Jump to content

Austin Restaurants You Miss The Most

DoobieWah

By DoobieWah
in Austin

 Share

Recommended Posts

utee94

utee94 15749

Posted
Posted
55 minutes ago, ChickenSandwich said:

Short lived, but Don Luis Super Taco had legit food.  Expanded too quickly and choose the SPOT of DEATH (now formerly known as Weirdos) and promptly lost both locations.

+1 Hickory Street

Absolutely.  Loved Don Luis Super Taco, that location is just awful.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
DalTxHornFan

DalTxHornFan 3089

Posted
Posted

It was the Texas Tumbleweed, previously known as The Feedlot.  Owned by Jack Ray, the founder of The Barn, which was located way out in the outskirts of North Austin on Balcones Drive -- now North Mopac, just south of 183.   Here's a pretty good story about the whole shebang, with pics, too!  https://communityimpact.com/austin/corridor/2014/04/21/8611-n-mopac-2/

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Stunns38

Stunns38 3438

Posted
Posted
It was the Texas Tumbleweed, previously known as The Feedlot.  Owned by Jack Ray, the founder of The Barn, which was located way out in the outskirts of North Austin on Balcones Drive -- now North Mopac, just south of 183.   Here's a pretty good story about the whole shebang, with pics, too!  https://communityimpact.com/austin/corridor/2014/04/21/8611-n-mopac-2/


Thank you!
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Guest Lobo

Guest Lobo

Posted
Posted

Conan's is closing multiple locations.  With so much good pizza in Austin, hard to believe they hung on this long.  Then again, people will fucking miss Pizza Hut.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites
utee94

utee94 15749

Posted
Posted
15 minutes ago, Lobo said:

Conan's is closing multiple locations.  With so much good pizza in Austin, hard to believe they hung on this long.  Then again, people will fucking miss Pizza Hut.  

It's only surprising to believe they hung on this long because their employees are usually 100% baked by 11 AM on any given day and sometimes just getting your order taken can be a near-impossible task.  Their pizza, however, remains my favorite in Austin.  Savage deep pan on whole wheat is a national treasure.  Or, at least a local one. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
DalTxHornFan

DalTxHornFan 3089

Posted
Posted (edited)
14 hours ago, Lobo said:

Conan's is closing multiple locations.  With so much good pizza in Austin, hard to believe they hung on this long.  Then again, people will fucking miss Pizza Hut.  

As best I can tell, only 29th Street location is closing.  They've cited rent increases.  Have you been around campus lately?  That whole area is going nuts (and vertical mixed use).

 

14 hours ago, utee94 said:

Savage deep pan on whole wheat is a national treasure.  Or, at least a local one. 

Truth (with extra japs and anchovies).

Edited by DalTxHornFan
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Guest Lobo

Guest Lobo

Posted
Posted

Thought I read two locations shuttering (one now and another very soon).  I'm on campus once or twice a week for work stuff, but I am complete awe almost every time as there seems to be something new or under construction at every turn.  West Campus aside, the shit going on in North Campus area is starting to really take off.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites
DalTxHornFan

DalTxHornFan 3089

Posted
Posted
On 6/18/2018 at 10:10 PM, Lobo said:

Thought I read two locations shuttering (one now and another very soon).  I'm on campus once or twice a week for work stuff, but I am complete awe almost every time as there seems to be something new or under construction at every turn.  West Campus aside, the shit going on in North Campus area is starting to really take off.  

I just got this email from Conans:

S.gif

 

eea3de63-6c54-4d6e-9de0-df72469a0fdc.png

 

From Our Family to Yours,

THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

THE SAD NEWS 😞

Some of you may have heard, that Conans Pizza Central, our original location opened on July 19th, 1976, is closing. I'm writing you with a heavy heart, to confirm it is true.

 

Our 42nd Anniversary weekend (July19th-22nd) will be our last days baking gourmet pies on the corner of 29th & Guadalupe. We've fed a generation a Longhorns, and will miss being so close to campus. And while we aren't ruling out a new Central location, we have no immediate plans.

oldest known ad

 

THE COUNTDOWN HAS BEGUN

We'd like to INVITE YOU BACK FOR ONE MORE PIZZA experience in our FINAL 33 days. We've been truly blessed to have a solid core group of loyal staff who have recommitted to making sure you're last Conans Central pizza experience is one to remember! Now recall, this is our smallest store and crew, so if you're planning something big, give us a heads up. And come during our slower off-peak hours to spread the love around.

 

THE GREAT NEWS!!!

CONANS NORTH AND CONANS SOUTH WILL CONTINUE cooking up your favorite pizzas! AND, both locations will only get better in this new era, as two independent owner-operated restaurants, we're doubling-down on the future of Austin, Texas, Earth.

 

SHARE YOUR MEMORIES

One of the best rewards we get is hearing from our customers about their fondest memories. In our final month, I'd love to hear more stories of good times past. Tell your favorite story on your social platform of choice, and tag us!

 

PS- Nobody likes closing up shop, but know, this is the best thing for our small family business and the pizzas of the future will only improve!

 

S.gif

 

S.gif

DividerAccent.png

S.gif

 

Conans Pizza | conanspizza@gmail.com | www.conanspizza.com

S.gif

 

Facebook‌ Twitter‌

Link to comment
Share on other sites
utee94

utee94 15749

Posted
Posted

This thread made me pick up a Conan's pizza on Friday night.  That drive home, with the smell of that delicious pizza, is always pure torture.  It's possible that one slice was missing when I delivered it home to my family...

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Guest Lobo

Guest Lobo

Posted
Posted

I agree.  I like about half their menu, and the other half is "meh", as you say.  But they are the fullest restaurant with the best margins within several blocks.  

Then again, so long as I keep attending conferences at downtown hotels that list, "Historic Sixth Street" as the dining/entertainment option in Austin, I don't know what the fuck to think.  How are we, in 2018, with a straight face, still letting conference organizers tell thousands of out-of-town guests each week that that is the place to be?

The 4th Street/Warehouse District suffers another fate.  It's safer and certainly offers better fare, but it's actually dying in a way.  Most of the original spots are gone, still some good food, but not much in the way of good bars, live music, and scenery.  Searsucker at least attempted something different down there (albeit in 'chain' form), and they're gone less than 5 years later. i enjoy a few joints down there but they are a dying breed.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Guest Lobo

Guest Lobo

Posted
Posted (edited)

Another Austin institution bit the dust this week, in a way.  The flagship location of Austin Java on Barton Springs will shutter soon:

https://austin.eater.com/2018/6/26/17505730/austin-java-barton-springs-closed-irish-pub-restaurant-manchaca 

I used to really like that place.  My wife and I would make our way down there regularly by bike and eat on the weekends, but it went south a long time ago.  Completely apathetic waitstaff, place was always filthy, and food was good but not enough to justify the long wait and extra bullshit.  Last straw was taking the 2 year old there last year and we waited 45 minutes for a handful of to-go tacos and watched a pet pig shit on the patio table next to us.  

The weirdest part of the story, because rising property taxes in South Austin is nothing new, is that it's to be replaced already by an Irish Pub (not that odd) that will focus (odd part coming) on meat pies and hot stews.  Mmm, just want the person heading to Barton Springs pool or Zilker Park or the Long Center wants, heavy, heavy, scalding hot stereotypical Irish fare that hurts the colon to eat on a hot day.  Was a cheap calzone themed cafe idea already taken?  

Edited by Lobo
Link to comment
Share on other sites
jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 45627

Posted
Posted

I never really got Austin Java.  Admittedly, I mostly went to the Lamar location and maybe the one near City Hall before a show at ACL Live on rare occasions, but the former especially always seemed slammed by college kids sipping coffee and studying.  Like, for hours on end.  It made grabbing a coffee and a bagel on a weekend impossible.

And yeah, it was always pretty filthy and staffed by mongoloids.  (No offense to real Mongols.)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ChickenSandwich

ChickenSandwich 9807

Posted
Posted
9 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

I never really got Austin Java.  Admittedly, I mostly went to the Lamar location and maybe the one near City Hall before a show at ACL Live on rare occasions, but the former especially always seemed slammed by college kids sipping coffee and studying.  Like, for hours on end.  It made grabbing a coffee and a bagel on a weekend impossible.

And yeah, it was always pretty filthy and staffed by mongoloids.  (No offense to real Mongols.)

Breakfast quesadilla 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Hank Scorpio

Hank Scorpio 17724

Posted
Posted
34 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

I never really got Austin Java.  Admittedly, I mostly went to the Lamar location and maybe the one near City Hall before a show at ACL Live on rare occasions, but the former especially always seemed slammed by college kids sipping coffee and studying.  Like, for hours on end.  It made grabbing a coffee and a bagel on a weekend impossible.

And yeah, it was always pretty filthy and staffed by mongoloids.  (No offense to real Mongols.)

The only problem with Austin Java is that it sucked. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
Hagbard Celine

Hagbard Celine 10797

Posted
Posted

If we go back to the 360 days, this is either the 4th or 5th iteration of this community.  Hard to believe but those of us who know all these names, especially the older names, are 20, 30, 40 years on from our time on the 40.  We need an FAQ for the cultural/culinary/entertainment history of austin.  Something like aggypedia.  Most of my entries have already been mentioned.

#1.  The best cheeseburger ever produced over an open flame: GM Steakhouse.  I wonder how many people on our prior forum did not know why the food/travel forum was so named.  Was on the drag between 20th and 21st.  I think it was in the building that current google street view shows to be something called "K-Bop".  But not sure.  On Sunday nights, Jester cafeteria was closed, so a couple hundred guys would descend on GM like clockwork.

#2.  Castle Hill, so named because of it's original location (i'm fairly certain) at 11th & Lamar that's been "built on top of and borg-d" by whole earth.  I'm not sure when the move to 5th & Baylor happened ('93?) but it was a great place to introduce visitors to SouthTexWest food.  Many great meals with dates, friends, and family.  Shuttered on current Google street view.  As the steel/glass plague marches west from downtown, that beautiful building is at risk.  Sandra Bullock holla????

#3. Katz's never Kloses.  Cheese-stuffed blintzes and bagels with cream cheese and jelly.   *THE* 3am cure for what ailed you.  On west 6th, today it has 3 signs attached to it, Rio, Lux, Pop, whatever the fuck those things are.

#4. Jorge's on 6th.  I loved their enchiladas.  And they served (ritas) to UT kids on dates and never carded.  Jorge's never gets mentioned, but there was a time when dirty 6th was not dirty and did have Uniquely Austin venues.  One Sunday or Monday night in the fall of '84 i took a date to Jorge's, then went to Steamboat (defunct) and this guy in a black hat was playing solo to a crowd of 20....

#5. Les Amis.  Brown rice and cheese for Liberal Arts feaux-paupers chilling to the slacker vibe, before the movie was made.  Austin Authentica.  Across 24th from the Castillian, now a Smoothie King / Starbucks.

#6. Players.  3am cheesburger fix?  Flat patties off a greasy grill cleaned once a year.  Obliterated by the @@ Conference Center.

#7. Tumbleweed.  Already covered, more the idea you could wind out 2222 and in 20 minutes from downtown be in dark skies hill country.  NOT ANYMORE!!

++++

Austin Authentica still around the from 70s/80s...

Texas Chili Parlor, 14th & the cow.  No longer has the Illuminati Ham and Swiss on Rye on the menu.  Triple-X is even too hot for me.  Double-X with a truckload of grated cheddar and crackers with a Bock.  The bomb.

Dry Creek Cafe on Mt. Bonnell Road.  It can't last forever, and it was there before *ANYTHING* was built west of MoPac.  The ultimate insider's roadhouse for a beer.

The first Chuy's at 1728 Barton Springs.  I haven't been there in 20 years but i know it's still open and i hope they haven't changed a thing.  3-hour wait on friday and saturday in the late 80s.

Trudy's, but everyone says it's gone down badly.  Back in the day, ritas, milanesa, and cheese-stuffed mashed potatoes were the thing.

Crown & Anchor.  Everyone says it's now the best cheeseburger in Austin.  Need to get by soon.

Thundercloud.  Still a fantastic subwich.  Riverside location east of Congress has a new facade but last time i was in there the inside was still vintage '85.

Cain & Abel's, Rio Grande at 24th.  I would venture more than 1 Million casual copulations have instantiated here over the past 35 years.  Again, with the west campus real estate situation, it can't last forever.

Scholz Garten.  Way before the 70s/80s.  But still an institution that deserves a visit if you want to know Austin.

Mrs. Johnson's donuts.  Now owned and run by south asians.  Quality is down.  Gourdoughs kicks their ass.  But the Elvis nostalgia and original post-war digs make it a visit for the cultural checkbox, and the donuts are still pretty good.

Amy's.  I still like Amy's.

Texadelphia (80s) and Hole-in-the-wall (late 60s?) are still alive on the north end of the drag.... for how long?

+++++

bitchassed bitching....

It's West 26th, not Dean Keeton. 

Town Lake, not Lady Bird Lake.

 

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites
jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 45627

Posted
Posted (edited)
On 7/8/2018 at 1:45 PM, Hagbard Celine said:

#2.  Castle Hill, so named because of it's original location (i'm fairly certain) at 11th & Lamar that's been "built on top of and borg-d" by whole earth.

It was originally in the spot now occupied by Wink.  After moving to 5th and Baylor (?) and operating for quite a while management switched names and menu to Corazon.  They closed a few years ago.  Nothing has popped up there since, which is shocking, because it's a prime location -- hey, PARKING -- but I'm sure some mixed-use condo development is just being help up at City Hall.

 

Quote

#5. Les Amis.  Brown rice and cheese for Liberal Arts feaux-paupers chilling to the slacker vibe, before the movie was made.  Austin Authentica.  Across 24th from the Castillian, now a Smoothie King / Starbucks.

Mmmm, Denia (lead singer for Bad Mutha Goose).  I drank a shitload of espresso over the years just hoping she'd work my table.

Edited by jimmyjazz
Link to comment
Share on other sites
utee94

utee94 15749

Posted
Posted
On 7/8/2018 at 2:21 PM, DalTxHornFan said:

"bitchassed bitching....

It's West 26th, not Dean Keeton. 

Town Lake, not Lady Bird Lake."

It's 19th Street, not MLK.

It's 1st Street, not Cesar Chavez.

 

 

<armybrat>It's Waterloo, not Austin</armybrat>

 

 

  • Like 1
  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
 Share
Go to topic listing


Football ... Basketball ... Baseball ... Other Sports ... Futbol ... 🤫995🤫 ... Gambling ... Movies & TV ... Music ... Hobbies ... Lulz ... Food & Travel ... Daily Texan ... Business and Markets ... Cloak Room ... Help ... For Sale ... Board Discussion ... Subscribe!... Donate!... Advertise... COOKIE MONSTER!

×
×
  • Create New...