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There are hundreds of restaurants in our state that have been around for more than twenty years. Some boast lots of atmosphere and a few gimmicks, like the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo. Others are more refined and elegant, like the Green Pastures Restaurant in Austin. Many double as a community watering hole, where locals gather to drink coffee and discuss what’s happening around town. The Blue Bonnet in Marble Falls fits that bill. Large or small, fancy or plain, these restaurants share three things in common: long histories, established reputations, and loyal customers. Author Sheryl Smith-Rodgers scoured the state to find the best of these old-time restaurants and cafes, and then collected some of their tried-and-true Texas recipes, making this an excellent gift book, recipe source, and weekend travel guide.
| Foreword | x | |
| Introduction | xi | |
| To the north | ||
| Amarillo | ||
| Big Texan Steak Ranch | 3 | |
| Golden Light Cafe | 6 | |
| Arlington | ||
| Al's Hamburgers | 9 | |
| Arlington Steak House | 11 | |
| Candlelite Inn | 12 | |
| Dallas | ||
| Celebration Restaurant | 13 | |
| El Fenix Mexican Restaurant | 15 | |
| Kuby's Sausage House | 16 | |
| Mecca Restaurant | 18 | |
| Denton | ||
| Texas Pickup Cafe | 19 | |
| Fort Worth | ||
| Angelo's | 22 | |
| Cattlemen's Fort Worth Steak House | 23 | |
| Joe T. Garcia's | 26 | |
| Paris Coffee Shop | 28 | |
| Irving | ||
| Big State Drug's Fountain and Grill | 31 | |
| Jacksboro | ||
| Green Frog Restaurant | 33 | |
| Lubbock | ||
| Doll House Cafe | 35 | |
| Muenster | ||
| Rohmer's Restaurant | 37 | |
| Plano | ||
| Poor Richard's Cafe | 39 | |
| Ponder | ||
| Ranchman's Cafe | 40 | |
| Salado | ||
| Stagecoach Inn | 43 | |
| Sherman | ||
| Juicy Pig Cafe | 47 | |
| Temple | ||
| Bluebonnet Cafe | 49 | |
| Doyle Phillips Steak House | 52 | |
| Way down south | ||
| Aransas Pass | ||
| Bakery Cafe | 59 | |
| Blessing | ||
| Blessing Hotel Coffee Shop | 60 | |
| Corpus Christi | ||
| Frank's Spaghetti House | 63 | |
| Whataburger | 65 | |
| Falls City | ||
| Shorty's Place | 66 | |
| Helotes | ||
| Grey Moss Inn | 67 | |
| Hondo | ||
| Hermann Sons Steak House | 72 | |
| Kenedy | ||
| Barth's Restaurant | 73 | |
| La Grange | ||
| Bon Ton Restaurant | 75 | |
| Lake Jackson | ||
| Harnden's Dairy Bar | 79 | |
| Laredo | ||
| La Mexicana Restaurant | 80 | |
| Rio Grande City | ||
| Caro's Restaurant | 82 | |
| Riviera | ||
| King's Inn | 84 | |
| Rockport | ||
| Duck Inn Restaurant | 85 | |
| Round Top | ||
| Royers' Round Top Cafe | 86 | |
| San Antonio | ||
| Casa Rio | 92 | |
| Earl Abel's | 95 | |
| Jim's Restaurants | 97 | |
| Tower Restaurant | 97 | |
| Magic Time Machine Restaurant | 97 | |
| Mi Tierra Cafe and Bakery | 101 | |
| Schilo's | 103 | |
| Schulenburg | ||
| Frank's Restaurant | 106 | |
| Victoria | ||
| Fossati's Delicatessen | 108 | |
| Weesatche | ||
| Weesatche Cafe | 110 | |
| Over in the east | ||
| Beaumont | ||
| Don's Seafood & Steak House | 117 | |
| Pig Stand | 120 | |
| Quality Cafe | 123 | |
| Burton | ||
| Burton Cafe | 128 | |
| Centerville | ||
| Town Cafe | 130 | |
| Galveston | ||
| Gaido's Seafood Restaurant | 132 | |
| Sonny's Place | 136 | |
| Houston | ||
| Christie's Seafood & Steaks Restaurant | 138 | |
| Felix Mexican Restaurant | 141 | |
| James Coney Island | 142 | |
| Massa's Restaurant | 144 | |
| Pino's Italian Restaurant | 148 | |
| Huntsville | ||
| Cafe Texan | 150 | |
| Jefferson | ||
| Club Cafe | 151 | |
| Longview | ||
| Johnny Cace's Seafood & Steak House | 154 | |
| Paris | ||
| South Main Depot Restaurant | 156 | |
| Spring | ||
| Wunsche Bros. Cafe & Saloon | 158 | |
| Tomball | ||
| Goodson's Cafe | 164 | |
| Waskom | ||
| New Waskom Cafe | 165 | |
| Westward, ho | ||
| Big Spring | ||
| Herman's Restaurant | 173 | |
| Fabens | ||
| Cattleman's Steakhouse | 174 | |
| Fort Davis | ||
| Black Bear Restaurant | 177 | |
| Fort Stockton | ||
| Sarah's Cafe | 180 | |
| San Angelo | ||
| Zentner's Daughter Steak House | 182 | |
| Sterling City | ||
| City Cafe | 184 | |
| Sweetwater | ||
| Allen's Family Style Meals | 187 | |
| In the heart of Texas | ||
| Austin | ||
| Dairy Queen | 193 | |
| Green Pastures Restaurant | 194 | |
| Hut's Hamburgers | 198 | |
| The Hoffbrau | 200 | |
| Matt's El Rancho | 203 | |
| Bandera | ||
| O.S.T. Restaurant | 208 | |
| Blanco | ||
| Blanco Bowling Club and Cafe | 210 | |
| Brady | ||
| Club Cafe | 214 | |
| Brownwood | ||
| Underwood's Cafeteria | 216 | |
| Comfort | ||
| Cypress Creek Inn | 218 | |
| Fredericksburg | ||
| Andy's Diner | 220 | |
| Hunt | ||
| Hunt Store and Cafe | 223 | |
| Lampasas | ||
| Martin's Restaurant | 224 | |
| Marble Falls | ||
| Blue Bonnet Cafe | 227 | |
| Michel's Drug Store | 232 | |
| New Braunfels | ||
| Krause's Cafe | 234 | |
| New Braunfels Smokehouse Restaurant | 236 | |
| Waco | ||
| Elite Cafe | 239 | |
| Welfare | ||
| Po-Po Family Restaurant | 243 | |
| Wimberley | ||
| Burger Barn | 247 | |
| And one you've never heard of... | ||
| Somewhere in Texas, USA | ||
| Rodgers' Restaurant | 255 | |
| Sheryl's Top 10 Favorite Old-Time Restaurants | 260 | |
| Historical Markers | 261 | |
| National Register of Historic Places | 261 | |
| Restaurant Cookbooks | 261 | |
| Sheryl's Hall of Fame | 262 | |
| Recipe Index | 265 | |
| Restaurant Index (Alphabetical Listing) | 269 |
Overview
There are hundreds of restaurants in our state that have been around for more than twenty years. Some boast lots of atmosphere and a few gimmicks, like the Big Texan Steak Ranch in Amarillo. Others are more refined and elegant, like the Green Pastures Restaurant in Austin. Many double as a community watering hole, where locals gather to drink coffee and discuss what’s happening around town. The Blue Bonnet in Marble Falls fits that bill. Large or small, fancy or plain, these restaurants share three things in ...