Sodolaks Beefmasters Restaurant

I’ve been hearing about this place for quite some time & figured it was time to give it a shot. The restaurant is family friendly & there is plenty of seating (inside only) & high chairs available as well. The atmosphere is casual, with tv’s on ESPN (boo) & a woodsy type feel inside. Walls are covered in different Texas A&M & other Texas related memorabilia. Kinda loud (as I mentioned before there are kids here) so wouldn’t suggest coming here for an intimate dinner.
Now on to the food. I ordered the meatloaf, loaded mashed potatoes & broccoli rice & cheese casserole & it was ok. Not crazy about it but could eat it again. Others at my table order the ribeye & chicken fried steak & were also satisfied. While I wouldn’t order the meatloaf again, I’d definitely come back & try something different, since they’re famously known for their chicken fried bacon but I wasn’t feeling that courageous today.

Been here a couple times food is alright nothing to brag about. It’s so loud no matter what time I’ve gone that you can’t have a conversation without almost yelling across the table.

Sodolaks has very country feel and they are located right on the outskirts of country of Madisonville. I only go here when they have the Saturday lunch special going on and usually get their $ 11.49 12oz sirloin which comes with two sides. Yes the sirloin has bits of fat and tendon in them but I actually like those parts of steak so I don’t mind them at all. It’s still a good deal no matter what because the steak itself is still quite big and seasoned well. Love their wide selections of sides and they are all good! I’ve tried their buffalo chicken tenders as well and it was also very tasty. The buffalo sauce comes on the side with two more of any side dishes.
I’m taking a star off because of their drink system. Their drinks including water come in this pretty mason jar but they charge you for them no matter what even if you ordered water. I actually didn’t notice this until my friend pointed it out and it’s bothered me ever since. No one should have to pay for tap water at restaurants and if it’s the mason jar that we use that they are charging for then they should give us an option for water in a regular plastic cup.
Overall this place has awesome food and country ambience which makes it a must visit when you drive by this part of town! Make sure to time yourself if you’re coming during their special hours as the lines are typically long.

Great food and great atmosphere! Went here this past weekend for the first time and was impressed. The lunch special (Monday-Saturday’s) is a great deal. Comes with your choice of entrée+2 sides and bread. The rolls are sweet bread and delicious! I got the shrimp cooked with bacon, jalapeños, onions, and tomatoes with fried okra and a baked potato. My boyfriend got the 12 oz sirloin steak with broccoli & cheese rice and loaded mashed potatoes. Both were delicious and tasted better than expected. Our total bill before taxes and tip was about $ 20 which was a great deal considering we had a meal of steak and shrimp. This restaurant has a very Texas atmosphere and was extremely busy went we went. Despite it being busy, our server was still very nice and attentive. I recommend you come here instead of somewhere like Texas Roadhouse, since this place is local and has a more charming feel. The quality of the food is also better and the prices are a bit lower than chains like TX Roadhouse or Saltgrass. I give this place 5 stars because the prices are very fair, and the food and service match up to what they charge. That being said, don’t expect the fanciest food you’ve ever had, nor the best steak in the country! But if you want a fun experience with some good comfort food, this is a good fit for you.

(I’ll get to the bacon)
First, this is the Bryan/​College Station location of a place that started in Snook, Texas. I’ve never been to the Snook location. This is a review of the Bryan location.
Sodolaks knows exactly what it is and is not really pretending to be anything else. If you’re accustomed to, or looking for, a top-​end steak house with the best cuts, freshest ingredients, nice atmosphere, then this is NOT the place for you. If you’re looking for place that serves the full array of good-​but-​not-​special homestyle foods (chicken fried steak, fried fish, chicken tenders, pork chops, steaks, baked potatoes, gravy everywhere, etc) then this IS your place.
The restaurant atmosphere is worth noting first. The place is not upscale/​high end/​nice. But it is newer than I thought it would be, and it does not seem like an old, long-​standing dive. The place is clean, it is decorated fine enough. But you just don’t feel like the place has a soul. The obligatory John Deere stuff on the wall. The rough cut boards. It is TRYING to hav a certain look, and have a certain feel. It looks like a designer went for that look/​feel rather than it just occurring naturally.
The group I was with was there on a Saturday for an early dinner. The restaurant was basically run by college-​aged kids. The waiters and waitresses and cashiers and hostesses and kitchen staff all seemed to be between the ages of 19 — 24. I did not detect anyone older who might be a manager. No complaints, just giving you a sense of the place. The waitresses all seemed super nice and were hustling. Service was fast and good.
They do not take reservations. That worked to our advantage as we had a last-​minute big group that needed a place to eat on a busy college weekend.
The food is, frankly, just okay. The steaks are probably not prime grade cuts. The appetizers are pretty basic with a generous batter, lots of salt, and gravy as a side for nearly every item.
NOW LET’S TALK ABOUT THE BACON. An important note is they REALLY talk up their fried bacon. It was also just okay. The bacon itself is still pretty raw, but the batter fried to it was done well, and the gravy was a basic white gravy. I won’t order it again, but I’m fine with having experienced it.
The portions are pretty big. The fried pickles are a big portion. The fried bacon is 5 – 6 really big pieces. The «Texas Tornadoes» were the best appetizer we had. I’ve had something similar a lot of places. I am not sure, but it seemed like they were probably ordered from a food service company like Sysco and then cooked on site. I feel like I’ve had them elsewhere.
The steaks are also generous. Around $ 20 for 16 ounces of (pretty fatty) ribeye. Steak was good, not great. Not terrible. Not special.
The baked potatoes are medium sized and well cooked. The toppings are build-​your own with the sour cream in a tube, cheese in a little plastic cup, and butter from a single-​serving spread tub. Not terrible. Not special.
The jalapeño hush puppies are average. I cook a similar recipe. These were run-​of-​the-​mill hush puppies. Not terrible. Not special.
Lots of people comment on the Mason Jar drinks. I’m from Texas and I’m from the country. That’s pretty common for me. So i don’t find it remarkable. But what was remarkable was the mason jars are the larger size, which is nice. And they are the real glass jars, not the plastic imitators. Nice touch, especially if you’re not used to it.
Customers seemed to be non-​college locals. .. mostly families.
All in all, this place is priced right for what it is. But this isn’t some special find.. .. It is not a dive with a soul, or a 50 year old place with lots of history and character. It is a place to go get fed, get fried food, eat salty food, eat for a decent price but feel you’re getting something better than fast food. .. . and the service will be cheerful and good.

This place is a mom & pop kind of restaurant that serves up AMAZING comfort food quickly. The wait can be annoying sometimes, since it is a popular place, but you’ll always leave satisfied — so it’s worth it. I’ve eaten here several times, and have always been fairly pleased! This past time, I ordered the Texas Chicken, which is chicken fried chicken with shredded cheese on top. It was cooked perfectly! The green beans were a little salty for my taste, and the loaded mash potatoes were okay. We also ordered cheese sticks as an appetizer and those were average — but it came out super fast, as did the food. If you’re looking for a relaxed restaurant with home style cooking — this is definitely the place to go!

Sodolaks is a wonderful place for your next steak! But that’s not to say they have the best food around.
The Good: Their steak, in my opinion, is nearly perfect. The use only salt and pepper to season the steak and quite honestly that’s all you should ever need. Their steak is as fresh as you can get considering it’s from their own stock not 20 miles away.
Generally, when I go here, it’s only for the steak. I’ve tried their MOP which wasn’t bad at all and their Chicken Fried Steak which was excellent.
The Bad: Their main entrée is what it’s all about here. Their sides leave much to be desired. I love this place because I’m here for the steak, not the mashed potatoes. My wife says they always overcook their black eyed peas.

There are some inconsistencies that the owner must not be concerned about improving. If you can get LeeAnn or Kelly as a waitress then you will get above average generally excellent service however if you get others you may be disappointed. Portions vary from visit to visit. If you order the steakl lunch special you may get a thin fatty piece of meat that may have weighed 14 – 16 oz prior to cooking however after cooking you may end up with 6 – 8 oz of edible meat on many occasions. If you order the side salad, it depends on how the prep cook feels as to whether you get 5 or 6 bites of lettuce or if you are lucky, you may get a full bowl of salad. Then if you get the chicken tenders or buffalo tenders, they are tasty however you are supposed to get 5 per order and there have been a number of times where a couple of people at our table get 5 nice equal size portions of tenders and then you may end up with a plate of 5 pieces with two or three of them being like chicken nougat size and the others nice size. It is very inconsistent and I have complained before even ordering and generally my plate comes with 5 nice tenders like it should be and at other times, I tell my wife that the cook must have something against me because I get 2 nougat size and 3 regular tenders. If you like broccoli cheese casserole then be prepared as sometimes it is dry as if it was from the day before and other times it is nice and moist as it should be. I have been a Customer of this place for many years and if I can get LeeAnn or Kelly as waitresses they are good about taking care of any concerns however maybe the comment cards should be on the tables and then drop in the comment box upon check out. When you go to pay, there is usually a lot of congestion at the check out so who wants to hold up the line filing out the comment cards. I have even written my comments like above before a visit and put it in the comment box and even left my phone # for a response and never heard from anyone so not sure they care. If they did, they would have responded to my request for a call. If enough people would make their feelings known then maybe the owner would care. Statistics show only 1 in 10 unhappy customers will complain and the other 9 will either not come back or they will just complain to others which eventually will affect the followers of a restaurant. They are welcome to contact me but history tells me that the owners does not care.
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We used to eat there 2 – 3 times per week however we have backed off due to these issues and now only go about one time per month. Good luck.

I like two kinds of steak places — high end places serving prime beef and country style steakhouses. (Notice I specifically included most of the chain steakhouses, which usually excel at selling mediocre beef at a markup that would do Whole Foods proud.) Clearly, Sodolak’s falls into the category of country style steakhouse.
What you get here is a large quantity of beef, cooked to order and well-​seasoned. The sides are «ok.» Namely, my fries could’ve used some more time in the fryer to achieve a better level of crispiness. The rolls they provide are huge and taste a lot like the yeast rolls that mom used to take out of the freezer and put in the oven.
Gourmet meal? No. Country cooking at a reasonable price and served with a smile? Yep. And that’ll do for most Texans, including me.

I hadn’t eaten here since I was in college back in ’96 and was excited to try it again. We got there just right before the Friday dinner rush. I was incredibly disappointed. First, let me state that the steaks were still wonderfully juicy and seasoned. Absolutely zero complaints in the steaks. However, the sides left much to be desired in every way except for the piston size. My boys and I each had a full meal and we eat off of each other’s for taste testing :-) The mashed potatoes, oh for the love of good mashed potatoes, was unfortunately not found here. They are almost a runny consistency and very obviously box potatoes. One step above nasty. The broccoli and cheese rice casserole was truly flavorless and the rice was still semi– hard. I actually sent it back which I’ve only ever done maybe a handful of times in my 43 years. The fried okra was pretty good and cooked well; huge portions. The fried mushrooms were also a serious disappointment. Hard, thick batter over nice sized mushrooms. The batter just ruined them though. The drinks are served in large mason jars which was a nice touch. Service was excellent. However, walking out with a $ 74 bill for three of us and the lack of anything special or above Golden Corral type food, they will not see us return.

Great food and atmosphere. Service isn’t usually fast or especially competent so don’t go if you’re in a rush. Great for taking out of town visitors to to give them a taste of Texas. Have to try the deep fried bacon at least once.

The steak is not bad but too much seasoning. Too salty to eat. Don’t recommend if you are people who don’t eat too much salt.

Fried pork chops = memories of grandma’s kitchen. The people and food are both down home. Mashed potatoes and gravy also had that joke made touch. I will be back.

Located off Hwy 21, you’ll find parking is ample and access to the main road is well suited. Check it out for yourself. It has a decent reputation in the area both for food and service. It’s your standard issue family steak house, with the typical menu items you’d expect to see. Not great, but not the worst food ever.
I had a chicken breast flavored with Southwestern seasoning, poblano chili, and melted cheese. It was juicy and just the right amount to satisfy without being over the top «with fixins».

Where the portions are plentiful and the sweet tea jar never runs dry. We will return to explore the menu further.
Visiting my son and attending an Aggie game, we met he and his roommate for lunch at this venerable favorite. We waited a bit but that was ok.
Everyone had a dish they would repeat. The lunch specials are well worth the money. Pick any one.
I had the ribeye and collard greens. The steak had great flavor and the greens were very tender and flavorful. My baked potato was overdone, but it wasn’t my focus so no loss. The salad was not much, just box lettuce and tomato slices.
All in all, it was a good lunch.

I called in a order to go –on Labor day –the small lunch Sirloin was so tough it was like chewing on leather –there SO CALLED wonderful loaded Mashed potatoes were cooked the 2 days earlier –totally nasty –it’s a shame he make’s so much money on that crap he serves as
food — people must be stupid to keep going back –I worked at this place –he don’t care about his employee’s as long as he make’s his $$-somethings never change — what goes around comes around !!! $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Horrible, my ½ pound burger was a ¼th they served all the vegetables in a bole so they tasted like pickles, my wife’s sirloin stake had more fat then meat and was greasy. Not sure how you make a greasy stake but they can.

No, they don’t create masterpieces. They don’t do filet mignon with blue cheese, or other fancy dinners. What they do offer is friendly and welcoming staff, delicious food that is like a home cooked meal, lightning fast service, and well, I wish I could come here every day.
When I was a kid, my grandma, who had grown up in poverty, was an over feeder. She always said we looked too skinny, so, «Eat more!» If she hadn’t passed away 30 years ago, I would suspect she was in charge of portion sizes at Sodolaks. My husband had a «small T-​bone» and it was bigger than his head. I bucked the steakhouse expectations and had meat loaf, since I was craving comfort food. The meatloaf was delicious, and I had enough for two more meals afterwards! Everything was perfect — this place knows how to serve a rare steak! My husband was thrilled.
When you hear about how warm and friendly Texans can be, it’s places like this that feed that stereotype. Well done, Mr. Sodolak!
Mind you, he’s been credited with inventing chicken fried bacon, which is stupid delicious and ridiculously unhealthy, so clearly he and my grandma would have gotten on just fine.

Go for their lunch special on Monday — Saturday from 11 AM to 3 PM.
They recently added a $ 14.99 for 12 oz ribeye steak option, but the $ 11.99 is the best. 14 – 16 oz sirloin steak with two sides and your choice of a glass jar of lemonade/​sweet tea. Say whaaat??!
You’ll get a steak about the size of your face. The sirloin steak isn’t top quality obviously, so don’t expect good marbling. Usually medium rare’s a pretty safe option, but if you’re scared that they might overcook your steak, go for rare.
DO NOT get their broccoli cheese casserole as a side. I gave it two tries and both times it tasted like rubber tires. I have no idea how it happened, but I knew that’s not what it was supposed to taste like…
They also give you pretty good rolls that you can fill yourself up with if you want to take home some steak for a second meal later.

One of the classiest restaurants in Bryan.
It is a cowboy place, not a yuppie place.
Farmers come in from Wixon Valley and Madisonville and places like that to get honest homemade high quality Texas food.
And that is what they get.
Yes the steaks are excellent. (Made with Beefmaster beef which is grass fed superior stuff.)
So is anything else that comes out of a steer, ground or not ground, breaded or not breaded, on a plate or on a bun.
Catfish and chicken do just great.
The best Southern vegetable plate in Brazos county — hands down.
They outsource their pies, but they outsource the pies from someone who is mighty fine.
So you won’t regret dessert one bit.
Frankly, I am a Boston boy
so I am sort of a visitor from another planet when I come here.
But everyone is super super friendly and super super nice —
and the food is just so totally good.
If you eat just once in Bryan College Station, this is where you want to go.