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Overrated Food Places

TexArcher

By TexArcher
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South Austin

South Austin 51633

Posted
Posted
3 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

This is what I don't understand about the Matt's hate. We ate there the night before the Alabama game, and almost got into a fight, which was amazing. The tacos I got were literally inedible. The shell was the fucked up, inedible chewy/untearable tortilla chip consistency we've all experienced. We waited two hours to get seated. And don't give a fuck, it was wall to wall hot women and fun. Love Matt's. But it ain't the food.

The hate deservedly piled onto Matt's is all about the food.  Sure, it's a great place to gather socially for nostalgia and people watching, and while I'll never nominate that as a meeting place if I'm around that part of town, I won't veto it.  But leave after happy hour and get an edible meal elsewhere, unless you happen to get shitfaced there and don't mind putting half-assed Tex Mex food into your belly.

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SydneyCarton

SydneyCarton 47472

Posted
Posted
11 minutes ago, South Austin said:

The hate deservedly piled onto Matt's is all about the food.  Sure, it's a great place to gather socially for nostalgia and people watching, and while I'll never nominate that as a meeting place if I'm around that part of town, I won't veto it.  But leave after happy hour and get an edible meal elsewhere, unless you happen to get shitfaced there and don't mind putting half-assed Tex Mex food into your belly.

tumblr_lemcmx4MmZ1qbiabyo1_540.jpg

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CooterBrown

CooterBrown 17735

Posted
Posted (edited)
49 minutes ago, South Austin said:

Mandola's is "top shelf" for Austin?  The fuck?

Places like Red Ash, Vespaio, Olive & June, and Juniper are "top shelf" Italian in Austin.  Not some drab chain like Mandola's.  I consider Gusto and Andiamo casual Italian, at least compared to those places.  Asti in Hyde Park probably fits that bill as well.  I'll go to all of those places for casual Italian on a continuous loop before I go to Mandola's.

Top shelf casual is what I meant.  If you need a reservation, it's off the list.  Gusto is worse than Mandolas. Andiamo and Asti are fine but are nicer than I would consider casual.  Austin doesn't have those east coast mafia style red sauce italian joints. 

Edited by CooterBrown
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Texzilla58

Texzilla58 4687

Posted
Posted
This is the "food that is overrated" thread, not the "defend a pile of horseshit thread."




Correct you are sir. Fucking Cincinnati chili is pure shit festooned with ridiculous other shit. This awfulness started out as Greek hot dog sauce and evolved into this sin against nature. First it has cinnamon and allspice in it. They eat it with slimy noodles and then Satan’s bean, the kidney bean. Buried under a mountain of bad cheese floss. No Texan should come near it.
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yoladu

yoladu 4045

Posted
Posted (edited)
35 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

Top shelf casual is what I meant.  If you need a reservation, it's off the list.  Gusto is worse than Mandolas. Andiamo and Asti are fine but are nicer than I would consider casual.  Austin doesn't have those east coast mafia style red sauce italian joints. 

I'll stick up for Mandola's, too. It's a pretty good "hey family, let's go out for dinner tonight" kind of place.

Sure, There are more expensive/nicer options for Italian, but those take planning, reservations, are not always easy or conveniently located, and a hit on the pocketbook.

so Mandola's is rated just right for what it is trying to be.

 

 

Edited by yoladu
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pearlandhorn

pearlandhorn 3260

Posted
Posted
On 9/29/2022 at 3:43 AM, WhatTheBuck said:

And Ruth’s Chris is another good one. I get the idea of putting butter on a steak. I don’t think it needs it, but I get it. But their steak is nothing special and it comes drowning in butter. Same with the vegetable side. I don’t know, the only time I went there was in Raleigh, NC. Maybe that has something to do with it but I was thoroughly unimpressed. 

I find that Ruth's Chris quality varies based on location.  The best Ruth's Chris is in Vegas in my opinion.  The one in New Orleans is a close second.  The one in Houston is awful.

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utee94

utee94 15722

Posted
Posted
59 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

Top shelf casual is what I meant.  If you need a reservation, it's off the list.  Gusto is worse than Mandolas. Andiamo and Asti are fine but are nicer than I would consider casual.  Austin doesn't have those east coast mafia style red sauce italian joints. 

Agree with you for the most part, Mandola's isn't the same category as all of the other Italian places mentioned and shouldn't be compared to them.

I will point out that Austin does have at least one mafia style red sauce joint, Reale's.  There might be more but I can't think of one right now.

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Texzilla58

Texzilla58 4687

Posted
Posted

I’m like Campisi’s and I Fratelli but not here to argue the point.

Overrated is basically any “certified neopolitan” pizza joint with a fancy $100000 ceramic Italian oven, uses $9 a can tomatoes, puts tiny amounts of expensive meats and cheeses on it, and charges $30 for a 8 inch pie. This is peasant food. Fuck your fancy pants hipster shit.

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pearlandhorn

pearlandhorn 3260

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, dcbc said:

I will definitely take you at your word since I haven't had them at that stage.  This tends to be true with a lot of food.  Brisket is best within minutes of its being sliced.  That burger doesn't improve between the moment they hand it to me in the bag and the time I get it home.  Krispy Kreme seems to have a lot smaller window than just about any other doughnut someone has left out on the break room table at my office or most other foods for that matter.  And since doughnuts are things people tend to buy more than one of to feed small groups, I'd tend to lean toward the shop that makes something that isn't going to taste like sawdust within x minutes of coming off the line.  Again, I'm not saying they aren't great in that moment.  And not being a doughnut person, I tend not to be the one that goes to pick up the doughnuts.  So I need something with a little bit of staying power.

 

We tend to grab a bunch of pigs in the blanket on the doughnut shop runs we do make.  And there are a handful of mom & pop Asian operated places that really get those right, at least in these parts. 

Can confirm.  Tyler has some legit donut places. 

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CooterBrown

CooterBrown 17735

Posted
Posted
Agree with you for the most part, Mandola's isn't the same category as all of the other Italian places mentioned and shouldn't be compared to them.
I will point out that Austin does have at least one mafia style red sauce joint, Reale's.  There might be more but I can't think of one right now.

Little Deli was going to open one in the old dry cleaner spot across the parking lot but that never happened. I’d assume because most dry cleaner sites require a huge amount of environmental remediation.
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ztejas

ztejas 42802

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, CooterBrown said:

Top shelf casual is what I meant.  If you need a reservation, it's off the list.  Gusto is worse than Mandolas. Andiamo and Asti are fine but are nicer than I would consider casual.  Austin doesn't have those east coast mafia style red sauce italian joints. 

Yep. I was going to take umbrage with your statement as well but then realized that Austin is terrible for casual Italian. I mean the other decent stuff are chains like Bucca Di Beppo, Carino's, Romano's... 

Still, I'd rather go somewhere like North, Asti etc. and pay a bit more than go to those places. 

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ztejas

ztejas 42802

Posted
Posted
16 minutes ago, utee94 said:

Agree with you for the most part, Mandola's isn't the same category as all of the other Italian places mentioned and shouldn't be compared to them.

I will point out that Austin does have at least one mafia style red sauce joint, Reale's.  There might be more but I can't think of one right now.

That new place where Hutt's used to be. Sammy's I think? 

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texasdago

texasdago 7407

Posted
Posted

I am going to stay away from Italian discussions because I will drag 99% of your Austin Italian-American sacred cows.

So I'm going to go after a Houston Tex-Mex place that I don't think I've seen mentioned... Los Tios.  Hot garbage that only gets business because of its margaritas.  The food is awful... wife and I went to the Kirkwood location ONCE and her quesadilla had a bite taken out of it... clear as day teeth marks.

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utee94

utee94 15722

Posted
Posted
1 minute ago, yoladu said:

Just looked at their menu and prices.

I know it's gotten crazy.. but i cant bring myself to spend $42 on a chicken parmesan. (Mandola's  is $14)

$19 at Reale's.  $22 at North.   $24 at Asti.  

And that's the point.  IMO Mandola's is better than the really big chains that fit into the same "casual Italian" market space, and it's considerably less expensive than the other local or small chain restaurants being mentioned.

It might or might not be overrated, but it shouldn't be compared against the Italian fine dining places because they're not sharing the same market.

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Texzilla58

Texzilla58 4687

Posted
Posted

Sorry but chicken parm isn’t Italian fine dining. Anyone paying $42 for a plate of it, or even veal parm, is flat out stupid.

Parm is a simple red gravy joint dish that is clearly Italian-American from the abandanzza found coming to this country. Most Italian immigrants came here having lived near starvation for generations. Meat was a very rare thing.

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irishtexan

irishtexan 11414

Posted
Posted
40 minutes ago, Texzilla58 said:

Sorry but chicken parm isn’t Italian fine dining. Anyone paying $42 for a plate of it, or even veal parm, is flat out stupid.

Parm is a simple red gravy joint dish that is clearly Italian-American from the abandanzza found coming to this country. Most Italian immigrants came here having lived near starvation for generations. Meat was a very rare thing.

The veal parm is $54!

I'm sure the food is great but I'll never know because I'll never eat at that restaurant. Their pricing is egregious.  

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gsoda3

gsoda3 3194

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, utee94 said:

Agree with you for the most part, Mandola's isn't the same category as all of the other Italian places mentioned and shouldn't be compared to them.

I will point out that Austin does have at least one mafia style red sauce joint, Reale's.  There might be more but I can't think of one right now.

gino's in round rock. 

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justhookit

justhookit 4165

Posted
Posted
On 9/28/2022 at 8:05 PM, Bill Brasky said:

anywhere in Port Aransas that gets mentioned here 

 

On 9/28/2022 at 8:51 PM, CycleTex87 said:

Places in Port A should only be compared to other places in Port A. 

Unfortunately this is correct. When Pelican Club/Liberty Hall/Inferno closed for good we lost our only really good restaurant. Venetian is still solid, the others are basically tourist food.

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Native Horn

Native Horn 3465

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, texasdago said:

I am going to stay away from Italian discussions because I will drag 99% of your Austin Italian-American sacred cows.

So I'm going to go after a Houston Tex-Mex place that I don't think I've seen mentioned... Los Tios.  Hot garbage that only gets business because of its margaritas.  The food is awful... wife and I went to the Kirkwood location ONCE and her quesadilla had a bite taken out of it... clear as day teeth marks.

You got somethin' against quality control??

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irishtexan

irishtexan 11414

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, South Austin said:

The hate deservedly piled onto Matt's is all about the food.  Sure, it's a great place to gather socially for nostalgia and people watching, and while I'll never nominate that as a meeting place if I'm around that part of town, I won't veto it.  But leave after happy hour and get an edible meal elsewhere, unless you happen to get shitfaced there and don't mind putting half-assed Tex Mex food into your belly.

The asadero tacos at Matt's are legitimately good. The cowboy-style chicken fried steak is also good. As many have said, you have to know not to order "traditional" tex-mex at Matt's because that's not what they do well. Which I guess makes it "overrated" because it's insanely popular and the general quality of food doesn't match its popularity. So if that's your definition, then sure, Matt's is overrated. But I'm fine going to Matt's and know there are a few things that are actually pretty damn good. 

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WhatTheBuck

WhatTheBuck 28613

Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, SydneyCarton said:

This is the "food that is overrated" thread, not the "defend a pile of horseshit thread."

Taco Bell is awesome. That is all. 

That totally defeats your argument because Taco Bell sucks and I haven’t eaten their in years. I mean, I get it. You’re from Texas and those Yankees up in Ohio make a meat sauce that has the word “chili” attached to it and it’s seasoned with Mediterranean spices and not the spices you associate with chili so it must suck.

I first had Taco Bell probably around a decade before I had Skyline. I’ve watched Taco Bell’s decline over the years. I’m not even sure they’re serving actual beef anymore. Have you ever put a leftover bean burrito in the fridge overnight? It’s as hard as a brick the next morning.

I can’t point a finger at anyone specifically, but I know for certain that a lot of the supposed disgust over Cincinnati chili here is ideological, not culinary.

While Cincinnati chili started at Skyline, it’s become its own thing. Not only can you get it at Gold Star, a sort of fast casual competitor of Skyline, but you can also get it at more formal sit-down restaurants. You can find recipes online to make it at home. You can buy spice packets to make it simple.

I whipped this up after the Super Bowl. I couldn’t eat it all but the leftovers were great the day after. (In honor of Joe Burrow, I elected to go with two hot sauces, one from Ohio and one from Louisiana.) And yes, I had to add more cheese.

314CAEAE-EC20-45AE-A3A6-7318B0879375.thumb.jpeg.521f49cbba56d11d83ff1aab3cf40ffa.jpeg

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South Austin

South Austin 51633

Posted
Posted
35 minutes ago, WhatTheBuck said:

That totally defeats your argument because Taco Bell sucks and I haven’t eaten their in years. I mean, I get it. You’re from Texas and those Yankees up in Ohio make a meat sauce that has the word “chili” attached to it and it’s seasoned with Mediterranean spices and not the spices you associate with chili so it must suck.

I first had Taco Bell probably around a decade before I had Skyline. I’ve watched Taco Bell’s decline over the years. I’m not even sure they’re serving actual beef anymore. Have you ever put a leftover bean burrito in the fridge overnight? It’s as hard as a brick the next morning.

I can’t point a finger at anyone specifically, but I know for certain that a lot of the supposed disgust over Cincinnati chili here is ideological, not culinary.

While Cincinnati chili started at Skyline, it’s become its own thing. Not only can you get it at Gold Star, a sort of fast casual competitor of Skyline, but you can also get it at more formal sit-down restaurants. You can find recipes online to make it at home. You can buy spice packets to make it simple.

I whipped this up after the Super Bowl. I couldn’t eat it all but the leftovers were great the day after. (In honor of Joe Burrow, I elected to go with two hot sauces, one from Ohio and one from Louisiana.) And yes, I had to add more cheese.

314CAEAE-EC20-45AE-A3A6-7318B0879375.thumb.jpeg.521f49cbba56d11d83ff1aab3cf40ffa.jpeg

Call it Mediterranean spaghetti and maybe we can be friends.

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Deej

Deej 76197

Posted
Posted
53 minutes ago, WhatTheBuck said:

That totally defeats your argument because Taco Bell sucks and I haven’t eaten their in years. I mean, I get it. You’re from Texas and those Yankees up in Ohio make a meat sauce that has the word “chili” attached to it and it’s seasoned with Mediterranean spices and not the spices you associate with chili so it must suck.

I first had Taco Bell probably around a decade before I had Skyline. I’ve watched Taco Bell’s decline over the years. I’m not even sure they’re serving actual beef anymore. Have you ever put a leftover bean burrito in the fridge overnight? It’s as hard as a brick the next morning.

I can’t point a finger at anyone specifically, but I know for certain that a lot of the supposed disgust over Cincinnati chili here is ideological, not culinary.

While Cincinnati chili started at Skyline, it’s become its own thing. Not only can you get it at Gold Star, a sort of fast casual competitor of Skyline, but you can also get it at more formal sit-down restaurants. You can find recipes online to make it at home. You can buy spice packets to make it simple.

I whipped this up after the Super Bowl. I couldn’t eat it all but the leftovers were great the day after. (In honor of Joe Burrow, I elected to go with two hot sauces, one from Ohio and one from Louisiana.) And yes, I had to add more cheese.

314CAEAE-EC20-45AE-A3A6-7318B0879375.thumb.jpeg.521f49cbba56d11d83ff1aab3cf40ffa.jpeg

Parks And Rec Reaction GIF

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Covri

Covri 6150

Posted
Posted
16 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

Skyline is great and it’s far from overrated. If you don’t like it, that’s fine. That’s your problem. But it’s been more than 35 years since I first ate there and the quality hasn’t slipped a bit. Can’t say the same for BDubs. They used to be awesome, went corporate, and went to hell. I’ve watched McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and Taco Bell deteriorate. There used to be a really good Italian restaurant called Bravo here that was excellent. They opened some more stores. They expanded further and called the new ones Brio. Quality plummeted and I can’t eat there anymore. I’ve watched a lot of restaurant chains grow and sacrifice quality for profit margin and turn to crap. Skyline remains unchanged.

From this past National Chili Dog Day (not shown is the hot sauce, I brought my own):

9009BF29-49AF-4CA9-8FF3-33EA782A29DB.thumb.jpeg.2b720f8ea96d96bb8ad48bb373a988b3.jpeg

 

11 hours ago, Paco said:

"It's just as disgusting as it was 35 years ago" isn't exactly the endorsement you think it is.

Careful WTB has a word document where he tracks all of this so he can be confidently incorrect on all sorts of food topics lol.

 

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ztejas

ztejas 42802

Posted
Posted
22 minutes ago, conVINCEd said:

We set a recliner on fire one year in college as we were throwing it out of the window and trying to hit the dumpster.  Does this make me an honorary Buckeye?

We threw a rear projection TV out of a 3rd story window onto the sidewalk below in college. I'm pretty sure I was involved in that to a high degree. Sounds like something I'd do. Not really looking to be an honorary Buckeye, though. 

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Deej

Deej 76197

Posted
Posted
28 minutes ago, conVINCEd said:

We set a recliner on fire one year in college as we were throwing it out of the window and trying to hit the dumpster.  Does this make me an honorary Buckeye?

Is your IQ less than 90? Then yes. Congrats on being on What The Buck's level. 

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conVINCEd

conVINCEd 21468

Posted
Posted
26 minutes ago, Deej said:

Is your IQ less than 90? Then yes. Congrats on being on What The Buck's level. 

At the time it was probably less than 90.  It’s improved over time.  We had a recliner that was going in the dumpster one way or another, and we decided to have some fun  with it.  No apologies 

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