1624 W. 5th St.
474-1222
Men's room rating: did not rate.
Dwight's comments:
El Arroyo turns out exactly the same sort of TexMex swill that Austin's other 30 or 40 TexMex places do. However, they do have a few things going for them:
(Update July 6, 1998: El Arroyo burned (arson is suspected) on Sunday, February 22nd, 1998. They've since rebuilt in the same location, and opened a second location at Woodhollow and Far West (in the old La Fiesta space.)
Lawrence's comments:
The good news: El Arroyo doesn't seem to be the fratboy hangout it use to be in our callow college days (at least this particular Saturday), and the menu seems a bit more varied and inventive than most TexMex places. Also, their sign (which is changed daily) remains a clever gimmick.
The bad news: Except for the Mexican crab rolls (with their oddly sweet dipping sauce), everything was pretty underwhelming. The nachos arrived with the shredded BBQ chicken on the side rather than on top, my tenderloin and BBQ chicken enchilada plate was nothing special, and the rice was bland. The service alternated between attentive and scatterbrained (the food came quickly, but drink refills were slower than they should have been). The federale plate still looks like a good deal for the money, and I'd like to try some of the other entrees, but by and large, little about El Arroyo made me want to rush back.
Previously visited: October 26,1996.
5406 Balcones Drive
454-2666
Pepper grinder rating: 0/3. (The waitress had a pepper grinder, and used it to prepare the dipping plate for the bread: but apparently, she didn't feel it was necessary to offer us any pepper for the salads.)
Dwight's comments:
Pretty okay mid-to-upscale food in the style of the late Chez Fred. The popcorn shrimp appetizer would make a pretty good meal on its own (or with a salad): my pecan-breaded chicken wasn't too bad, though there was a lot more rice than chicken.
The only problem I had was slightly scatterbrained service: but I would like to see some more variety in the pasta dishes (fewer cream sauces would be nice).
Lawrence's comments:
On the American/Continental Fine Dining Continuum, Chez Zee ranks pretty high, suffering only in comparison with the more innovative (and always packed) Castle Hill Cafe. Except for not being offered ground pepper for our salads and meal (our waitress only used it with the olive oil--once again, ask for some of their garlic butter to go along with the bread), the service was reasonably good (though our position down one of the "alleys" at the front of the restaurant made things slower than they should have been). The black cherry sauce for the popcorn shrimp was delicious, and the crabmeat quesadillas were also quite good, as were my onion rings (very light and crisp) and garlic mashed potatoes (though they could have used more garlic) sides. One area in which Chez Zee surpasses Castle Hill is in the wide variety of dessert selections, and though my raspberry truffle white chocolate cheesecake could have used more raspberry, it was otherwise quite heavenly. My only beef is with the beef--my "Tuscan T-Bone" steak wasn't up to Ruth's Chris standards (then again, who is?), even though Chez Zee charged nearly as much. Not bad, but I think I'll try something else the next time I drop in.
801 Red River
480-8341
Dwight's comments:
I have eaten barbecue from the hand of Stubb himself (back when he was serving it out of Antoine's on Gudalupe): at the time, I thought it was overrated, so Stubb's minus Stubb didn't exactly fill me with anticipation.
But when we settled in, I found myself really wanting to like Stubb's: you can get fries with your barbecue, the onion rings are pretty good (I think the light dusting of red pepper is a great touch), the building is nice, and the service is pretty good.
Then I tasted the barbecue.
The sauce was bland. The chicken was just okay. The brisket was dry. And the beef rib had an odd petroleum taste: like whoever had started the fire used a heavy hand with the lighter fluid and didn't wait long enough for it to burn off.
Even in the "barbecue and live music" department, Stubb's is second-rate: the Backyard does much better barbecue.
There are worse barbecue places in town (including some others that are a part of the Austin Chronicle's "'70s music theme park" promotion machine), but why waste your time?
Lawrence's comments:
I'll say this for Stubb's: The appetizers and sides are generally pretty good and plentiful (especially the Texas fries and chicken wings), the pork ribs are a tad better than average, they're housed in a great old stone building, and our waiter did a good job.
Unfortunately, both the BBQ sauce and the beef it covered were pretty bland; the brisket in particular was nearly tasteless. Plus the BBQ portions were much smaller their appetizer and side dish brethren, a grave sin for Austin BBQ fanatics used to the all-you-can-eat wonders of the Salt Lick, Texas Rib King and the County Line. Not only is Stubb's not the best BBQ in Austin, it's not even the best in a six block radius; though the Ironworks has suffered a precipitous decline in quality over the last few years, their BBQ is still better by a nose.
That said, Stubb's isn't bad, and I'd still rank it higher than Lawrence's or Ben's Long Branch (and certainly better than fast food BBQ like Bill Miller or The Pit), but life is too short to eat mediocre BBQ.
Previously visited: December 28, 1996.
11590 Research
345-8232
Men's room rating: 3.5. (I liked the language tapes in the Men's room: some members of the party disagreed.)
Dwight's comments:
Nice place.
There are a lot of mussels on the "Cozze in Bianco" plate, but they tend to be smaller than average. On the other hand, I could spend the whole day dipping their bread (which I prefer to the Olive Garden's) into the sauce.
Carrabba's also gets special kudos for handling our large party well: since my family (including my mother, stepfather, brother, and brother's Significant Other) joined us for this conspiracy, we wound up with nine people, and were still seated reasonably quickly and efficiently. (They don't take reservations, but if you call ahead and tell them you have a large party, they seem willing to work with you.)
Lawrence's comments:
It's a chain, but I like it.
The "Cozze in Bianco" mussel plate is perhaps the best appetizer deal around, featuring a large bowl of the steaming gastropods (there seemed to be at least 30 or more) for about what you would pay for a meager six or ten elsewhere. The fried mozzarella was also quite good (albeit not in such generous portions), as was the salad. And the bread still doesn't compare with the Olive Garden's breadsticks. My only complaint about my entree was that the alfredo sauce that came with my chicken could have used a touch less cheese and a bit more garlic.
Though I think I would give Reale's an edge for atmosphere and pizza, I would be hard pressed to choose which had the better Italian entrees.
Return to the main Saturday Dining Conspiracy page.
See the logs for January of 1998.
See the logs for November of 1997.