Texas Cafeteria

Monica, David and Edgar need to go to more upscale restaurants. But then, I doubt they have the means to do just that! I’ve been to the Texas cafeteria more than once and am always happy with the good down to earth food. I don’t go there for the Boeuf Bourguignon, I go for the home made Texas Beef Stew! But then, I’m not a Gourmand like the other three. :)

I grew up coming to this place. My parents used to work next door at the Fiesta. If you’re looking for home cooking and good southern food this is the place to go. They have lunch specials every day always something different. They give you so much food for a low price. Their breakfast is great as well (hashbrowns are amazing) the décor is full with pictures of the owner and his family. You’ll feel at home

Giving it one star is a GIFT. Went there for lunch. Had the veggie plate. Yellow squash was terrible. Green Beans came from a can with no seasoning. Yams tasted old and dry and the rolls were nothing to brag about. Even the BANANA PUDDING was terrible. It was thick, too sweet, and just plain gross. Atmosphere was tired. Great if you like pictures of hunting kills. Eeeeeuuuuu. If you are looking for great food, don’t bother coming here.

On my last visit I noticed that the warmer behind the steam tables had old food caked up on it. It looked disgusting! Maybe I’ve just been watching «Bar Rescue» too much. The entire serving area was gross.

My first time going here was with my mom and dad on a Saturday morning. It was extremely packed and very busy. I was amazed at how diligently the staff worked to make sure you were satisfied. The décor of the place was filled with memories of fish and hunting expeditions which didn’t bother me thats Texas for you :-)…Other than that we had a good time I think they could update on more tables and chairs but I wouldn’t change it for them it’s like being at your grandfathers house and the hospitality as you walk through the doors is always one of welcome… I enjoyed my experience and would recommend this place to anyone.

Basic breakfast. Quick, decent food at a low price. Environment, slightly depressing.

Hawked in my coffee.
OK. I won’t be returning. Café advertises $ 1.99 breakfast or something so they won’t miss my business (always busy). Never expected great (or very good food) but my coworkers enjoyed stalking the waitress.
When i pointed out there was something floating in my coffee, waitress asked if I wanted a refill.
Really? That is cafes first reaction? Want you a second helping of scum?
I asked her to check coffee decanter and/​or coffee machine
She went to manager.
Returned & queried if I had not placed coffee floaty my self.
Going back to House of Pies. Better (much better) food & spotless.
They have waitress for my coworkers to smile at too.

Maybe the lunch selection is better, but breakfast was all prepared/​packaged food except maybe the eggs. Instant grits, Sam’s Club biscuits… and it was expensive! $ 35 for 2 ppl ordering 2 samplers and 2 coffees! Good coffee though. Too bad, I was really hoping it would be my new little country café breakfast destination.

It’s okay, pretty heavy food. I find it’s kind of bland… Everyone has their own taste. It’s not terrible though.

FIRST and FOREMOST — — — As you walk in the restaurant, you can tell it is a cafeteria. The only thing different is that when you come here for breakfast, you order with the cashier and pay AFTER you eat.
When you come here for lunch, it works like a cafeteria line and pay once you get all your food on your tray and pay the the cashier.
I had the luxury of working from home for a few days and was excited to finally check out Texas Cafeteria because they are only open for breakfast and lunch. Sure, I can go here on a Saturday when I do not work, but I hear the Saturday crowd can get crowded!
Went here on a Tuesday morning at 9am. The place was half full. The employees were nice. They welcomed us when we walked in and could tell that we were newbies. The guy directed us to grab some silverware and told us to walk towards the cashier which is where the breakfast menu is located. I already knew one of the things I wanted. The $ 2.99 Texas Special which has 2 eggs, 2 pieces of bacon and 2 middle sized pancakes. The other thing I wanted to try was one of their omelettes. Everything was good. Check out the pictures I posted.
The same week, I went here for lunch. Thursday around 12:30pm. This time, when we walked in, there was a line inching close to the entrance. The daily specials were posted on a dry erase board and the selection was consistent with what is posted on their website.
We walk up and I can see all the delicious entrees and sides. The system is totally different from that of breakfast.
Grab a tray and silverware wrapped with a napkin. People are working behind the counter so you tell them what you want and you see them prepping your plate.
All lunch entrees come with a salad and 2 sides and a type of bread.
I asked for a green salad with ranch. Dude gives me my salad.
2^nd dude carves my turkey.
Chick scoops the dressing/​stuffing that automatically comes with the turkey and then she scoops my two sides onto the same plate — cabbage and broccoli and cheese!
She hands me my plate and chick #2 rings me up along with my hubby’s food.
Everything we ordered was good. Since it’s walking distance from my house, I will make this a regular stop. They open early so I may just eat here before I head out to work in the mornings… Give this place a try if you’re around the area.

One of my favorite places to eat in Houston. Why? It’s very inexpensive and the food tastes good and is served in large quantities. I found this place by accident back in 2006 and have been coming back ever since. I am giving it 5 stars because of the reasons above. This is a place to go get home cooking when you have the feel for it. And the price and portion sizes are such that you won’t leave hungry. Nothing fancy here and only open for breakfast and lunch.

Disappointing lunch, but like Mom always said «If you do not have anything nice to say… just keep it to yourself»

Great for genuine breakfast at very reasonable prices. Portions are generous & the food is home style. Staff are friendly & happy to be there. I have been going for years & years; but only for breakfast.
It is a family owned & operated institution that has been there for many years, a testament to reasonable prices & honest quality eats.

first time here *if it’s packed — 20 — 25 minute wait for order FYI* but it was well worth the wait… very cozy, family friendly indeed!

I was helping my mom at her office on the NW side of town and there was mainly chains, so a fellow Unilocaler told me stop doing that to yourself and hit up some of the local joints in the area.
I sure am glad he told me about this place. It doesn’t look like much outside but once inside get ready to be stuffed. I ordered the double chicken fried steak with mac and cheese and broccoli and cheese and it came with two pieces of born bread for $ 8!!!
This meal was epic. I eat A LOT and this meal took me two sittings. I ate half for lunch and saved the remainder for dinner. The food itself was a bit above luby’s grade but the portions and price are out of this world.

Wow. What a disappointment. I really had high hopes for this place. A greasy, run down place usually is excellent. However, the only good thing I can say about this place is that it’s cheap. Walking in, you get that infamous Houston glare. No hi, welcome, can I help you. Just the black stare as if WTF are you waiting for. The food looked good, but I wasn’t given what I ordered. I did not notice this until I was seated. Upon arriving to the table, there was a great big olé hair waiting on the table. The food had almost no taste. Not even the grease. We were not offered refills on anything either. Just a quick walk past the table working hard not to look at us. Maybe the people getting refills and service were regulars. I won’t be back.

So, I visited this dive last week with my father for lunch. It is exactly what the name is, a Texas cafeteria. I had drove by this place many times, never noticed until I stopped. It reminds me of Little Castle in Paducah (man I miss that place, but I digress).
The food was good, not the best quality, but for $ 9 for a entrée and 3 sides, it makes up. I got the pork chops with salad, peas and carrots and black-​eyed peas. It was good, not the best. It was very moist, which makes it tasty. The salad, I would not recommend. There are many choices of hot veggies, no need for a mediocre salad with only lettuce, onions and tomatoes. Black-​eyed peas were good, thought I had to add hot sauce and pepper to spice it up.
Like other Unilocalers say, it is a cafeteria line, order and they pack it on (nice portion) and you pay cashier. Get a drink or water and take the tray to the table. Majority people there were construction guys I think. Good crowd.
I will go again, I am sure. But I really want to try the breakfast. I read hear it is good and I saw the cheap prices on the signs while I was there.

A greasy spot for those unwilling to part with many American dollars in the pursuit of being full. Sit down with a heaping plate of food, immerse yourself in it, and in no time you’ll forget all about Houston, because something bigger washes over you, The South.
Has a yummy homestyle menu with a uh rural décor. The animal heads haven’t spoken to me yet, but they do stare. Can’t imagine a pretty gal liking this place, or an old man who wouldn’t. If they played old country music instead of Fox News, this place would be perfect.

It was just ok. A standard breakfast of eggs, bacon, hashbrowns and pancakes was just ok. The hashbrowns needed a little more browning as did the pancakes with its slightly undercooked center. It was a cheap breakfast however.
The servce, as well as the décor is what got me. For breakfast, you order your meal at the counter, take a ticket stub and wait for your meal. Then, when it’s ready, they YELL out your number. Once you’re done, you get to go back to the counter to pay. If there is a line, then fall in the back, even if it means you are snaking throughout the floor amongst other diners. As for the décor, I’d much prefer to eat without having to look at the carcass of a dead bear, a recent kill for the owners. Photos of such are all over the walls including next to your booth. It’s quite offputting to say the least. I may return to sample the lunch but, after that, I think I am done.

In Charles Dickens’ «A Christmas Carol», Scrooge is visited by three ghosts. The last one, the «Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come», shows him a gloomy and terrible future given his current path. Coming here on a Saturday morning was like being brought by that hooded figure — it offered a vision of what Texas will become and/​or what I’ll become if I’m not careful.
As Sergio S noted in his review, this place is quite «old boy Texas» in décor: dozens of hunting and fishing family photos line the walls, only broken up by the occasional stuffed fish. The photos aren’t of customers but all of the family that owns this place. Old-​school wooden tables and booths are your furnishings and the cafeteria look is complete with the short food line. At 8 AM, the parking lot was full and I had to park across the street at the North Shepherd Fiesta.
The customer mix was a frightful blend of bed head hair, elderly teeth, trucker caps, and a lot of examples of why America (and Houston) is rapidly becoming «Obese Nation». To their credit, a lot of the customers knew the line staff by name and called out their hellos and goodbyes — which, at 8 AM, is not what I necessarily wanted to hear before I’d gotten my feedbag on.
Standing in line, the short-​order cooks struggled to keep up with the various orders. At first, I was worried that I hadn’t made my presence felt — much like a ghost, I was invisible — but it turns out that you order at the cash register, you get a stub, and they’ll bring the meal out to you when ready.
I ordered the breakfast special ($ 1.85) served from 6 AM to 1015 AM daily; consisting of 2 eggs any style, hash browns or grits, and a choice of toast or biscuits. Opted for scrambled eggs, hash browns [I’ve never cottoned to grits despite living in the South all my life], and biscuits. Added a bowl of gravy for the biscuits for 75 cents. The Texas Special is two pancakes, two slices of bacon, and two eggs for $ 2.99.
It took an agonizing 30 minutes for my plate to come out under the crush of orders — I had time to both observe and avert my eyes from the parade of people in the place. Sort of trying to glance at a car accident — look but then don’t look. A large extended family was finishing their meal — the mom got up to get to-​go boxes and I thought: Why not leave it since it only cost $ 1.85 a person? An older lady chatted up a passing child then left a stack of small coins as tip for her meal. An older man ate his pancakes but then stopped, obviously winded by the effort. The spirit of the place was one of a hardscrabble existence — both for the staff and for the patrons. I felt slightly guilty coming in freshly-​scrubbed and full of energy, both for the day and for life.
The eggs were hot, the hash browns could’ve used a bit more browning, but the biscuits were obviously made from scratch — you bet I ate both them in entirety. After focusing on the meal, I paid up at the cashier, left a disproportionate tip (to pay it forward, so to speak), channeled my energies into a positive course for the day, and resolved to use what I’d seen today to motivate myself to a better future. The «Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come» had gotten its message to me loud and clear: Grab life by the horns.