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Magnolia Cafe Reviews

2304 Lake Austin Blvd, Austin, Texas 78703

Featured Review : The Austin Motel doesn’t have a restaurant and I wanted to have a special breakfast. I did a little research and found several recommendations for the Magnolia Café and luckily it was just down the street from the motel....See Full Review

  • #1 most popular
    Austin restaurant
  • Avg. User Rating:
    4 out of 5 stars

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  • Magnolia Cafe

  • 4 out of 5 stars
    zabelle from Portland
  • March 14, 2007
  • Best of IgoUgo
Quote: Al's eggs Photo - Magnolia Cafe, Austin, Texas The Austin Motel doesn’t have a restaurant and I wanted to have a special breakfast. I did a little research and found several recommendations for the Magnolia Café and luckily it was just down the street from the motel.

You know that you are in for something unique when you drive up and see the sign that says ‘Sorry We’re open.” That gave us a good laugh and a bit of a pause. We walked in and actually the only one who noticed us at all was a customer who is obviously a regular and he told us that someone would be with us shortly. It took a bit longer than that, a bit longer than it should have but eventually we were seated, given menus and had steaming cups of coffee in front of us.

This place is bright, the walls and decor border on neon, it is wild and a little crazy. The waitress had an attitude but it was all light hearted and we fell in with it immediately. I ordered two scrambled eggs with wheat toast and a gingerbread pancake with strawberries and pecans, and yes they were fresh strawberries. Joe had bacon and eggs, served with a dish of fresh fruit and Al had two fried eggs served over a heaping bowl of home fries, and very good home fries they were. Well cooked and with good flavor.

We were very pleased with all the food. My pancake was amazing, just enough ginger flavor to make it interesting and the eggs were so big I swear they had to come from an ostrich.

This is a twenty four hour restaurant that could be called a diner. It is not fancy, it is a little worn and very common but the food was good and the portions more than generous. Service was okay, our waitress was a dud but there was another waitress always floating around who kept our coffee cups filled.

Interesting offerings that we didn’t try:

Love Migas-eggs scrambled in spicy love butter (fresh garlic-serrano) onion, bell pepper, tortilla chips and jack cheese. Served with black beans,

Eggs Zapatino-scrambled eggs on an English muffin smothered in queso served with home fries.

The Magnolia Omelette: avocado, black olives cheddar cheese/jack cheese and lemon sour cream sauce.

Royal Toast- four triangles of French toast and two eggs any style served with your choice of fruit or meat.

Pancakes: corn, whole wheat and buttermilk with choice of adding bananas, fresh seasonal fruit, pecans, blueberries or chocolate.

Magnolia Café is open twenty four hours a day and has two locations.
From journals Austin-It's SOCO-ol
  • Magnolia Cafe

  • 4 out of 5 stars
    gsalelanonda from Houston
  • March 5, 2003
Quote: It's always a debate amongst my friends as to which restaurant we should go to to sober up at: Magnolia Cafe or Kirby Lane. While both restaurants are equally good, any Austinite (or transplant) who has spent any time in the bars inevitably has a preference for one or the other. Having been born and raised in Austin, hell, I like them both.

I've always liked Magnolia's mint hibiscus tea, but my favorite dish on their late-night menu is the "Eggs Zapatino." This is essentially an english muffin topped with a ham, a generous helping of scrambled eggs, and queso (cheese). It's kind of like an Egg McMuffin, only much, much better.

The fish tacos are pretty good, too, but they are nothing like the ones you can find at west coast joints like Wahoo's.

The rest of the menu is standard late-night Austin fare: eggs, pancakes, sandwiches, tacos, fajitas, and quesadillas. Everything is pretty good, but (perhaps it is because I'm Asian and a snob about these things), I can't condone their "stir-fry."

One suggestion: try to get there right at 2am (leave the bars early) or after 3am, because the wait can get long just after the bars close (especially at the Lake Austin Blvd. location).

Also, tip your waiter/waitress generously--they are working during the middle of the night.


From journals Late Night Dining in Austin

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  • Magnolia Cafe

  • 3 out of 5 stars
    vharris from bastrop
  • December 28, 2002
Quote: Located on South Congress, you have to be looking for the restaurant. It's small but the food is tasty. It's open for breakfast, lunch & dinner with a variety menu from hamburgers to any type of taco you can imagine. It is very laid back, with a lot of business people during lunch hour; children are welcome.
From journals EATIN' IN AUSTIN
  • Magnolia Cafe

  • 4 out of 5 stars
    shoppingbebe from New York
  • March 22, 2001
Quote: this place has the greatest pancakes ever! a very popular destination after going out all night. very quirky and alternative waitstaff! make sure to check out their specials as well- this is a big austin landmark and all the local have been and love it for a reason!
From journals south by southwest!

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