A friend recommended Hoover’s Cooking in Austin as a place to get some good chicken-fried steak. We got there in the late morning, a little before they started serving lunch, but were seated promptly.
Annie got the chicken-fried steak and the garlic-cheese grits. The thin steak was breaded in a light batter, then deep fried until golden brown. She liked the breading, but thought the steak wasn’t tender or salty enough. The kids liked the grits more than she did.
Whole Foods Market is an international chain of grocery stores specializing in organic products. They are quite popular among the more health-conscious shoppers, but we don’t normally shop at WF because they are a bit outside our normal driving range as well as our price range.
But since we’re traveling, and WF’s world headquarters is in Austin, what the heck.
We recently took a trip to Central Texas to see friends and family. Our first stop was in Austin, and our first meal there was at Chuy’s, a Tex-Mex chain restaurant that is pretty popular with the locals. When we arrived, we had to wait for almost half an hour before getting our table. At least there were free chips and salsa being served by the bar (out of the trunk of a classic car).
Out front there is a shrine to Elvis Presley. Inside, the walls are covered with photos and paintings of dogs. Very interesting decor.
Annie and I shared the Elvis Presley Memorial combo. It comes with three different enchiladas – the beef Tex-Mex, the cheese ranchero, and the chicken tomatillo enchilada, each with different sauces. It also comes with a crispy taco and chile con queso.
Annie liked the chicken tomatillo enchilada but I thought the chicken was too dry. I liked the beef.
Overall I’d say it was all right as far as chain restaurant-type food goes. With such a busy place, the service slowed down somewhat. The crowd and the noise makes it a bit unfriendly for kids.
Aloha, Nate
We went back to Athena Grill, and took along some friends. Appetizer pita was served with hummus, tirokafteri, meltizanosalata, and tzatziki dips. All but the hummus were delicious. The tzatziki was especially laden with garlic.
This is our friend’s moussaka. He said it was pretty good.
