Elm Creek Cafe

One star for lousy service and one star for meh food. Service was less than decent. The waitress sat us then promptly walked away and forgot us for at least 15 minutes… and the place wasn’t that busy. When she did finally wait on us and take our orders, she couldn’t answer our questions. Plus it seems ridiculous to us that the price of their burger is just for the burger — fries are extra. We waited 30 minutes for our food and there was nothing difficult about any of the orders. When we got the food, it was just ho-​hum. Nothing special. It was bland roadside diner food. I wish we had driven further down the road and eaten and The Whoop Stop.

The staff was great. The food was tasty but definitely not on the healthy side. Good home cooking.

Worth the drive. Super cute, nice staff and the antiques and such are for sale. Nothing to not like. Food was pretty good as well so a win win win

Staff was very kind and accommodating. Walked up asking for the world, with a dog. And we figured something out.
Facility was very sketchy, tons of bugs. –1
The food was great, (sorry no pics) had onion rings and salsa to start. Wife had catfish, kids ate all there nuggets and dogs.
Dewberry pie… Has the berries on top custard bottom light flakey crust. A must try! Before they run out, order while giving food request.

I may have been spoiled by all the restaurants in Austin but I thought the experience was ok. It wasn’t real amazing but for a place in the middle of nowhere I give them kudos. The waitress was sweet and the food came out fast and it tasted goos but there was no one else eating in the restaurant at 2pm which usually makes me a little weary.

We eat here about 3 times a month as we return from the farm. Onion rings are huge and generous. Awesome chicken fried streak, catfish, and best chopped streak and onions with brown gravy EVER!!! Nice salad bar with local veggies when in season. Worth the 45 minute drive from Austin.

Place was amazing. Very clean and unique atmosphere. Friendly staff. Good music. Food was delicious. Nice day trip and topped it off with a great dinner in a friendly environment. We will be back!

My husband and I have been wanting to try Elm Creek for awhile now. It’s right off Hwy 21 outside of Dime Box and easy to miss. This place is a gem! My son ordered the Small Catch and the fish was cooked to perfection and the cocktail sauce had to of been homemade. The onions rings were absolutely delicious too. My husband and I ordered the Chicken Fried Steaks. After reading the other reviews I took the advice and ordered the small. I was very glad that I did because they were HUGE! My husband and I could have shared a plate. We had fried green tomatoes that were double battered and delicious. We finished off our meal with the highly recommended Dewberry custard pie. It was the best pie I have ever had! All in all it was worth the few extra miles and we will definitely go back. Now that I know how big the portions are I will be sure and share with someone and get an extra plate. Enjoy the nice country setting with local art and antiques for sale and on display. Don’t forget to save room for the pie!

Amazing dinner tonight loved our waitress! My mother was covered in bug bites and couldn’t reach the itchy spots on her back and our waitress brought her a back scratcher. The food as always is amazing and the dewberry pie was so yummy!!! I can’t remember our waitresses name, but she was older and a bubbly blonde and she made our dining experience amaZing and we will be returning and hope she waits on us again!

Granted, it’s hard to find a place to eat east of the Austin SMSA that does not reek of mediocrity. Elm Creek Café is a casual spot on a stretch of highway that is primarily rural, and has some nice things going for it: friendly, helpful staff, clean surfaces, a collection of antiques and collectibles, including a fabulous working early 20^th century New Perfection enamel stove, and homemade pie with local dewberries. But it would take such little effort and expense to elevate the things that could really make this restaurant special. For instance, I found the waitstaff to be very unprofessionally dressed. Mismatched T-​shirts and cutoff shorts gave a sloppy appearance with no sense of cohesiveness. The staff does not convey a sense of confidence or endorsement about the food that is convincing. One of the appetizers, cheese sticks, were of the frozen, pre-​prepared variety, flavorless and came with the predictable plastic cups of ranch dressing and a bland marinara. The T-​bones steaks – although huge and cooked reasonabley well to order – came to the table either unseasoned or under-​seasoned. No amount of salt and pepper at the table can replace the flavor of a steak that is perfectly seasoned and seared before it leaves the kitchen. The salad bar was a bit bland and the dressings unremarkable. A signature salad dressing, real bacon bits, seeds or nuts and homemade croutons could really elevate this option, for instance. I was pleased to see that the lettuce was not the usual iceberg, however, and was perfectly crisp, vibrantly green leaf lettuce. The baked potatoes were freshly done and flavorful, but the service of toppings such as cheese, butter (it was real) and sour cream in plastic and packets detracted from the meal. I do understand about food cost and waste, but portions in small stainless sauce cups and not disposables would have been a nicer touch. But the onion rings? I think they’re the best thing on the menu. The small order was heaped on a luncheon plate and arrived hot and fragrant. Cut about 1″ thick, these onion rings have the perfect amount of leavened batter and shatter deliciously in your mouth when you bite into one. Will we return? Not likely, because the food is not remarkable and the wine list is equivalent to convenience-​store fare. A $ 70 dinner for two (with no alcohol) would need overall to present better quality and preparation than what we experienced. It’s a pretty drive in the country, but we found the food disappointing.

What a wonderful place! Very interesting layout and décor, staff was very friendly, and the food was delicious. Get the dewberry pie, you won’t regret it. Great little café in the boonies!

Driving from Houston to Austin, leaving right after work times the arrival at Elm Creek as a perfect late dinner and rest stop. Bracketed between two ranches on a country road, I was the only sedan in the parking lot amongst pickups. They’re real friendly down here, as this is, after all, Texas.
There’s good eats here. Lots of semi-​exotic meats available, but I came here seeking chicken fried steak. The wife had the fried, and I had the grilled (breaded and pan-​fried). The fried version puffs up, and is crispier while the grilled adheres more to the meat. You can’t go wrong with either since the batter is outstandingly well seasoned, and a «small» will whet most appetites. Gravy is also very, very good.
Finishing with dewberry pie ala mode is essential.

Wonderful place to get a great meal, visit with nice people and get off the road for awhile. We were working as vendors at Coles Antiques during their spring show when one of our customers told us about Elm Creek Café. We drove the 30 miles from Warrenton to Giddings and it was more than worth the trip. Flounder stuffed with crab meat, huge shrimp, fried okra, baked potato, hush puppies and a fantastic salad bar provided us with an excellent meal. The service is also top notch. This is one of those places you would probably just drive on past. Don’t!!! Flip on the turn signal, mash the brakes and pull into a treat you will not forget.

On my occasional trips from Byrant College Station back to Austin, in the middle of desolate Hwy 21, I’ll run into a quaint little place called Elm Creek Café. It’s been around for 16 years, this was my 2^nd visit there since my last review in late 2010. My how time flies.
It’s good to still see this place standing, and even though it’s been a couple of years I still remember what I loved — — the Chicken Fried Steak and Dewberry Pie. This visit was quite late and I’m in a rush to get home, so I put in a to-​go order for a large CFS with white and brown gravy, side of fries, and a piece of Dewberry Pie. I also noticed Fried Green Tomatoes on the menu — never tried them but why not give ‘em a shot too.
There’s a small salad bar set-​up which comes with your dinner, I opt to eat it there while I waited for my food instead of taking it home. Everything on it was so fresh — the leafy green lettuce, 3 types of pasta salads, red bean salad, and the peas were so tasty! Best I’ve had in a while.
Here comes my order — packed up and ready to go. When I get home and get settled I opened up the package and laid out the spread. First off — holy moly the large CFS is big enough to feed a small tribe in Africa, or a half a trailer community, or the entire floor of an office building. It was massive! Picture your typical to-​go large styrofoam container — open it up, this CFS will cover both sides so it has to be folded to fit (holy sh*t!). They gave me plenty of fries, and the container was so heavy it weighted down my car — — the gas mileage dropped significantly. Their CFS is flattened, loved the crispy batter (you can have it grilled), I’d say it was one of THE BEST CFS’s I’ve ever had for sure.
The Fried Green Tomatoes surprised me — quite awesome! They were also large marge, the size of a medium slider, and you dip it in their homemade ranch dressing which was also da bomb! The best damn fried green tomatoes I’ve ever had. Ever.
The piece of Dewberry Pie was as good as the last time I remember, a lady makes all their pies and cakes and brings them in — — at times they have lemon, coconut cream, pecan, chocolate, and more. Today it was just Dewberry — fine by me.
Small town feel here, they are very nice and accommodating. The waitress was on top of the chefs in the back to make sure my order was correct and out in a jiffy. The nice grandma hostess who greeted me got me a water to-​go for my trip back home. Prices are moderate here, but they don’t skimp on the good stuff, it’s high quality and you sure do get more for your money. I have enough CFS and fried green tomatoes to last me the rest of the week, and I’ll definitely make sure that I don’t wait another 2 years to come back to this wonderful place.

Great food and great service:) the portion sizes are huge. Everything I had was delicious. I had the chicken fried steak, jalapeño bottle caps and lemon meringue pie. All were excellent. The small salad bar was fresh. The ranch dressing is quite good.
It’s definitely worth stopping in for a bite.
Unilocal directions were a bit off but eventually found it.

I’ve driven past this place for 4 years and I finally stopped to grab a meal. My gosh, I was missing out one some great cooking.
Their speciality is chicken fried steak. You can order the steaks deep fried or pan fried. I tried their pan fried version and it was amazing. BTW., these steaks are huge. Enough to feed 2 people. Also, order the fried green tomatoes. Those are divine. The entrees come up with a trip to the salad bar which is small but has fresh vegetables.
Highly recommend you stop when you are driving through.

I could justify my 5 star review with one sentence:
«I’ve lived in Texas my entire adult life, and this is the best Chicken Fried Steak I’ve ever eaten.»
This place is a gem. The CFS is served either fried or grilled. I chose grilled and it was everything the other reviewers have said and more. The simple salad bar was so fresh, it must be from local growers. It reminds me of eating right out of my parents garden as a kid. The buttermilk pie for desert was as good as any i’ve ever eaten.
I would say that this place being in the middle of nowhere is a downside, but frankly it would be standing room only if it were in Austin, Bryan, or San Antonio.
It’s a 50 mile drive from my office… and I plan on eating there again. How’s that for a recommendation?

Best small town café stop I know of, and conveniently located on the drive from College Station to Austin, or vice versa.
The menu is more varied than you’d expect for a small town; would you like to try quail or fried clams? They’ve got it. A lot of country-​cooking recipes and some excellent pies.
Big city folks may not be impressed with the salad bar, but it is very serviceable for those of us looking to make sure we have enough vegetables in our diet. A picky non-​meat and non-​fat eating friend was accommodated here, much to my relief.
Definitely stop in and try it the next time you are passing by!

I’ve dined in more barns than most city boys, but that’s probably just cause I am nuts about food touring. This was the first stop in my food tour, and it was a near-​perfect way to start off a day of fat, grease, and love. We whetted our appetites with a light light platter of… fried food. Ok, that’s definitely not how you start out a marathon of eating, but whatever.
This huge house-​barn restaurant is awesome. Fresh salad bar, good service, clean, spacious, what more do you want with country eatin’? That’s exactly what I thought, until I saw that they offered quail, frog legs, fried catfish, all on one platter no less.
I just have to come out and say… I don’t really like fried food. Every time I eat fried food, I get the urge to take a shower, and a shower is not easily attainable when you are food touring for 9 hours.
The Sportsman Platter; a mere $ 16: The frog legs were way better than the tiny Chinese-​style ones I am used to. They were bigger, meatier, and the fried skin was awesome. The fried catfish had a crisp, dense cornmeal breading. The grilled quail was juicy, flavorful, and everything you want from real Texas-​style quail. The onion rings had a really light batter, and they were super fresh. The hushpuppies were hearty, but still had that light fried texture. All in all, this was a unique, but very good platter of Texas homestyle cookin’.
On top of the food, the atmosphere was so inviting, and the down-​home aspect was so jammin’.

Thank you, Texas Monthly, for composing an insightful list of the Top 40 Small-​Town Cafes. It’s good to have a life mission, and visiting all 40 of these has become mine. Like, last week when I read the article, so I’ve only been to two places so far.
This is literally a «blink and you’ll miss it» kind of place. However, my mom and I were on a mission to find the place. Out in the middle of nowhere, off a two-​lane road, sits the Elm Creek Café, humble in its fried greatness.
I’d heard you could get the Chicken Fried Steak fried or grilled. A bit of a misnomer, but obviously, I went for the fried. My mom and I split the small… which was HUGE. Seriously, I want to see the large. It was the size of our plate. For $ 8.99, we also got a side of fried okra and one trip to the salad bar.
I scoffed at the salad bar, sitting there quietly in some kind of «Sizzler style» wagon off to the side. Then I read in an interview that they take great pride in their bar – the dressing is made in house, and apparently there’s a sauerkraut salad that’ll knock your socks off. My bad. I’ll pay more attention next time. I was impressed that it was Romaine lettuce, not your typical Iceberg.
Back to the meat. The CFS was tender enough to cut with a fork, and my fried okra was hot and crispy. But I loved my dessert the most: dewberry pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. It had a streusel topping and some serious buttermilk-​style filling going on. It. Was. Amazing.
I saw some old geezer ask for two orders of fried frog legs, so I’m guessing that’s pretty good as well. And there’s quail…
If you’re in Austin, take a road trip out to the Elm Creek. Oh, and they also sell antiques in the restaurant. Could it get any better?!! Antiquing and eating pie… sounds like a perfect Hill Country day trip to me.