Ordered top notch to go on a Saturday afternoon. The service was a little slow because it took them a while to even take our order. Once they did we got our food pretty quickly! Everything seemed freshly made which is always ideal. We got a cheeseburger meal with onion rings, a chicken tenders meal with fries, and banana pudding. Everything was very freshly prepared and tasted good. I read a lot of reviews hyping up the onion rings and thought they were just ok. They were a little too fried and hard-crunchy for my taste. One of the better burgers we've had in the area (they are large with lots of toppings) and we will definitely return! read more

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Waited over 40 minutes for my burger had to go check whats going on and they pulled the bag from the back and said it was just sitting there... I had to insist on a refund they did not offer a re-fire or anything...never coming back read more

Been coming here for over 20 years and will always have amazing food and service! The quality has never changed and that's why it will forever be Top Notch! read more

Lived in austin for 4 years and can't believe I came here AFTER graduating! This place is great! Prices are low, food taste amazing, the workers are super nice, and they have many variety! I believe I got the Longhorn burger when I went I was very hungry and it filled me up I got sweet potatoe fries on the side and it was really good! They have all kinds of dipping sauce for you in the drink station. I think it's a great place for students because of the price and the great tasting food! read more

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Wow. I really don't know why people say good things about this place. We got some fried chicken tenders and a double cheeseburger and onion rings. The onion rings barely had any onion in them, the fried chicken breading was terrible (chicken itself was okay tho) and the burger was nothing special at all. The fries that came with the chicken were tasteless and got super hard within two minutes of opening the box. Very disappointed. read more

When you first get out of your vehicle the smell of a charcoal grill hits you with a punch. If you weren't that hungry before, you will be now. Smells like your neighbor has fired up his grill and is having a good time. I ordered my burger, fries and drink. Upon getting them, I was already disappointed. The fries are pretty regular. The burger was okay. Just an ordinary burger, and I may be wrong here, but tasted like a frozen patty you would get from other regular places. Just nothing that wow'ed me. Honestly, it wasn't bad. I just expected so much more. The name of the place itself sets the stage. The smell when you get out of your vehicle. It just didn't translate to the actual burger. I will probably try it again one day in case it was an off day or just me. read more

We have long been champions of Top Notch, but after tonight, no longer. My husband ordered a 2 piece all-white fried chicken meal (they no longer offer the 3 piece). Now, a 2 piece is $12.99. He wanted cole slaw and green beans as sides. They no longer offer green beans. Okay, fried okra then. I ordered the chicken tender dinner, with sweet potato fries and gravy. $11.99 Well, the 2 pieces they deemed to award him were a wing and a thigh. That's a dinner? Good grief. I gave him 1 1/2 of my tenders. And that wasn't any big gift. It is as if they have quit seasoning the batter. The tenders were fried, but not crunchy, and had no taste of seasoning. I salted and peppered ad infinitum. The sweet potato fries are extremely thin now, and the gravy, while never zesty, seems more bland than ever. Thank goodness for the Texas toast dipped in peppered (by me) gravy. Extremely disappointing, and another one bites the dust. Tremendously sad to lose a cultural touchpoint and old-school restaurant. Nothing to report on service. They didn't seem to care, even when he went up to the counter and said he had expected to receive a breast when he paid for an all-white chicken dinner. Move on, Austin. Even the music wasn't the same. read more

This was a fun retro, eat in the car experience. I got the cheeseburger meal. My cheeseburger was 10/10. It was fantastic. Great flavor. Fries were fine, nothing amazing but not bad at all. I heard the onion rings were great, I will try them next time. Coke products and perfectly crispy. Service was fast and friendly. I'll be back! I didn't take pics cause I was hungry and had my hands full eating in the car. read more

First time visiting and the food was delicious! My cheeseburger did have a lot of pickles on it but I just removed some. The order came quick. Price was reasonable as well. Will be returning. read more

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Old school burger joint with many delicious things available. read more

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Enjoyed our first trip to Top Notch, and we're glad we were finally able to check this Austin legend off our bucket list! We heard about it after being featured in several "must visit" lists around the city. If you're in the Northwest part of town, I'd recommend stopping by! We hope to visit again when we're coming by to see an Austin FC game. As noted by several other Yelpers, this place has kept the 70s and 80s vibe, and it welcomes you back to simpler times (I grew up going to Player's on MLK). The seating, decor, and drive thru (think Sonic) are so well kept up! Would love to visit during one of their iconic movie nights. We loved the variety of menu items and sides (I'm a sucker for fried okra), which is something you won't find at the typical burger/fries spot. read more

Went to Top Notch to try their burgers given the reviews. I can confirm these charcoal-grilled burgers are awesome and deserve your visit.

Top Notch is an Austin classic AND for all the vegetarian eaters like me, they have veggie burgers!! They also have other veggie friendly options like grilled cheese and plenty of sides, but I personally love the veggie burger for the low $6.19. The carhop service is convenient and fast, definitely check it out if you've never been! read more

Top Notch - Fast Food Near Me - Austin, Texas

An Austin classic. Good food for a good price. Fried chicken is better than the big chains.

Look , I know this place is a bit older but I love the number 7. burger with the hickory sauce onions and cheddar cheese . That charbroiled flavor with those ingredients just hits the spot once and a while . I always have to get it with onion rings and a good old fashioned vanilla shake . My son loves how the kids meals come in an old Thunderbird cardboard car he saves them and plays with them for weeks haha . The kids burgers aren't smaller either they are decently portioned and come with a huge serving of fries . I drive from Parmer just to get my fix which isn't very often because I'd pop out of my clothes and live in baggy sweat pants if I was any closer . I've actually never been inside I like the whole old school car hop feel and in this pandemic situation is coincidentally perfect . Hopefully this place sticks around it's a part of Austin history and we can't forget it was in Dazed and Confused made famous by good old Matthew McConaughey lol . Plus showing up for a milk shake or just a side of onion rings and a root beer and sitting in your car gets you out of the house . So stop by call your order in ahead of time so you don't have to wait , "Be a lot cooler if you did "... read more

Top Notch - This is why my son loves top notch . - Fast Food Near Me - Austin, Texas

Yummy for my tummy. Old school awesome place. You drive up and order at the speaker systems. Person comes out and does your credit card via a tablet. Food is quick. Burgers had the perfect charbroiled taste. Simple. Delicious. Onion rings were perfect. Regular fries were good. Sweet potato fries were good. They give you a bunch of catsup. Which is appreciated. Soda is soda. Which tastes good. But you should drink in moderation. You then take it home or eat in the car. They also had some picnic tables. Went for the nostalgia, will come back because it tastes good. Nothing gourmet. Nothing trendy or IG worthy about the place. It's just good and hearty. Easy peasy. Was there at around 11:30 on a weekend. It was packed at noon when we left. If you have seen their sign, you know it's the place that looks like it's from another time. read more

Top Notch - The sign that got me to stop. And eat. And be happy this place is still here after who knows how many years. - Fast Food Near Me - Austin, Texas

My wife and I decided to try Top Notch for the first time this past weekend and called just to make sure they were still open. The person who answered my call was very pleasant and told me that they are closing in 12 minutes but can still place my order! Needless to say, we ordered and hurried across town to get their before they closed. We were late. Amazingly they had stayed (and actually gave me a call to check how close we were) and gave us our warm order. They didn't complain or gave us an attitude for ordering last minute and being leave for pick up. The team working Saturday 7/11/2020 is awesome and they all deserve a raise! Your service has won over a new customer! And the food is fantastic too! - Joshua read more

TLDR: This place is the real deal for charcoal-grilled hamburgers! Top Notch combines a homey burger joint vibe with the pull-up car service of the 50's along 'It's Burnet, Durn it!' avenue. The hamburger - particularly the #4 Longhorn Special - is excellent and distinctively 'retro'. The reason? An honest-to-goodness charcoal grill that gives the meat a slightly different flavor. Each bite makes me think of hot summer evenings, Dad searing burgers on an old Weber grill stuffed with glowing-hot Kingsford briquettes. So why not a solid 5 stars? Alas, the experience is imperfect in a couple ways. I've been consistently underwhelmed with the fries and onion rings, and I'm not keen on the service at times. Everyone's friendly enough, but its not particularly fast - and they've gotten my order wrong a couple of times. Guys, what's so hard about ordering a hamburger without cheese? Otherwise, this is a solid place that deserves a visit if you're in the area and want a truly nostalgic burger. This place gets a 4 on the 'CTJ Scale' as noted below. 5 out of 5 stars: Come-to-Jesus good. Would be OK passing on after finishing a plate here. 4 out of 5 stars: Come-to-Mary good. Would be OK being seen eating here by Mother Mary. 3 out of 5 stars: Come-to-Joseph good. Would be OK having a beer here with Jesus' Dad. 2 out of 5 stars: Come-to-the-Apostles good. Meh. Wouldn't have my last supper here. 1 out of 5 stars: Come-to-Nobody good. I wouldn't have my penultimate supper here, either. read more

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As mentioned by other Yelpers, this is an old Austin landmark that knows their way around a hamburger, and their onion rings are the best, so you must order them. I couldn't decide which burger to order, so I got the Longhorn, which already had double meat and "special sauce." For the future I ordered sides of hickory sauce and chili to give them a try. The Longhorn was delicious and double-meat is the way to go. It offers a better balance of meat, bun, and veggies, in my opinion. The sauce is as you suspect, which is a play on 1000 Island, but with a heavier hand on the mayo so it's more of a white color versus an orange. I loved it. The hickory sauce is a winner and led me to order The Top Pick on my next go-round, which has both hickory and special sauce, along with onions and grated cheddar cheese. I added a second patty on it so I would have appreciated more sauce and onions. My criticism with this burger is that they seem to use bagged pre-shredded cheddar, which has a coating that prevents the cheese from melting well. I even reheated the burger later, and the unmelted shreds were still intact. If Top Notch doesn't replace the current shredded cheddar with fresh grated or slice of cheddar, and you have your heart set on a cheese-burger, I'd recommend asking for a slice of American instead. The thumbs down, I hate to report, is their chili. It is reminiscent of, if not exactly like, Wolf Brand Chili. I do not recommend it. I wish they would come up with their own recipe (of course, without beans, since this is TEXAS); that way they could offer bowls of it on their menu in addition to chili fries, dogs, and burgers. Their cream gravy suffers the same fate, though it's at least decent. It's basically the same that you'd get at Dairy Queen or Sonic. I do wish that they still had chicken fried steak and green beans with bacon on their menu--maybe they'll reconsider now that we're post-Covid. read more

One of the last true gems of old Austin. These burgers are how you would imagine burgers were in the 50's. The patty is juicy, and has a smoky flavor. The fries are good. The vibes are fantastic - try the drive thru to feel how vintage this place is read more

Charcoal grilled burger. What's not to like? Come for the nostalgia or for the Dazed and Confused reference and stay for the great burgers & tots. A great community staple that will probably stand the test of time and development. read more

We ordered the cheeseburgers with onion rings and fried okra. Just a good old fashioned hamburger! Beef patties are flame grilled! Onion rings were hot and fresh. They have the perfect crunch and bite and were hot! Good fried okra, just needed a little salt. Also got the fried chicken. The breading is similar to how grandma made it and perfectly crispy! The breast was juicy as was the thigh (biggest ever!). Just needed a little salt. Overall, really good fried chicken. We'll definitely drop by again when we have a hankering for a good old fashion burger and or fried chicken! read more

I wanted to come here for the car show. It's the first Saturday of every month at 6pm. Lots of great cars and old guys talking about cars. It's just what you think it would be. Just a laid back cool time. There's also a band that plays as well. I stayed for about an hour, the band played or was just just resting their equipment when I was leaving. So maybe they actually go in at 7pm or later. I did order some food. Cheese burger and sweet potato tots and a drink. I think it was about $13.00 when I went outside to sit at a picnic table, I noticed they gave me French fries. Normally I wouldn't complain, but I really was looking forward to sweet potato tots. So I went back in and showed a lady that I got fries by mistake. And she switched it out. She just placed them in the bag and I went back outside. Open the bag and they were regular tots. Urg. I really had my heart set of sweet potato tots. Whatever. There are bigger problems in the world than not getting the correct food order. Bless it and release right. The burger was awesome. I couldn't shove another bit down, but I did. The tomato was crisp, the lettuce was crisp, the onion was crisp. 2 slices of cheese, and the burger itself, must have been a broken patty, because I huge chunk fell out when I bit into it. Had to shove it back in, which from that point made eating this enormous burger a mess and difficult to handle. Again, bless and release, thankful for the food in front of me. I never drink soda, but thought what the heck, I got a root beer Barq's which is my favorite when I drink root beer, but this time the taste was off, had a weak taste to it. The food was still good. I had a great time walking around taking pictures. Hope to come back next month as well. So grateful for the warmer weather. read more

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Really good burgers, fries and apple pies! Service was nice, and I liked the vintage atmosphere. read more

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My husband and I come here often! We absolutely love their delicious tasting charcoal broiled burgers! Their sides are big portions. Can't go wrong with their fries, tots or onion rings. Great place with great food, highly recommend. read more

Top Notch - Fast Food Near Me - Austin, Texas

I don't know why some people Gotta be Hayton on top notch. The only negative thing I could say about them is add another patty to your burger just because the patties are thin but the flavor of all the food was fantastic. We ordered the two piece chicken dinner, with one piece being white and one piece, mean dark, both fantastic. We also ordered a chocolate shake and it was fantastic as well. This is not a restaurant. Do you want to go to if you are trying to monitor your calories. It's OK to splurge every now and then. We left paying 32 bucks for a two piece chicken dinner with coleslaw and mashed potatoes and a cheeseburger with fries, Coke and a shake. I have to mention the white gravy because we dipped our fries in it and of course the chicken. read more

The hickory sauce is tasty. The staff is very friendly and helpful. I love this place. I love their food.

4 word summary: fire makes it good. Let the masses argue about In N' Out vs. Whataburger vs. Shake Shack, but if you want a truly great fast food burger experience, shop local. I don't get around to this part of town all that often, but when I do - I choose Top Notch. The location is a blast from the past and a time machine to yesteryear, a destination for fans of "Dazed & Confused" and, most importantly, a "Top Notch" burger spot. Yes - they are aptly named and I am incapable of resisting the easy pun. Make no mistake, though, what makes it a place worth visiting and worth returning to are the burgers, Fire makes all the difference as the charred crusty bits give your burger an unmistakable and inimitable flavor. I have been coming for years (2-3 times per year) and have never gotten around to their non-burger items, so I can't speak to those menu items. The burgers, though, are simply delicious. No frills, nothing gourmet or pretentious: The basics done really well & consistently....and over an open flame. Expecting "the greatest burger ever concocted by man"? Look elsewhere. Looking for a classic fast food experience and an awesome burger in the context of no-frills fast food? Look no further. Pro-tip: skip the fries, go for the onion rings. On the topic of tips, tip them well. They consistently employ really friendly and helpful workers. read more

Decided to stop in because I love Dazed and Confused. The food is goooooood and it looks the same is it did when they filmed the movie. We got a blt and the jalapeño burger, they were both delicious. A must stop if you're in Austin. read more

Top Notch - Fast Food Near Me - Austin, Texas

I haven't had a Longhorn burger in months, mostly because it ain't cheap. Ordered one today and was disappointed. The meat did not taste as it once did. The rest of the burger was still excellent. read more

This place is pretty cool, it gets points for that but the burgers tasted like they were doused in lighter fluid. The kids loved the neon sign outside and the old school feel to the place. They got their kids meals in a cool classic van box. I got the double cheeseburger which was not bad, just had the "char" flavor in my mouth for the rest of the night which I didn't care for. I'm a fan of the dazed and confused movie and it was cool stopping by this place, I might come back for the onion rings and shakes. Strawberry shake was bomb! read more

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Don't order anything here invented after 1971. * * * Time has frozen at Top Notch Drive-in. In the dining room, there is a Texas Shaped Shellacked Wooden Clock which has stopped running. It is perpetually 6:20. That seems about right. It is a drive-in. That by itself relegates them to the realm of ancient dinosaur restaurants. They have not redecorated the place since Nixon stepped down from office. They serve the old hamburger stand classics. I had tater tots, fried okra and chicken tenders. People around me were eating what looked like magnificent burgers. People around me were eating what looked like magnificent onion rings. Tater tots, fried okra, burgers and rings are bona fide American classics. Chicken tenders are a relatively recent innovation. Innovation is bad here. * * * My tater tots and fried okra were to beat the band. (They serve hickory bbq sauce to go with the chicken tenders. Their Okra in hickory sauce is a dish for the 1970's gods. Your life is incomplete until you have eaten fried okra dipped in hickory sauce. That is not an arbitrary opinion from Samuel C. That is true absolute Biblical fact. If you don't believe me, you can read that very verse in the Book of Yelp.) * * * So just in terms of fried okra and tater tots, I was doing grand. I was not doing so great with the chicken tenders. Everyone around me was eating burgers. No one was eating chicken tenders. I would venture to say there is a reason for this. My order of chicken tenders was without question the ugliest chicken dish I have ever beheld. Imagine you made the ugliest sculpture you could out of chicken skin and chicken fat. That is what the chicken tenders looked like. The tenders themselves were all meat and breading. No skin or fat were actually part of the tenders. They just looked like they were made of chicken skin and chicken fat. They were honest and homemade. They did not taste ugly. But they did not taste that great either. So I was probably the saddest person at Top Notch that afternoon. But with fried okra dipped in homemade hickory sauce on my table, I regained my faith that life is beautiful and life is still worth living. * * * One last note. They play 1970's soft rock on the sound system here. If you are going to play "Horse With No Name" and "Fire and Rain" on the sound system, you had better be a 100% authentic bona-fide real-deal 1970's restaurant. Top Notch was founded in 1971 and has not changed since. So Top Notch gets the right to play real genuine 1970's music. No one else has that privilege. Everybody else - please take those Chicago and Jackson Browne CDs and bring them to Goodwill. The Doors "Love Her Madly" is really a song about 1970's CDs. "Dontcha Love Them as They're Walking Out the Door". read more

Great burgers and a place reminiscent of the old drive in places. And a bonus- it's the burger place in the movie Dazed and Confused. Flame grilled burgers (for real because you can see, smell and taste it!) were delicious and the fries were a great side. Recommend for a nostalgic feel and a yummy burger! read more

Was once the best fried chicken place in Austin. Now that the original owners retired/sold, the new owners have made really inexplicable changes. They only offer a 2 piece fried chicken dinner for $12. Really ? Who would ever think of making a decision like that? What if I want 3 pieces or 4? Where are the apple and cherry pies they used to sell? How about French fries as standard side with a fried chicken meal ? Disaster. Best we can hope is the current owners give up and sell to someone else who can bring this restaurant back to its former glory. read more

3 1/2 stars My to go order wasn't warm, neither the burgers or onion rings! I live 2 minutes from the restaurant- my food should be hot especially when I order it and arrive in 5 minutes and it's already done and packed up. How can it be cold when I just ordered it? Onion rings are only good when they are warm! read more

Don't you ever feel like everything we do and everything we've been taught is just to service the future . . . It's valid because if we are all gonna die anyway shouldn't we be enjoying ourselves now? I'd like to quit thinking of the present, like right now, as some minor insignificant preamble to something else unless that something else is eating at Top Notch. These puppies are char-grilled, man. Char-grilled, man? It's how they used to eat it all over the country, man. We had people doin' it all over the country, you know. The whole country back then was eatin' em hot off the grill. Lemme tell you, man, 'cause they knew they were onto somethin', man. They knew that it would be a good burger for the southern states, man, so they grilled tons of em', man. But you know what? Behind every good burger there's fries, man, and those fries were golden, man, and everyday folks would come home, and they would have a big, fat paper bowl waiting for em', man, when they come in the door, man, they were waitin'. They're hip hip burgers and fries man. And that's what I like about this joint, man. I get older and it stays the same. Some folks will tell you this place has changed, man. But it's the same bullshit they tried to pull in my day. If it ain't some fancy vegan burger, there's some other choice they're gonna try and make for you. You gotta eat what Randall Pink Floyd wants to eat, man. Let me tell you this, the older you get the more rules for what you can and can't eat they're gonna try to get you to follow. You've gotta keep on eatin' E-A-T-I-N. read more

Top Notch - Dazed and Confused - Fast Food Near Me - Austin, Texas

COLD BURGERS FOUND HERE. Been watching the decline for years. Last night I went in and got a COLD BURGER (They obviously already had the meat cooked before I got there) and it also had a ton of onions on it when I said no onions. They really don't care. They did not cook my meat fresh because it was nearing closing time and the burger was cold. In case they want to retort - it was 8:53 when I walked in there and I asked the guy at the counter if it was too late to order a burger, and he insisted it was not. I told him I didn't want to impose if they were trying to close. Again, he insisted and I quickly placed my order of a burger with no onions and an order of onion rings. The food came out really fast -- too fast. And the burger was COLD. I threw half of it away. In addition, I ate 3 of the onion rings because the rest were more like onion skins that were burned and belonged in the trash. So, I spend over $13 for a cold burger with onions and onion rings that I have to throw away, and they have the audacity to ask for a tip. I didn't even get a drink because I didn't want to spend $17 on my meal. It's overpriced as it is. And they don't care to make you quality food anymore, so you get what you get. I'm tired of it. I called to talk to a manager, and well, because that one couldn't be professional enough to give me his undivided attention and doesn's understand what the root of the problem even is or how to fix it, I will need to call back and speak with another manager today. Me and my family have been going to Top Notch since the 70s, actually before it was even Top Notch. My mom even got their secret Sauce recipe (Longhorn sauce) from the original owner of Top Notch, Ray Stanish, and I still have it to this day. My family used to hold Top Notch in high regards, but it has been tainted so badly by the people runnning it and working there. I am disgusted by what has become of this place. read more

Top Notch is a great spot. It is not the same as the one I grew up on or the one featured in the film Dazed and Confused, but is still the ONLY place in Austin where you can get a hamburger cooked over charcoal - there is a special flavor that cannot be duplicated. Memories are hard to compete against, the family that created, owned and ran the business is no longer involved, so lots of little changes, but it is still a good spot and embodies the Austin vibe pretty well. If you go the burger route, go with the #3 or #4 - full of flavor - onion rings are crispy and delicious, the fries are often too soft for my liking. The shakes are OUTSTANDING, especially the strawberry shake. The hidden gem as other reviewers have pointed out is the fried chicken. Top Notch is open 7 days a week, go back in time and enjoy a good meal at a fair price. read more

More like Bottom Rung! We went here because my daughter is a movie buff and the place was in Dazed and Confused. Frankly, we must have been beyond dazed and confused to order. The place looked like trash from the outside, and it's own special kind of health code violation on the inside. But... we ordered... and the food was pretty good... going down. Not so much coming back up a few hours later! My daughter ended up with food poisoning, spent most of the night "praying to the porcelain goddess" and "seated on the throne" and then felt cruddy most of the next day. Thanks, Top Notch. Clean up your act! Hey Austin Department of Health: This place needs a visit! read more

Not sure what's going on but our food was mush yesterday when it got to us. Bottom bub's saturated in condiments! To top it off you typically get a massive serving of fried okra for the ridiculous price they charged. However, on this visit we got about 15 pieces of okra, it was pathetic. Officially extremely over priced garbage! Back to Short stop for burgers, Only came for the okra (or lack there of) anyway! Is this place under new mgmt? We've been coming for 15 years and today was sad. read more