Cleburne Cafeteria

Local landmark with strong following has burned down (May 2016.) Sign on property says they will rebuild so watch for it, & don’t head there without checking to see if it’s rebuilt yet.

I ate here in Oct 2012 while working in Houston for a few days. Just seeking some home-​style cooking as a road warrior. Based on the photos on the wall Cleburne goes back a long way for Houston. (I posted photos of the photos.) Worth a repeat trip when I am traveling again. UPDATE: Apr 2016. Fire burned down the structure; here is link to story
The owner says he will rebuild.

Stuffed pepper was fantastic and the squash casserole tasted nice and not too overly sweet. Roast beef was soft though it was at room temperature. Kale salad is good. He had 1 meat, 2 sides and unsweetened tea, and I had 1 meat and 2 sides. The total was right under $ 31. The lunch meal was filling and there was no room for dessert. Be careful how you order because everything is priced individually. There is a private parking lot.

What do they mean the kids meal doesn’t include the choice of a blueberry muffin? Does this kids menu not say that’s a choice? …Whatever Cleburne’s your food isn’t that great and your customer service matches just for this reason. Roast beef is dry, so is the fried chicken. One good thing they had going on was the Mickey Mouse balloons for the kids.

I have frequented Cleburne Cafeteria for years but my last two visits (in the last 6 months) were less than stellar. The food was good and the portion sizes were generous. I must dock two stars due to the consistently terrible reception and service.
The women in the line were too busy joking around and talking and took 30 seconds to acknowledge me even though there was no one else in line. They were rude and were annoyed to serve me. They should not assume based on a person’s looks that one cannot understand or speak Spanish. The first lady I met made a sarcastic comment to another lady working the line and when I broke out with «Como?», they quickly changed their tune (fake). The lady at the register yelled at several women while trying to get the correct change for someone’s to go order and took forever to take my money.
Once reaching the table, I spent 3 minutes waving and trying to get the lady’s attention in order to get some condiments and a straw. I finally just gave up and got up and grabbed my own things. I even had to chase her down for a water refill and there were only 4 other tables with people at the time I went. She was so concentrated on filling salt and pepper shakers to notice the elderly couple who was also trying to wave her down. I finally told her, «Ma’am they need your help» and she begrudgingly went over to their table. I was so annoyed by the time I left. This type of behavior does not take place when the owners are on site and they need to be aware of this because it seems that I am not the only one experiencing this.

$ 22.50 for a pice of white fish – Haddock, I think it was– and 3 sides! Highway robbery! Nowhere else is a casual lunch for 1 person this costly! 2 of my 3 sides were inedibly bland and unseasoned: macaroni and mashed potatoes – they had zero flavor so I left them on the plate.
And to top it off, the cashier was rude and snippy when I nearly fell over in disbelief at the total. And they only take cash – no credit or debit cards. What a joke! As if they’re not making enough on their overpriced meals that they also need to pinch pennies by not allowing debit cards (& the small fees they have to pay by using them).
I say screw this place! I’m eating elsewhere for sure from here on out.

This place is a small family owned version of the Luby’s Cafeteria chain restaurants. Bring cash or check, they do not accept credit/​debit cards. Nice collection of paintings in the dinning room.

This is hands down the best cafeteria in Houston! I have been coming here for over 25 years and love it! The ambience is second to none. Original paintings by the founder and owner dot the walls and it feels like you are dining in an art museum! Located near the museum district and Rice University it is the place to go if ever in the area! My kids love this place and I do too! Everything is fresh and abundant and the staff is very nice! The location has plenty of parking and this place has developed quite a following!
Check it out! You will love it!

Love, love, love coming to Cleburnes! Much better than Lubys the portions are big and the homemade huge cake slices are always good. Something about their coffee that I just want to drink more and more. Always fresh and the owner is nice as well as the staff!

This place could be better if it would just change its staff. The Hispanic women that work in the line and refill the tea are rude and play too much with the other employees.
We are in a hurry to eat lunch and go.
I like the fish, turkey and dressing and chicken and dumplings (Tuesday only).
The glasses are sooooo small you’ll need at least 3 – 4 refills and you won’t get them because the ladies are too slow and too few.
I don’t like how the have the cakes uncovered and the air hits it and then it hardens. Not to mention the people touch it, cough on them and lick frosting as they pass by.
They don’t even take credit cards here but you can write a check. I got stuck behind a senior citizen that took an hour to write a check GOD.
Management is worthless and do nut care about requests or complaints. She was too busy defending her staff.
Get it together and maybe we’d come back more often

I love the food here !! It’s not mind blowing or anything exciting but it’s comforting and filling.
One of the best features is a Tuesday special the «chicken n dumplings» it’s worth the trip alone !!
My other favorites include: turkey and dressing and sweet potato casserole!!!
I’m very disappointed they took the veal cutlet off the menu.
They have a large assortment and so there will be something for everyone.
The tea is good but glasses are too small and sometimes the service is flighty.
In fact let me be honest, the service is not great. Some of the ladies that work there are rude and very flirty with the bus boys so they lose focus.

We came here today for only one thing. Everything here is fresh and delicious but I love their Turkey and Dressing! Plus, I want to beat the rush before Thanksgiving… sorry to say I was not able to get any of their desserts but they are scrumptious!

Cash only! Really?
Food was bland. Heard it was better years and years ago but nothing special now. Sorry?
Desserts were huge. We got the banana bread cake and it was pretty good. All their desserts look amazeballs!
I’d get dessert to go but probably nothing else.
A little overpriced for cafeteria food.

This aint it! I heard so much about this place but I was not moved. Why the heck are they so busy?
Like a few of the other Unilocalers say the portions are HUGE. However the food severely lacks in flavor. Then on top that they got the nerve to be expensive. I had chicken fried steak, mac n cheese and mash potatoes. It was $ 16! Nearly $ 20 bucks? Out of line.
Luby’s is a much better option when you’re looking for cafeteria food and they’re at the bottom of the cafeteria food chain (no pun intended) so that says a lot about this place.

A historic, Houston novelty, this café was adequate but failed to amaze me. Worth a try, though I’ll return to Luby’s café on Post Oak on my next Houston visit.
Giant portion sizes. Huge selection of unique salads, I enjoyed the garlic cole slaw. I loved the turkey breast with dressing and cranberry, as well as the pan-​fried chicken breast.
Their sign said they source local vegetables from farmers markets, which allows us to believe our vegetables were healthier, (possibly no pesticides?), or provide local jobs. But dispersed local farms are actually worse air polluters than large international farms plus transportation, if countering global warming is their goal. (Source: Freakanomics Radio)
Side dishes were nothing special (bland and soggy green beans; standard mac n cheese, mashed potatoes, roll). I didn’t like the jalapeño corn bread. Waited for my entire meal before finally flagging the one drink cart lady to refill my iced tea (which tasted crisp and refreshing). While ordering in line, the wall menu board listed many items that were not available (apparently not updated each day). Items on line were not labelled, requiring you to ask the line servers in a noisy atmosphere.
$ 50 for 3 persons ($ 17 each). I though that was slightly high for lunch without desserts. Each item was a la carte, so I wish there was a lunch combo plate option with a main, 2 sides, and smaller portions for less cost.
Tasty main courses in large servings, but some issues with service, side dishes’ quality, and cost.

This place has decent food for a great value. Food is all served in large portions, and there is a huge selection. I enjoyed the chicken fried steak, green beans, salad, fruit salad… and it was way too much food for me to eat.
I would say that this place is definitely better than Luby’s, and I wish I could give it a 3.5
There is plenty of parking available. Usually a short wait and instant seating.
Dont forget it is CASH ONLY!!!

I have never been to a cafeteria style restaurant before now. I guess they do this a lot in the south, where i am not from.
So, first off, they don;t take cards!!! WEIRD?! The staff all wear these old fashion dresses, also weird. But the food, for the price you pay (with cash) you would think it would be worth going back, instead i regretted even going in the first place. My husband was so excited to take me since that’s what he grew up on but instead he told me how much it has changed. I was so excited to go and try this «Cafeteria style» and now i don;t know what all the fuss is about.

Wanted some comfort food; in fact, I’m sitting here right now as I write this review– I ordered the boiled beets but how was I to know it would taste mildly of cinnamon? spinach casserole– meh, the haddock with mayo crust was so dry (my friend returned his) he got the salmon as a replacement and that was dry too, green peas was bland, black eye pea was bland, overall it was an unsatisfying meal and a waste of gas,
money, time and calories.

TIP: If it isn’t crowded, you might not want to eat here, as the food sits too long in the warming dishes and is not as good. Come when there is a line and the food is turning over quickly.
TIP: Bring cash or check, because they don’t take credit/​debit cards.
This place reminds me of what Luby’s used to be when Luby’s cooked everything from scratch. The quality of the food is better than any other cafeteria I have been to in the past few years. Everything just seemed so fresh. Lunch for 2 was $ 40 because everything looked so good, we kept asking for more and more.
My lunch consisted of 2 large fried pork chops smothered in mushroom gravy, with large serving of mashed potatoes and brown gravy. The portions are large. I could have been satisfied with this, but I continued to ask for more.
The small greek salad was assembled on the spot. Lettuce, tomato, pepper, onion and feta. It was good, not great, but for a cafeteria it was top notch. everything tasted fresh. The dressing could have been better.
The broccoli looked so good, I had to have it. Again, the portion was large. It was steamed perfectly.
My wife had a fruit salad. I tried a couple of bites and it was excellent. Reminded me of when I was a kid. The fruit looked fresh. Strawberries, kiwis, blueberries and apples all seemed very fresh. The peaches were the only thing that seemed like they came from a can. It was still delicious.
She also got the fried pork chops and mashed potatoes. We both agreed that they were awesome. As with most cafeteria food it lacked seasoning, but salt, pepper, and many other seasonings are available at your table. Once we added a salt and pepper, the meat and potatoes were perfect.
My wife also tried the sweet potatoes. She said they reminded her of the way her mother makes them. She tried to finish them off, but again, the portion was too big.
We had to pass up all of the great looking desserts. We will be back and split one next time.

My favorite cafeteria in Houston. A little expensive for a cafeteria, but food is high quality and fresh.
Average age of diner here is probably 60, and you’ll often see entire families eat together.
Bring cash. That’s all they accept. And definitely order one of their many cakes. They are amazing.