Arkie’s Grill

Arkie’s has new owners and will re-​open later in 2013. Prospects are good for great diner food with a Cajun accent.

Arkie’s has been «closed for remodel» for two months as of September 2012. Hope they can reopen, but I haven’t seen any work being done.

The only place on the east side I’ve been to where I didn’t see one ironic hipster. This is a place that time has forgotten but in a good way. It has a small town, middle of no where feel. Very nice people, simple menu, large portion for a reasonable price. Look there are no frills here. If you are looking for a simple old school diner check it out.

this place is the diner of Austin. Nobody can go so far into the past. LOVE spelled FAT means the food isn’t for the salad set.
You can be eating with pistol packing Lawmen or state representatives maybe a movie star. But You’d“d never know it.
Arkies has a list of 4 veggies all you have to pick is entrée and the veggie you don’t want the waitstaff will handle the rest.
If your used to ordering around young dumb high school chicks you had better prepare yourself for this group of ladies. They all have been there for over a decade and have dealt with crappy clients before.
Just order the meat and the veggie you dont want and dont be picky or you“ll be sorry.

I was totally excited to try this place. I have been searching Austin far and wide for the best fried chicken. Due to the fact that this place has been on TV and rated one of the top diners in the country, I had high hopes. I mean how could you just have «okay» food and get on TV?
I had the fried chicken plate with fries, okra and a salad. The meal was $ 7.99 which seems like a good deal, but the two pieces of chicken I received were a leg and a thigh. You can get that at a fast food place for a few dollars. The chicken itself was fried well and was fairly juicy, but it lacked flavor. It tasted bland and could have used salt and some other kind of flavor dimension. From the places I’ve tried in Austin for fried chicken, they either under or over season it. Where can I find a happy medium for Pete’s sake?
The salad was a standard iceberg type, the fries and okra were a little soggy, not very crispy and again under seasoned. Needless to say it was a bit of a disappointment. Most of it looks and tastes like bland cafeteria food. I might return here to try something else if someone else wanted to go but I wouldn’t drive all the way over there. I’ll stick to Popeye’s until I find another hopeful option for good fried chicken.

I had a craving for fried chicken, and based upon reviews here, I tried Arkies Grill. It is pretty far East on Cesar Chavez. Parking was not a problem, although I arrived just before they closed at lunch time. (I believe that their current hours are 7 — 2.) The place has a funky diner feel, which isn’t surprising since they opened back in 1948. The wait staff were VERY friendly and checked back regularly on my tea, and to make sure that everything was alright.
Vibe: Great old school diner with a counter, along with plenty of tables and booths, as well.
Service: Excellent and very friendly.
Value: $ 6.99 for two pieces of chicken and THREE sides. Helluva deal.
Food: The fried chicken was very crispy and juicy. The crust wasn’t particularly seasoned, but the flavors were good and the oil was clean. (I used to work as a short order cook, and pay attention to that sort of thing.)
The coleslaw was the best that I’ve had. I like mine vinegary, with just the right amount of black pepper, and this was ideal, as far as I was concerned. Pinto beans were good, but nothing special. The yeast rolls were fresh and yeasty, and more were offered.
The only downside was the «scalloped potatoes». I put it in quotes, because they tasted like lumpy mash potatoes that been in the steam tray too long. When I think scalloped potatoes, I think of some combination of slices of potatoes bound together with some sort of cream sauce, with onions and often some bits of ham, and generally topped with some cheese. This was the only disappointment with the food.
I sat at the counter, and saw a lot of good meals flying out of the kitchen in hurry. The man in the kitchen, Ernie, reminded me of Chef from South Park. The waitresses treated him well and he hustled out the meals.
Bottom line: With the exception of the potatoes, the food was good and a great value. I saw a lot of good looking and smelling food coming from the kitchen. The staff were all great and very friendly. The clientele was very diverse and the vibe of the place was great.
I’ll be posting another fried chicken review on Top Notch. If you’re looking for the best fried chicken, Top Notch has it. However they have fewer options as far as sides go. If you’re looking for more of a soul food experience go to Arkie’s.

I’d never even heard of Arkie’s until I saw them featured on some Travel Channel show about diners. Being from the East Coast, I had my doubts, as I’ve yet to find a diner that truly wowed me, but the chicken and dumplings looked so good, I decided to give them a try.
BEST CHICKEN AND DUMPLINGS EVER!!!
The sides that day were navy beans, scalloped potatoes, spinach and slaw. Based on the reviews, I expected the navy beans to be a bit bland, but they, like the chicken and dumplings, were perfectly seasoned.
Of course, I felt like I’d gained five pounds just LOOKING at the meal, but nonetheless, I ate everything on my plate, which for me, is the ultimate compliment I can give any establishment.
In fact, the only thing keeping me from giving Arkie’s five stars were the yeast rolls. They were a bit smaller than expected as well as a bit too overbaked for my liking. Other than that, sheer comfort food perfection.
I’ll certainly be back.

Arkies is a small-​town diner with a friendly attitude. Dont’ except marvelous things from their food, but it’s pretty good for the price.
Their bread is limp, their potato salad looked store-​bought, the pinto beans were nothing special, and the greens were a bit better than canned greens. So nothing extraordinary; just cheap diner food.
But their meatloaf wasn’t bad at all. It was soft but firm. The flavors were a bit bland (nothing a bit of jalapeño sauce can’t fix), but it worked surprisingly well with the muddy-​looking gravy and sides.
Don’t make a trip out for Arkies unless you really want that small-​town diner atmosphere. If so, then why not?

NEW MANAGEMENT/​OWNERS!
I went today and had an excellent meal. I had fried chicken with three sides all for just $ 7.99! What a deal!
This place is kitchy cool too, but it’s for real, not fake. The original decorations from the day it was opened. It’s nice to see something so authentic. The counter I sat at had the original laminate top with the wear on it being real, not manufactured.
Let’s talk about the food. Fried chicken so good it’ll make you slap your mama! ;) This is the most authentic to home fried chicken I’ve ever had. Delicious perfectness on the inside with a crispy crust on the outside, and not greasy at all! The sides were amazing as well; homemade everyone of them. Mac n cheese, corn stew (kinda creamed without cream, if that makes sense), and just some peas, were all tummy pleasers. Don’t forget the amazing cornbread, made from scratch and amazing.
They had some new stuff going already too. Smoked brisket and turkey breast. I got to try them and they are awesome as well.
Be on the look for this place and the changes that will be made. It’s only going to be better and still is going to keep what made them what they once were.

I had also debated going to Arkie’s, but never actually went, mainly because it did not have a huge following outside of Austin and it was a little out of the way. Then… it was on a Learning Channel special, so I, being a sucker for fame, had to go.
There was no better opportunity than the day I got back into Austin to board a flight. It is in a perfect location on the East Side, a mere 5 minute drive from the airport. It is a great way to get your calories stuffed into your day before boarding an uncomfortable flight with nothing to eat.
A good sign was that when I walked in, there was still just the local clientele, no out-​of-​towners coming for a quick touristy fix. Just the good ol’ Mr. Smiths going to work on the construction fields getting served by the sweet Ms. Peggy Sues.
I made the mistake of going on a TUESDAY for breakfast. The special of the day that people apparently wait in line for is chicken and dumplings, which happens to be one of my favorite southern dishes. Lunch is not served until 10:30AM. I will need to return for this once a week occasion that I was 3 hours early for.
I do not really enjoy breakfast foods, so I was glad they actually offer the true breakfast of champions, chicken fried steak. It comes with 2 eggs, hash browns or grits, and a biscuit or toast. Things here are made from scratch, and it definitely shows in the grub. The gravy was creamy and had a deep golden color. The chicken fried steak was pretty good, but I am extremely picky: I like my crust very crispy, and my meat very tender. The eggs were perfectly runny, and the housemade biscuits were fresh, crumbly, and hot.
Arkie’s is the place to go good service, good food, and good prices. It is also a good place to become a local at.

I went to Arkies today and had a bacon cheese burger. Just a regular meal, nothing exciting, nothing special, but it was good. I should of tried something a little different, but just wasn’t feeling some of the stuff on the menu. The onion rings weren’t that great at all, they could have been unique with a personal favorite spice or something… just too plain jane. it needed to be SPICER! I don’t like plastic bags of condiments on my plate, only food should be on the plate, but it’s their personal style.
The service was quick, in and out, great on a lunch break.
My first job was in a diner, this place reminded me of the diner I used to work at once upon a time. I would only go here on a lunch break because it was nearby.

Went here for lunch (’cause that’s all they’re open for) and thought it was pretty cute when I walked in (in a, «aw, isn’t that cute how they don’t feel the need to try and impress the patrons with fancy décor and nice smells», kinda way”) It kind of felt like Mel’s diner, which I loved and really wished the waitress had told me to kiss her grits at some point. She didn’t…but she was very pleasant.
The next thing I noticed was the smell. Now, this was not Arkie’s fault. Someone has clearly not thought it was important to bathe yet this year, so it filled the small space fairly quickly. Kind of lost my appetite.
The specials looked good, including chicken fried steak. I would have thought that this was the place to have some of the best chicken fried whatever in Austin. Turns out, not so much. The breading was dry, the steak was tough and the gravy was kind of bland. Overall, nothing really good about it. The au gratin potatoes, another favorite of mine, were alson not impressive. Overall, there wasn’t anything that I thought-​man, I’ve gotta try more of that. I give it a good solid «waste of calories». That should be the new rating system – are you glad you spent your daily allotment of calories on it? Nope.

There is this weird «let’s find authentic diners and then pick apart how authentic they are» fad going on. Diners are what they are, cheap fare where sometimes what you get is a menu of things that a cook makes very well having done the same thing over and over, slightly tweaking over the years. There will never be a Michelin Star offered to a diner so levelsetting those expectations is important.
And in the true sense of the word Diner, how do you measure something that does not care to be measured. Diners are by nature indifferent. The Diner doesnt care if you find their fried chicken to be amazing, they just know that they make fried chicken people seem to be ok with and sometimes come back again. It’s not magical, it’s not the lifes work of the cook, it’s quick, basic, WYSIWYG food and sometime, they happen to make something transcendent and people go gaga over it. And the Diner cares little about a blip of excitement, they know their place in the world. Diners don’t aspire.
Arkies has a small menu of things they turn out consistently well. It’s classic southern stuff like you’d get down south, high in everything your dietitian said would kill you so by it’s very nature, it violates modern rules of food and that’s kind of refreshing. But the diner is indifferent to that too.
Go here if you like good diner food and if this type of place works for you in that they make things you like and it costs about what you want to pay for that sort of thing.
This is not Noma, El Bulli, Per Se or anything like that. It’s simple blue collar working people food so to judge it is like saying you have an opinion on air. Air, like the Diner does not care what you think. Or what I think for that matter and that’s why I like and respect it. It simply is what it is, perfect in it’s little place in the universe, never meant to be changed in any way, just plugging along, making chicken and dumplings like that one place you remember as a kid. So, it may mean a lot to you and that’s all that really matters.

While the place is an old school Austin original, Arkie’s is not my first choice for places to go unless I’m too close to pass it up. Today I had the chicken fried steak. They use a qua-​brown gravy which I like better than cream gravy, but it didn’t make anything taste better. The chicken fried steak was on the small side. The fried okra was overcooked (okra was too mushy in the batter). The black eyed peas were excellent. I’ve been a number of times over the years and not been blown away any of these times. Want to eat with all the maintainence guys on the east side of Austin? This is it. There are «cooler» places in town though.

I like diners. I really like greasy spoons if they serve good fare.
I think Arkies is a hit and a miss. We went there on a Wednesday because I have been wanting to try it for a while.
When we go in, its not packed to the gills busy, but doing a brisk business. We got the fried chicken plate and the hamburger.
In truth, there were things I really liked about Arkies and things I could have skipped. The waitress we had was nice enough, but dialing it in. Here’s an example… she was busy chatting with another waitress slowly working on drinks when our order came up. The kitchen dinged to get service… waited… no service… the kitchen started banging the crap out of the bell to get the food served while it was hot. (I actually really appreciated the attentiveness of the cooks) Another waitress picks up the order and delivers it while our actual waitress was still talking and filling drinks and totally ignored this entire exchange.
Star for the kitchen, but our waitress was sorely lacking in attentiveness.
Now, the food. I was a little shocked when I came in and saw the sides that day… hominy, mixed veg, scalloped potatoes, and salad. Jeez… that looks like something at a nursing home. The husband got it with the fried chicken. He’s not a southern boy, so I had to explain what hominy actually was to him. While the sides weren’t going to break any originality awards, he ate them all… I guess that goes to show that if something is done well, it doesn’t have to be fancy. I only tried the hominy, and it was a delicious blend of bacony love and hominy corn. It was savory and decadent.
The fried chicken was… well… dull. It was okay, but lacked any zip (read: salt in flour dreg) so it tasted pretty flat in my mouth. The corn bread was just okay, but the dinner rolls were quite good.
I split my burger in half with the husband (we split the chicken and burger). In some ways, it not fair for me to judge the burger. They served it in my absolute favorite way to get a burger. Thin patty, grilled bun (with toasty brown deliciousness) with pickle slices. It was very good and just up my culinary alley. I asked for it medium and thought it was a bit dry, but they did a decent burger. Next time I’m in the mood for a burger, I may hit this place up. Too many places serve burgers that are too large with too much crap on them. I like a burger that is balanced with the bun (toasted so it doesn’t get mushy) so the flavors blend and it doesn’t taste like a meatloaf sandwich.
The fries were good, but nothing special. They weren’t battered, but they could have stood another minute in the fryer to make them a bit crispier.
All in all, Arkies was a solid 3 star place. I want to come back and try the catfish. It looks exceptional on the plates leaving the kitchen.
If you are looking for a place where people are going there for the food and not the ambiance, Arkies is your place. It looks like a place you can take your grandfather on a guy’s night out (well, if I was a guy and you only wanted to get lunch since its not open for dinner). It’s comfortable and generally tasty if you expect good quality down home fare.

Welcome to Mel’s Diner, Austin edition. Incredible old school diner atmosphere with all sorts of memorabilia on the walls, plenty of booth seating and a low slung counter with stools… Arkies is an East side (way East) classic, as are most of the people working here. I’d guess that some of them have been working here their entire lives. Don’t try to come here for dinner or on the weekend, as they are only open for breakfast and lunch during the week.
This is one of those places that you should eat at at least once in your life as they just don’t come like this anymore. You’ll see a crazy variety of people here — those that have probably been eating here since it opened, blue collar workers, hipsters, businessmen, etc. Lunch was good, portions were loosen a notch on the belt huge, and taste was decent. Food is Southern style, with fried chicken, dumplings, meatloaf, chicken fried steak, all the veggies, rolls, etc. While pretty good, I could certainly find better elsewhere in Austin, although not at these prices and portion sizes.
Definitely worth a visit when you have a weekday free. I’d like to try breakfast here as I bet it raises the bar a bit on lunch.

If I was judging this place on atmosphere and value, it would be five stars easily. Unfortunately, I had to knock a couple off for food.
I’ve eaten breakfast here twice and lunch once. I like their hot cakes and my boyfriend enjoyed his egg scramble but I’d stay away from the biscuits and gravy. I was expecting some yummy sausage gravy but it actually appeared to just be the same gravy they put over their chicken fried steak. Fine for CFS, not so much for biscuits.
When I went for lunch, everyone was a little disappointed in the food. I had the chicken fried steak which was nothing to write home about, my boyfriend had the fried chicken which didn’t look great and he said it wasn’t and I believe our fried had salisbury steak which he liked but said it wasn’t anything too special.
Overall, I’ll probably come back here for some hot cakes and maybe give lunch another shot since I’ve only tried it once. For $ 6.99, it’s very tempting!

I adore diners. The dive-​ier the better. Arkie’s fits my tastes. There isn’t a bit of chrome or stitch of red naugahyde or a single piece of reproduction Coke-​branded anything in site; this is a true diner. And this is true diner food. Please don’t go there an order a salad.
It’s way East and you share the space with generations of Austinites. Go on Thursday for Turkey and Dressing, but go early, cause they sell out by 1. Go on Tuesday for Chicken and Dumplings; Prozac on a plate. Go Monday for tender, flavorful meatloaf. However, I do not recommend the chicken fried steak. Not at all.
The wait staff is excellent; all women that have probably been there for years. Friendly, quick, efficient. They help each other out, which I always love seeing.
I’ve gotten into the habit of going for lunch, with Candace S., at least twice a week. I think they’re starting to remember us. That feels good. There’s not many places like that left in Austin.

Best diner food in Austin. Period.
Early-​morning breakfasts are the best. If you can get your sorry ass out of bed early (say…6:00am), go directly to Arkies. You’ll be eating with the people who keep the city’s electrical grid going, or those who are on their way to teach your surly children, or to prosecute your no-​good neighbor, or those who are just getting off work. Wonderful mixed crowd, always a friendly vibe.
One of the few places in Austin that can cook an over-​hard egg. Biscuits are from heaven… if heaven is a well-​used oven. (And why wouldn’t it be?) Good steaks. Best BLT this side of the Red River. Okay, I don’t actually know this to be true, but it sounds good, doesn’t it?
Not for the delicate souls who need pretty-​pretty surroundings, healthy food and people who are all the same light color. Oh, and they close at 3pm so don’t come here looking for dinner.

I’ve been here twice so far for lunch w/​a friend and both of us are big fans of the food! She grew up in the south so she knows what good greens and catfish should taste like. I grew up in the ‘burbs of Boston so I’m just a yankee that likes what I like when it comes to southern food.
The first time we came here it was around 11:45am and the place was busy and we were lucky enough to score a booth. I ordered the fried chicken with fried okra, beans and the last side escapes me. Yesterday, we especially went on a Tuesday because of the chicken and dumplings special. They were AMAZING! The dumplings are similar to those of Cracker Barrel, but unlike Cracker Barrel, Arkies has shredded chicken, not just heaps of boiled chicken breast. Their cole slaw isnt creamy – more like oil & vinegar which I was a fan of. I also had turnip greens for the first time which was pretty good!
The waitstaff have been very friendly and attentive. This is a no frills place with honest homecooked southern meals: o)