Even though Pool Burger is known for its... burgers, I actually came for a morning rave hosted by…read moreMushroom Cowboy to enjoy the venue, the drinks, and the vibes. Pool Burger reminds me of a smaller version of the former Placeholder that was also tropical-themed on Rainey. The space is small-- it's got two tiny bars (one inside and out), limited seating, and a tiny AC unit inside. Not a place I'd go out of my way for to grab a drink (standard Austin pricing), verdict is still out on the burgers.

I am a Midwestern Boy so I have fond memories of swimming in Lake Michigan and going for a great…read morecheeseburger afterwards in the little resort towns of Michigan. This place, while in the Southwest, made me think of those fun memories in the North! Simply put, after swimming for a few hours usually in Deep Eddy Pool (me? Barton Springs), you just want a good cheeseburger cooked well with zesty toppings. This is the place to go! Plus, its got a full tiki bar! I was there in April, so the weather was perfect, but I do wonder how the place is when its really hot or really cold outside. I loved the selections of food and drinks! Absolutely perfect and exactly what I wanted after swimming in Lake Austin!

Took my dear friend for her birthday lunch here and wow!…read more Their famous fries were outstanding, as always! It had been years since I tasted such deliciousness! (moved to Manchaca and since the Hyde Park south no longer exists :(( unfortunately, I rarely go north of townlake! ) The Asian chicken salad was really yummy too...they added sprouts! (An extra bonus- I did not expect) Our waitress, Sam was THE BEST!!! She brought birthday candles with a huge slice of YUM -chocolate cake. Sam had my friend choose her favorite color candle. Fun! Then Sam lit the lime green birthday candle, and we harmonized for an extra loud rendition of the song "Happy Birthday"- (Yes, I was trying to embarrass my friend). Sam's sweet and sunny disposition was such a delight! Thank you for everything, Sam- truly excellent service!!!

Wow, it's been a hot minute since we've last been back to Hyde Park Bar & Grill (2018!), and it's…read morenot where we would normally go, but the line at Allday was of course ridiculous, so we came here with some other local friends optimistic about the "new ownership" we've heard about. First of all, did new ownership not get the fork accoutrements included in their contract??! Where's the graduation hat? The heart? We haven't seen anything on the fork in months. Bring back the fork swag!!! When we walked in, it was clear that they were understaffed, and tables remained unbussed and dirty around us all night. It also took a very long time for our server to come over and take our orders. The ambience felt...kinda sad to be honest. The food did not lift spirits. All of us got one sandwich or another and ALL of us had soggy bottom buns! We all flipped our sandwiches upside down since it was easier to eat that way. The black bean veggie burger wasn't bad, per se, but it could have been so much better with a little more TLC. Same re. the chicken BLT. The fries, we have to say, were still pretty phenomenal. Our daughter's mac-n-cheese looked a bit greasy. So, all in all, we wish we had had a better experience, but it's unlikely we'll be again unless it's just for fries and drinks. That said, we do love this institution and we hope that it can get out of its slump.

I had an event of Rainey Street and wanted to grab a quick bite to eat before heading over. I…read moreremembered that my hubby and I had brunch at Geraldine's some time ago and it was a pleasant experience. One of my friends later joined me at Geraldine's. Geraldine's menu blends modern Mexican flavors with Southern influences. Geraldine's is a balanced dining experiences on Rainey Street...a convergence of high-quality food, live music, and breathtaking panoramic views from Hotel Van Zandt. My server, Taylor, almost immediately appeared at my table offering water. He conveyed that the Al Pastor was the most popular menu item, so I decided order it along with some prosecco. The Al Pastor literally melted in my mouth with an explosion of flavor in every bite. It was so enjoyable eat. Pro tip: If you eat at Geraldine's you receive 3 hours of free parking...added bonus.

I am so sad to admit that I don't think any establishment has failed as miserably as Geraldine's…read more My really good friend hosted a dinner/mini networking mixer that started at six. There were barely any people there other than our group and the entire dining hall was basically empty. My fiancé and I were ready to order food and drinks from their happy hour menu by 6:10 and there was no process in place what so ever so we went over to the bar to place our order. Believe it or not it took them until 6:19 to finally get our attention and so we let the host order before us. We still wanted to make the happy hour order before 6:30 and so I told the Bartender it would be great if he could get us next. At 6:28 when we were trying to place our orders, he says I will need to run over to my manager and see if I can take your order for happy hour food. We were literally shocked because we couldn't understand what that meant. It was clearly written in their menus and on their website that happy hour runs until 6:30 daily. When he came back, he told us we are only able to order the happy hour bites on the bottom half of the menu and not the three course prefix happy hour on the top half. There was no explanation offered and no compassion or apologies around why that was happening. He basically just smiled and said yeah it is what it is. So in the moment because we were so short of time, we ended up ordering one of each items from the second half of the menu and it was an absolute disaster. I run a happy hour account on socials and can confidently say this isn't something I would ever recommend to my followers. From the amount of time, it took to finally get someone's attention to order a meal, to the attitude and the bait and switch with their offerings despite them being written in black-and-white on their menu and website was an absolutely horrible experience. Does dinner/networking mixer give these guys a ton of business that they normally wouldn't have had and they literally treated everybody like they were doing us a favor by letting us be there. Be better guys!!!

Gonna get busted at Busty's…read more This is my favorite dive bar in Austin. This place has personality and charm oozing out the wazoo. You can already tell this place has got character and kitsch to spare. The interior design has an old 70s biker bar with pool tables galore. When you go outside, there are so many artifacts of old on display making the ambience much more immersive. As for the food, I got the chicago dog and onion petals and my friends got various other dishes that we all shard. Perfect bar food. It's bar food so you just gotta expect bar food. But it was all still really good. The fries and petals were seasoned really well and I also got an espresso martini which was heavenly. I wish it had the bean though. The hot dog really got me correct.

My boyfriend and I have been regulars here for the past year, coming in every 1-2 weeks, spending…read more$50-$100 per visit, and always tipping 20%. Last week, I tried the Mezquito. The drink was good, but the tab felt high. I had watched two bartenders pour a strict 1 oz of Mezcal Union, so I asked the bartender today how much the drink cost. She told me $13. When I noted that felt a bit steep for a 1 oz pour, she shut down and said she didn't set the prices. Later, I was chatting with my boyfriend about how neither Busty's nor Frazier's list drink prices on their menus. The customer sitting next to me jumped into my conversation and said she was just saying the same. I mentioned the Mezquito was $13 for a 1 oz pour. The bartender overheard, looked annoyed, and snapped, "It's actually 1.5 oz." I am unsure why she did not say this earlier when I had first asked. I later tried to smooth things over, suggesting that maybe a newer bartender had just under-poured last week by mistake, adding that 1.5 oz was completely reasonable for the price. Instead of de-escalating, she told me I was cut off because she "didn't appreciate" me talking about the prices to other guests. I am writing this review right after leaving and I think it's clear that I'm not drunk. I have never seen a guest treated so poorly--let alone a regular--simply for discussing menu prices. It's an incredibly poor way to handle a situation. Regulars are the lifeblood of neighborhood bars, but the brunette bartender with the wavy hair just ensured Busty's lost two of theirs.

The service here is just wonderful . We popped in for a…read morelate last minute hoorah and really enjoyed chatting it up with the bartender. They do offer mocktails & a few vegan options like nopales tacos without cheese & guacamole (no cheese) . Large breakfast buffet opens at 6am !

The happy hour prices and food were very good. I had the chicken nachos even though it's a starter…read moreand it ended up being my full menu.

Today we visited the Capitol building in Austin, Texas. Of all days to visit, it had to be the day…read morewe came for their AC to go out because they closed the building and canceled all tours or any entry into the building. Because of the closure, we decided to kill some time in the city as our son was meeting a friend in DTA, so I yelped for some cold restaurants to eat at in Downtown Austin. I came across the Texas Chili Parlor, which brought some cool Texas History vibes. I love Chili, but recently I've been limited to eating it because most add beans in their chili and unfortunately, beans can trigger my gout. Fortunately enough, Texas style chili is traditionally prepared with large chunks of beef and no beans. So I had to try the Texas Chili Parlor baked potato with chili and no beans. The potatoes was so big, I could not finish it all. They also had some delicious salsas and queso dip which was so good I over ate on chips and queso dip. The food was very reasonably priced. It was so reasonable they were less than my single cocktail drink order. Our service was great. Brook was so on top of things, she was so good at plus selling ad-ons to our orders. The place was so nostalgic and very much like how I imagined a long time standing bar and restaurant in Texas would be. The only thing missing were the swinging doors like in an old western saloon.

Welcome home! That might as well be what they're calling from the host stand when you walk in,…read moresince it feels like a cozy, well-lived space that could easily double as your nostalgic mid-west living room. Anyone saying that staff here are rude must have done something terrible to offend them because I got nothing of the sort. Kind, ready to chat, and supportive of a wide range of regulars, everyone was clearly happy to be here. The food is equally comforting. The vegan option (5 Bean Veggie Chili), while more like a veggie stew than chili, is rich and flavorful in a way that can only be achieved by a long, slow simmer. Portions are generous, prices are low, and service is fast. In the heart of downtown especially, what more could you ask for?

Been a hot minute since we've been to Taco Flats, but we came again this past week to meet up with…read morefriends who are obsessed with this place to watch some World Cup action. Honestly, we had a great time, and even though it's more like 3.5 stars, we're rounding up because we had such great service. There are good beers on tap, and one of us was a fan of the spicy margarita. The chips here are SO good. Love a chili-dusted chip! We ordered the trio of dips for the table, and while the salsa was spicy and fresh, the guac actually tasted like some of the avocado had turned a bit. The queso is delish! And while we appreciate that the dips come in to-go containers, which makes things easy, we don't love hot dips being served in plastic. Come on now, that's a bit of an own goal... For tacos, we scored with the chilango shrimp, which was tasty with a good balance of ingredients, but were bummed out by the birria taco, which was dry as a board without the consommé and had tough meat. Our daughter had a really impressive cheese quesadilla though--with a bunch of toasted cheese on its outskirts that made it extra fun and crispy. We especially want to shout out the amazing service we got. Our waitress was so sweet and fun, and was attentive without being overbearing. She seemed like she was handling a lot of the floor well. Also, the bartender was beyond gracious to our daughter who was being fussy about dessert options. All in all, a great hang with good enough food. We hope to be able to come back in another (almost) ten years :)

Came here for dinner and drinks and had such a great experience. The location is really cute, and…read morewe got the perfect outdoor seating (so nostalgic if you remember this as the old Zoclo spot!). We started with drinks, I tried the skinny marg which wasn't my personal favorite, but the spicy frozen margarita was so good and definitely the move. Our waitress was also super friendly, funny, and gave great recommendations. We ordered the dip trio to start and WOW it was fire. The chips were perfectly seasoned, the salsa had a slight sweetness that I loved, the guac tasted super fresh, and the queso with chorizo on top was goated. For tacos, I got the pollo asado (added grilled onions) and the chilango grilled shrimp taco, both were so flavorful. They also brought out extra salsas which made it even more fun to mix and match. Everyone else at the table loved their tacos too. Everything came out quickly, prices were super reasonable, and the whole experience was so nice. I'll definitely be back for both drinks and food!

There is nothing like Salt Lick BBQ! I am totally and completely addicted to their sauce...a…read morelittle sweet...a little tangy...consistently good. I was at the airport at the wee hours of the morning and could not resist a breakfast taco. Tacos feel like the official breakfast meal in Texas. I got the bacon, egg and cheese taco, which was quite tasty. At almost 5 am in the morning a line was forming. Fortunately, the line moved fast and I was in and out in no time. These other early morning travelers were patiently waiting in line for The Salt Lick BBQ to open. Totally chill vibe... Like other airport food, The Salt Lick BBQ at the airport is a bit pricey. The portion was sizeable that one taco filled me up. I quickly ate my taco and I was off to sunny Las Vegas.

Was hoping to really enjoy this food. I feel my pallate is simply incompatible…read more My first instinct was to get the potato. I failed myself by getting the platter. I was only able to finisg the roll and mac and cheese. The meat wasn't as tender or juicy as I'd expected. Maxinun one spoonful of potato salad. A few bites of the beans. I normally would save leftoveer