Hill's Cafe
(512) 851-9300
4700 S Congress Ave
Austin,
TX
78745
30.2142
-97.7695
Neighborhoods: East Congress, South Congress
Reviews & Ratings for Hill's Cafe
15 reviews
What users are saying:
Showing 1-10 of 15 reviews
Yummy
by branv
July 11, 2003
When I want to eat really bad...which mean I want good old fashioned chicken fried steak smothered in gravy, this is where I go. I have to go for lunch, though, b/c the dinner portion is just too big (2 steaks!). I usually get the fried corn and mashed potatoes on the side, and oh goodness, they are to die for. Husband gets the green beans, and they are just like my grandmother used to make...amazing!
- Pros: Food, service
Awesome
by tonto87
October 14, 2008
The best time to visit Hill's is on Wednesday night when the Free Texas Music Series is going on. Free concert every Wednesday. The bartenders here are absolutely amazing. I really haven't eatin here much, the food has been good when I have eatin here.
- Pros: Live Music, Bartenders
- Cons: Getting a table, and the wait
Best burgers in town by Loretta M. at InsiderPages
Contributor
October 02, 2008
Great burgers, great food all around, great atmosphere, and friendly staff. We eat at Hills Cafe regularly and I highly recommend it. Check out the back patio - which is legendary for its live music almost nightly.
Very Disappointed
by JCP3151
September 19, 2008
I had heard a lot about the restaurant and I am a big fan of Bucky & Bob on the radio, so I was glad when a trip brought me to Austin. What a disappointment! I ordered the national dish of Texas, Chicken Fried Steak. What our surly waiter brought me was quite a small piece of meat with yellow gravy. Portion wise it was certainly not nearly up to Texas standards, but that turned out to be fortunate as it just didn?t plain didn?t taste very good. If I ever go back, very questionable, maybe I will try the hamburger. What a great disappointment, skip Hill?s and go to the time tested Threadgill?s.
My first stop in Austin.
by alexisjulian
August 16, 2008
I'm from the Seattle area but travel to Austin regularly. Within the first 12 hours of being in the city, I demand to go to Hill's Cafe for a glorious taste of the famed Hill's Burger.
With a down home feeling, Texas pride, a fair representation of longhorns, and big servings, Hill's is the epitome of classic Texas. Live music is sometimes found inside, or outside, the walls of Hill's. The wait staff is composed of mostly UT students. The booths are given themes, with signed photos of Texas icons, including Willie Nelson.
As far as the food is concerned, it's stellar. Honestly, I've never tasted fresh rolls that are quite as amazing as you'll find at Hill's. I consider myself something of a burger connoisseur: I love nothing more than a good quality burger and Hill's is certainly the place for that. I swear they lace their hamburgers with something, they're so good and so addicting. I find myself thinking about that burger for days to come. Their soft drinks and water are served in huge cups. Their sweet potato fries are absolutely delectable. Pretty much anything they put on their menu is prepared so exceptionally, you'll be putting Hill's Cafe on your top 5 restaurant picks within the first few bites.
If you're on your way to Hill's, get ready for some amazing food at reasonable prices and know that a girl in Seattle is completely jealous.
- Pros: Perfect food, great environment, good value, great service.
- Cons: Too far from me!
WORST SERVICE IN AUSTIN!
by SylvanS
July 30, 2008
WORST SERVICE IN AUSTIN!
The hostess will leave you standing at the front for extended periods before finally seating you. Once seated, the wait staff will intentionally ignore you. Expect to wait up to 20 minutes or longer before someone even bothers to take your drink order. If you're lucky enough to have that happen, it will take another 20 minutes before they take you order. I and friends have walked out of Hill's three times now without being served. When we complained during the last visit, the snarky blonde, female manager reticently apologized with a sarcastic smirk on her face. Bottom line, they know they have horrible service and they don't give a damn. The food really isn't that good ? don't waste your time. There are far better places to spend your hard-earned cash.
- Pros: Decent live music venue
- Cons: Worst service in Austin
Inconsistent
by mdatlee
June 09, 2008
I am really rooting for Hill's because they are just right down the street for me...but I have gotten the best meals and the worst from this place. I got a sizzling steak from them once and it was fantastic, but the next time I went...it hardly had any flavor and was very overcooked. Same thing with their chopped sandwich...it is phenomenal but one time I got a VERY VERY dry batch of meat and it was so hard to swallow. I love the rolls but twice...I've been gipped and wasn't given any at all! I just sort of stopped myself from asking because I knew they were busy. They usually have really good food...but sometimes the service and the actual restaurant ruin the meal. I am not a priss, but leftover food and napkins on the table as well as a sticky booth are kind of a turn off for me! I am also aware that restaurant might have some 'critters' but finding one crawling next to your napkin on the table is really unappetizing. I don't know if I'll be going as often as I used to...but sometimes I do crave their yellow gravy and fried catfish!
- Pros: Rolls, location, sometimes the food...
- Cons: Quality, Service, Cleanliness
great atmosphere, good food by Kelle S. at InsiderPages
Contributor
June 04, 2008
Hill's Cafe has a decent menu with home style cooking. The food is pretty good, similar to a lot of other restaurants around town. The atmosphere is great - loud music, friendly servers and a great patio with lots of live music. A fun place to go!
Good Music, AWFUL food
by mossgold
November 28, 2007
I have read through a couple of the other reviews, and have to completely agree with most. Honestly, I find positive things in almost everything, but the food at Hill's is terrible. I took my entire family there once, and needless to say, nobody was impressed and I was slightly embarassed. Watch out for the barbecue plates. If they ask if you want the "bubba cut" (which means thick slices of brisket), expect a couple of whitish-grey pieces of fat with a little bit of grey colored meat clinging to it for dear life. No taste, and no smoke ring whatsoever. If you do end up trying out Hills, give the Barbecue SANDWICH a try. it is big and is pretty good. It's the only thing I have ate there that I like. Best of luck to ya!
- Pros: Good Music
- Cons: Terrible food
Terrible service and screaming children!
by jess6020
August 22, 2007
I took my boyfriend here because we wanted something besides Mexican for a change. I had been to this restaurant once about 4 years ago and remembered the food being good. Plus it's close to my new apartment.
Anyhow, the hostess was not very friendly. We were sat a tiny booth even though there were other larger tables available. We waited for WELL OVER 20 minutes before a waiter even came to our table and asked for our drink order. And the entire time we were eating, there was a screaming baby in the restaurant that made you wish someone would give you a break from the screaming by scraping their fingernails down a chalkboard. Our waiter was somewhat apologetic, but blamed the crappy service on the table with the baby having made "some really weird orders."
The food was pretty good. The chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes were yummy and the butter and rolls too.
However, I will NEVER go back to this restaurant. I'd much rather eat somewhere with subpar food and good service. I'd even settle for subpar food and subpar service. Hill's cafe needs to pay a little more attention to the dissatisfying looks on their customer's faces. I had "this place is horrific" written all over mine!
- Pros: Good food
- Cons: Terrible service
Re-Visit
by toppertx
March 31, 2007
I gave this place a bad review about a year and a half ago. Recently, I went back there with some people from work and I was impressed with some of the changes. To begin with, I heard that they serve a really good burger. I ordered their standard burger with cheese and fries and it was definitely a winner. One of the better burgers in Austin. But what impressed me most was the wait staff. I think that the owners have taken care to make sure that the servers are more professional and polite. After my burger experience, I went back for another one a week later. The burger was great, again, and the staff was very professional and polite. I will go back to try some of the other dishes. Oh, and had complained about the rolls: The rolls are now very tasty.
