill Miller fried chicken in Austin

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