Adios, El Patio...

[Deej 76,972]

https://www.austin360.com/entertainmentlife/20190723/legendary-tex-mex-restaurant-el-patio-closing-after-65-years?utm_source=SND&utm_medium=Facebook&utm_campaign=austin360

(Sorry, didn't see the mention in the Austin Tex Mex thread.)

Edited July 23, 2019 by Deej

[smuggs 9,353]

#3 with queso, beef taco a la cart with the candy finisher.

Fuck this news. Too many shart episodes to remember.

RIP El Patio, wish I could get my kids there before August 9th for some crackers and salsa.

 

 

[Anastasis 23,487]

Well that sucks. 

Funny story. They use to have a cigarette dispensing machine in the little entry way.  Being an underaged dumbass who smoked camels, would dip in there with a roll of quarters from time to time to snag some smokes.  Well one day I was having some problem working the quarters into the machine. I was clearly underage looking to get some smokes on the sly.

Some surly older lady behind the counter came over, and in a sweet drawl offered her assistance in my procurement efforts "Honey, are you having some problems?  Let me see if I can help. Go ahead and give me those quarters"  She takes the stack of quarters out of my hand and in the slowest, most humiliating pace possible, enters each quarter, one by one, counting slowly as she puts them in.

"One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten" or whatever. I am looking over my shoulder around the restaurant at this point, feeling like a total dipshit.

"Now honey, which brand you smoking." Meekly responding, "Camels ma'am".

She then reaches down and pulls the lever, dispensing my smokes. I grabbed them and exited post haste with a mumbled "Thank you".

Not sure why, but that lady and her Texas-style rightful mocking of a dumbass HS kid trying to take advantage of their cigarette machine stuck with me. I didn't quite get it at the time, but I think I do now. Years later would pound margaritas at the bar with my dad.

OK, maybe not so funny story, but those are my primary memories of the place.   

Edited July 23, 2019 by Anastasis

[Tylerocks 2,555]

Saltines.

[Lat22 4,019]

I guess Dirty’s can’t be far behind. Sad. Very sad. 

[Biff Tannen 45,750]

Dammit.

[Dbeasy 15,120]

That was my go to place. I haz a sad.

[pepper brooks 580]

24 minutes ago, Dbeasy said:

That was my go to place. I haz a sad.

apparently not, or it might not be closing.  Another casualty of the march of time.  This one doesn't hurt as much as some of the others except for the fact that there are so few left. GM Steakhouse, Mad Dog and Beans, Jorge's on 6th, Uptown Enchilada Bar, Players, Huts, Berts…..geez.  so many old Austin places gone, and with it so much of what gave Austin the character that made it great/weird/unique.  

[South Austin 52,636]

Okay, this one really sucks.

[Brisketexan 105,460]

But, I mean, we still have 500 Torchy's locations, so we're all good, right?

[WBT 20,675]

Never been there.  Someone explain the saltines thing because it sounds disgusting.

[MalibuSheriff 1,092]

Dammit.

I need to mosey over there and have a few Perkins Specials before closing.

F New Austin.

[Deej 76,972]

52 minutes ago, pepper brooks said:

apparently not, or it might not be closing.  

This closing sounds more like they just decided to be done, than lack of business. I'm sure the value of the property will help ease any retirement woes.

[Paper_jam 838]

It wasn't exactly my favorite place to eat, but damn. There's hardly anything left around campus that I recognize.

I wish I had taken a lot of photos of the drag & campus when I was a student, but it was well before cell phones had cameras. Hell it was almost before cell phones, except for the "brick" style.

 

 

Edited July 23, 2019 by Paper_jam

[Deej 76,972]

If anything happens to Dart Bowl, I will stab someone.

[Dbeasy 15,120]

Never been there.  Someone explain the saltines thing because it sounds disgusting.

The saltines were just a bit, to be different than chips and hot sauce. We would take pats of butter, saltines and hot sauce. Awesome.

The owners are folks from high school that we know and I think there was a divorce, plus $4.5m for the lot was pretty compelling.

[Call 393]

No bless. Feel cry. 

 

[phdhorn 6,224]

Someone on here I think posted "El Patio?" when the discussion was about the next institution to go... if you find it you get a saltine and salsa.

I knew it was just a matter of time... great place, especially for the cheap prices.  Will miss greatly.

Will have Jr. and wife and I go there this weekend (jr. home for last weekend of his co-op in Dallas, then back to UT in August).  Absolutely.  Don't get in front of me.

[Paco 1,934]

The saltines were just a bit, to be different than chips and hot sauce. We would take pats of butter, saltines and hot sauce. Awesome.

The owners are folks from high school that we know and I think there was a divorce, plus $4.5m for the lot was pretty compelling.

In the 70's (and 80's?) there were many Tex Mex places that served saltines if I remember correctly.

[UTPhil2006 3,818]

Didn't Derka meet Grendel at El Patio once?  I know El Patio was at the center of a Shaggy story

[TonyTexas 10,535]

I would eat dozens of corn tortillas with butter and salsa before getting my enchilada platter with extra chopped onions. Probably ate there 100 times when I was in college.

[Blanton 170]

Not good. Trudy's is a much better option

[scottsins 1,979]

apparently not, or it might not be closing.  Another casualty of the march of time.  This one doesn't hurt as much as some of the others except for the fact that there are so few left. GM Steakhouse, Mad Dog and Beans, Jorge's on 6th, Uptown Enchilada Bar, Players, Huts, Berts…..geez.  so many old Austin places gone, and with it so much of what gave Austin the character that made it great/weird/unique.  

They aren’t closing because of a lack of customers/sales.

[Anastasis 23,487]

1 minute ago, Blanton said:

Not good. Trudy's is a much better option

Oh Jesus Christ. 

[Blanton 170]

3 hours ago, Lat22 said:

I guess Dirty’s can’t be far behind. Sad. Very sad. 

No. Gets plenty of business and they recently made renovations (including full bar)

[Marfa Low Crown 2,549]

Fuck. My. Life. 

I remember when they still brought saltines to the table and the waiters (all with huge stomachs from eating there I am sure) wore those smoking jackets with food stains on them. 
This restaurant traumatized every woman I ever took there who was watching her waistline (which apparently was all of them, I guess), and it became my bros only go-to for lunch. This was my grandparent's Mexican food... a praline or sherbert with every meal. This place was everything that was still right in the world. Give me the David special with a tea and we're done here. Dude, this one hurts.. 

[Deej 76,972]

49 minutes ago, phdhorn said:

Someone on here I think posted "El Patio?" when the discussion was about the next institution to go... if you find it you get a saltine and salsa.

Probably in the Hut's closing thread.

[Blanton 170]

Just now, Anastasis said:

Oh Jesus Christ. 

Just the truth. Might have been a good place before mid 00's. Couldn't compete with the options Austin provides

[HenryJames 66,191]

It was open 65 years. Was it supposed to stay open forever?

[VirginiaLonghorn 4,784]

Back in the day ... El Mat, El Patio, y El Toro. 

[Marfa Low Crown 2,549]

1 minute ago, Blanton said:

Couldn't compete with the options Austin provides

That's not the point and they weren't trying to. This was 50's era Americanized Mexican food. A total throwback and that's what made it great.

 

1 hour ago, Dbeasy said:

plus $4.5m for the lot was pretty compelling.

I was wondering about that. This kind of food is low cost high profit... I wonder if they shopped the business around at all or just want to liquidate fast. Fuck it... it'll probably be condos in a year anyways
 

[Dbeasy 15,120]

Not good. Trudy's is a much better option

[Hank Scorpio 17,731]

27 minutes ago, HenryJames said:

It was open 65 years. Was it supposed to stay open forever?

Yeah, where would they find any Josephs to keep running it? 

[Steel Shank 9,432]

49 minutes ago, HenryJames said:

It was open 65 years. Was it supposed to stay open forever?

Only place I know like that is your momma's house, if you know what I mean.

[Murfdogg21 4,432]

Will go next week. RIP

[Judge Roybeanbag 11,821]

1 hour ago, HenryJames said:

It was open 65 years. Was it supposed to stay open forever?

No, but my old man used to eat there in the late 50s when he was going to law school and teaching at UT.  So it’s just a stark reminder that some of us are old and dying a little bit every day.  🥵

[HenryJames 66,191]

47 minutes ago, Steel Shank said:

Only place I know like that is your momma's house, if you know what I mean.

[Rougarou 594]

6 hours ago, phdhorn said:

Someone on here I think posted "El Patio?" when the discussion was about the next institution to go... if you find it you get a saltine and salsa.

I knew it was just a matter of time... great place, especially for the cheap prices.  Will miss greatly.

Will have Jr. and wife and I go there this weekend (jr. home for last weekend of his co-op in Dallas, then back to UT in August).  Absolutely.  Don't get in front of me.

 

I was thinking today-- I was in my last year or two when Austin tipped into modernity and I can name the exact moment it happened. 

The closing of Grande Mart on Rio Grande.

That's it. That's the tweet. That's the autopsy and that's the inflection point. Grande Mart's closing was what pushed the scales and took Austin to 51% over the event horizon and what we've seen the last 15 years has been a hurtling at the speed of light into the spaghettification that we see now.

 

[Radical Larry 28,664]

Man, what the fuck?

[Bateshorn 9,942]

Fucking sucks.  I grew up there.  Paul (RIP) Marianne, and David practically raised me.  My family has been eating there on Friday nights for 60 plus years.  I’ve definitely been in that dining room with some of you fuckers. After I turned 21, I would head to Centennial to grab a six pack after dinner to keep the party going.  

Y’all give it the love it deserves when you stop by for one last Perkins Special. 

[utee94 15,869]

11 hours ago, HenryJames said:

It was open 65 years. Was it supposed to stay open forever?

Well yes.  Yes, it was.

Have to go grab a Perkins special and some saltines n salsa before it closes.  Bummer.

[scottsins 1,979]

 
I was thinking today-- I was in my last year or two when Austin tipped into modernity and I can name the exact moment it happened. 
The closing of Grande Mart on Rio Grande.
That's it. That's the tweet. That's the autopsy and that's the inflection point. Grande Mart's closing was what pushed the scales and took Austin to 51% over the event horizon and what we've seen the last 15 years has been a hurtling at the speed of light into the spaghettification that we see now.
 

I’ll always remember that place as “Pronto Market”.

[Bozo_Casanova 26,580]

Well, I guess there’s nothing left to look forward to but the future.

[texasdago 7,587]

I think I went there a couple of times in all my years at UT and all my visits back.  Never remember it being anything great but it had nostalgic vibe.  That said, reading the article, its been the same family since the beginning and it looks like they're just tired.  I imagine being in the restaurant business for 60 years probably takes a beating and a place like that is not one where you sell the concept to someone else.  El Patio finished out its run.

[Murfdogg21 4,432]

Great theory on the Rio Grande Mart. After that, the rat trap apt complexes we all lived in got torn down one by one for modern fancy and $$$ complexes. Through 2004ish, there was an element of old Austin and Texan/redneck/white trash (in a good way) that gave current students shares experiences with generations prior. Going through West Campus these days, it is full of swank. 

[Rougarou 594]

23 minutes ago, Murfdogg21 said:

Great theory on the Rio Grande Mart. After that, the rat trap apt complexes we all lived in got torn down one by one for modern fancy and $$$ complexes. Through 2004ish, there was an element of old Austin and Texan/redneck/white trash (in a good way) that gave current students shares experiences with generations prior. Going through West Campus these days, it is full of swank. 

Really the Villas at Guadalupe ushered in that era visually/tangibly, but the war was over when Grande Mart was ended. We were probably in West Campus the same years it sounds like and I'll tell you, driving through West Campus last month and seeing how pedestrian friendly it is over by 26th and Rio Grande was weird. I guess next to die is Hole in the Wall and then West Campus will be dead, (though Cain & Abel's will never die).

[Murfdogg21 4,432]

Pluckers was forced to remodel to a modern Dallas motif. Gumby’s died. Cain and Abel’s sustaining on legacy frat boys. 

[ChickenSandwich 9,856]

9 hours ago, Rougarou said:

 

I was thinking today-- I was in my last year or two when Austin tipped into modernity and I can name the exact moment it happened. 

The closing of Grande Mart on Rio Grande.

That's it. That's the tweet. That's the autopsy and that's the inflection point. Grande Mart's closing was what pushed the scales and took Austin to 51% over the event horizon and what we've seen the last 15 years has been a hurtling at the speed of light into the spaghettification that we see now.

 

I miss Steve. 

[TonyTexas 10,535]

Since we are reminiscing about Old Austin/West Campus, anyone remember Raymond's Drugs at Rio Grande and 28th?  i couldn't even count the number of $5 checks I cashed there. My mom looked at my bank statement once and asked if my weed dealer was named Raymond.

[Guest Lobo]

I'm still reading conflicting reports on why they are closing, or no reports at all.  I know the family wants to move on, and wish them well.  But is that corner parcel their land, or was it a lease this whole time?  Could the spot change hands and still operate as a restaurant or is the whole ground-up probably going under the wrecking ball?