Black Walnut Café

Love everything about this place. The food is so consistent and they have great happy hour too. Their tortilla soup, burgers, and salads are just delish.

Food was great, staff was very friendly, attentive and helpfull and atmosphere was very enjoyable. This was our first time, but we will go back.

The food is always great at Black Walnut. Unfortunately this morning was a miss. The salmon Benedict uses some type of salmon spread instead of real smoke salmon. Kind of looks like tuna out of a can that had gone bad. Gross.

Black walnut café is excellent. Their drinks, breakfast and entrée selection is on point. Last time I had the lobster Mac and cheese and it was the best lobster Mac I have ever had!

Had lunch today at this place and asked if shrimp could be substituted for the chicken on my salad. Even spoke with the manager and he said no problem. When I got the salad it had chicken AND shrimp. I took it back. I don’t eat chicken. A few minutes later it is returned to me with some of the chicken fished out and some still in there. I will never go back here again. Ugh!

I we super excited about this place when it opened. I do like it, but it’s a little pricey for a family meal that you basically serve yourself at. The food is good nothing fabulous. It’s a better spot to hit for lunch with a girlfriend if you just want to chat.

Reasons to eat here:
Tasty
Big menu
Cheap
Reasons not to eat here:
Speed, if it is busy it takes a long time to order and forever to get your food. Don’t count on doing any timely business functions here, it’s a place for people with a ton of time to burn.

Absolutely adore this place! Food is always cooked quickly and to perfection! Their breakfast menu is the best! They do get pretty busy, so I usually order mine to go.
Their summer salad is to die for too!

First time here. The ordering is a little different but I didn’t mind it. Cuts out the middle man waiter and forced obligation to tip, which is nice. I got the big breakfast and everything was very good. The bacon is thick and flavorful and the pancake was light and sweet. I also got an orange juice which was nice and thick, just like I like it. The décor is dark, but romantic and nice. I’d come again.

One of my favorite place on the NW side of Austin. The food has always been good and the service very helpful. On one occasion the bartender could have been better informed (I use the term bartender loosely as she didn’t know a scotch from a bourbon). Looking forward to trying their brunch.

These guys know how to do it. Great service and great burgers. They have a great tomato basil soup. Love this place Ericka is a great bar tender.

Nice place for breakfast while heading down 2222.
I have sampled the many Benedict options, and just usually fall back on a good ol fashion american breakfast. (even though the bacon is crispy — what a crime).
Shannon runs the bar, and i always look for an open seat there. He truly has me spoiled, a real professional.

I walked in expecting a table service café. Nope. It’s sort of a fast food place with upholstery. You have to stand in line to order your food, then sit down and wait for the buzzer, so you can go get your food. I ordered a simple burger, asked how I wanted it cooked I said «medium.»
I admit to being annoyed at finding the setup was not a standard table service restaurant, but I also have to add that the burger was cooked to a crisp, the fries were limp and barely warm. Most annoying was that, despite everything being self service, I was offered the opportunity to pay a tip on the receipt. Uh, no.
The burger is advertised as 10 oz, more than I wanted, but the only option. I figured I could cut it in half and just eat half of it. But, unlike, say, Chili’s or any number of good local places it wasn’t a single large patty, it was two thin patties, no doubt contributing to the way overcooked meat.
I won’t be back.

Met my girlfriend here the other day, at her request, and I have to say that I’m impressed enough to return. The menu is lengthy, the layout is fun and they have a bar area. What’s not to like about a place that the lady likes, serves beer and has a pretty mean burger?
My three-​pepper burger weighs in at a whopping 10 ounces and is enormous not just in size, but in taste also. I was stuffed after eating this monster. I almost felt like going on a diet after eating it. Almost. But I won’t go on a diet because I’ll probably order the three-​pepper burger again the next time we come here.
I enjoyed my lunch, my girlfriend enjoyed her salad and we both enjoyed our time together. We will see you again, Black Walnut Café.

First time I went to this place today with my team for lunch. I like the ambiance and the way the service they are doing is good. We need to order and collect when it is ready its kind of self service but you could do for team. The food is delicious too. All of us like all verities of pasta we ordered.

I’m unsure what to say about the BWC.
When it is good it is really good, but sadly it is also inconsistent and can be disappointing. It’s a shame that all of their chefs are not at the same standard because we really like the place, the drinks and the atmosphere and we want it to be successful.

Less than engaging staff who just wanted to chat amongst themselves and bitch about their management. Really slow service even when quiet. And got a different item to what I ordered but no one was there to care. These people really don’t seem to care much about their business.
Oh and I sent a comment on their website and was promised a reply. Still waiting.
There are other places to spend my money

I’ve been here a few times now. It’s conveniently located for me. I read the reviews beforehand so I knew what I was getting into. The food and bar selections are pretty good, but overpriced by about $ 2. This is definitely turning into a neighborhood spot for locals. I’ve seen everything from business lunches to family dinners and happy hour hangouts. The staff are cordial and professional.
It’s a good place mid-​day to hang out and get some work done. The wifi is reliable and there are a few power outlets around. It gets a bit too loud when the families show up.
So if you’re in the neighborhood and looking for a meal or good wifi, stop in and give it a try.

My gf and I came here one morning before ACL fest. She had the sausage crossiant sandwich which came with fruit and I ordered the eggs benedict (two poached eggs, english muffin, house potatoes, and with cayenne hollandaise sauce. They were friendly portions so I recommend ordering and splitting to try different things if it is your first time there.
There’s indoor & outdoor seating which was perfect for the weather when we were there.

Best French Dip I have had in a long time! Walnut café is a very nice but casual café slightly hidden off 2222 close to 620. They have indoor and outdoor seating as well as a little bar. They offer typical café food such as sandwiches soups and salads along with a breakfast menu as well. I ordered the French dip which was delicious and my boyfriend ordered the blue cheese burger which was also very tasty. I will definitely be returning to check out the rest of the menu.

Sigh. Yet another place falls victim to the ⁶²⁰⁄₂₂₂₂ ‘Black Hole of Suck’ that seems to bedevil businesses in the area. I believe that this business is kept afloat from its placement as one of the few eateries near the River Place offices and 3M business park. I won’t go into the same issues as everyone else here — lackluster food (gummy garlic bread, ugh!) a confusing ordering setup, and sticker shock to boot.
I appreciate the feedback replies by the Café’s Manager ‘Rhea J.’ on this site. However, given the persistence of the low reviews without change over time, I believe there is something else at work.
The issues raised are systemic, or perhaps more ‘feature’ than ‘bug’ in this establishment. The price/​food quality is set based on what the market will bear from the local time-​challenged and relatively highly paid office and tech employees. The strange setup is what Douglas Adams would call a ‘confuse-​opoly’ where the more convoluted the process, the easier it is to justify strange results or pricing.
I’d come here over, say, the legendarily bad Hunan Riverside or a taste-​challenged Subway, but I can’t honestly recommend it beyond that. My apologies Rhea if this comes across as overly harsh; it is painful at times to write a review that is less than glowing.
This place gets a 2 on the ‘CTJ Scale’, as noted below.
5 out of 5 stars: Come-​to-​Jesus good. Would be OK passing away after finishing a plate here.
4 out of 5 stars: Come-​to-​Mary good. Would be OK being seen eating here by Mother Mary.
3 out of 5 stars: Come-​to-​Joseph good. Would be OK having a beer here with Jesus’ Dad.
2 out of 5 stars: Come-​to-​the-​Apostles good. Meh. Wouldn’t have my last supper here.
1 out of 5 stars: Come-​to-​Nobody good. I wouldn’t have my penultimate supper here, either.

I have been patronizing this place since they opened. Food has always been decent (not great), but very convenient to River Place. Yesterday (12÷04÷15) I met a business associate for lunch and the place was packed.
We ordered our food and had to sit at the bar. The attendant promptly told us rather rudely that those seats were for full service only and told us to sit outside. Since there was no other place to seat inside and 49 degrees outside, we decided to stay put. Had we not already ordered and paid for our food, we would have left the place immediately.
Eating our meal was less than enjoyable with the rude jerk staring at us.
When we finished and as we got up to leave he said to our face: «…Good. Maybe I can make some money»
I bring business customers and my family to this place often.
NEVER AGAIN!
I will also make sure to spread the word around the for points area.

I think I was probably a bit excessive in my dolling out of five stars. We come here at least once a week and love their quick, tasty, not-​completely-​terrible-​for-​you food (I have the black walnut salad almost every time, it’s delicious)
Staff are always lovely. And the patio is dog friendly.
A solid local café. A solid four stars.

This is one of my favorite places to go to lunch during the work week. The employees are always nice and helpful and the food is always delicious! The lobster tacos are my favorite!
Everyone seems happy and are always so helpful, we love sitting on the patio or in the bar!

Really wanted to like this place. The décor resembles many quality restaurants. Dark wood, floors, quality decorations and a feeling of comfort. Well planned and executed, hats off.
However, I think this place needs a «price check» as the quality of food their serving doesn’t measure up. It’s not a bad thing to limit overhead but it sure isn’t reflected in the food.
Example ordered a glass of wine, cost $ 10.00. Now it wouldn’t be bad if it were a decent quality wine but when the bottle is $ 11 at the local store that’s a little steep… you’re not in California, this is Austin Texas.
Ordered the Chicken fried steak, heck do as the Texans do. It was ok, didn’t come close to ones i’ve had on the west coast. I’d never order it here again. Friend had the Pot roast. It was tasty but overcooked, so it was dry.
I do like the concept of ordering and picking your food up at the counter but if you’re going to charge more towards the mid to high end, then the quality of the food should match.
Perhaps, it will be the place for drinks (Texas prices) and appetizers.

I have been to this location a handful of times. The food has been decent, service friendly and orders done in a timely manner. Price of food is a bit high for quantity and quality. It’s close to home and as a result I’ve dined more than I normally would.
Yesterday I ordered two breakfast burritos in my way to work (more the size of tacos). I paid over $ 6 for two small burritos. My Order was made incorrectly and as a result I didn’t eat breakfast. I called the restaurant and the person answering remembered who I was, apologized for the mistake and said he’d let a manger know and they’d watch their orders. That was it, no trying to remedy the situation.
As a result I won’t be ordering from them and will discover other places in the area.

As others have said, don’t let the lack of waitstaff turn you off. It’s strange that an upscale place like this would have you order food at a counter. You would think this place would be a mad house every day based on their food and ambiance, but you wouldn’t ever really take a date here.
I got the Black Walnut Fish Tacos. They were average. The fish itself was good, but it came with some coleslaw miscellany and no sauce. I actually poured some of my salad dressing on it and that really gave it the kick that it needed. The wife got the Southwestern Egg Rolls which were a little on the mushy side, but they were palatable.
They have a gelato and cake bar. The sample of grapefruit gelato I had was delicious. We also got a slice of chocolate cake and it was spot on. The rest of my family said it was too rich, but it was right in the sweet spot of cakes for me.
Decent little place that we stumbled upon.

First time here. I had the tex-​mex omelet which was yummy. My husband had the big breakfast. He liked his but the potatoes that came with it were weird. We asked the person handing out the food if he could get something else and she said they could get him sliced tomatoes which he won’t eat.
Since it is primarily self serve the prices are kind of high. I subbed out the beans and corn for ham on my omelet and they charged me 2.25 for it. Making my two egg omelet 9.75.
We will be back to try the desserts and other menu items. There are 13 different salads on the menu, which I want to try several of them. Plus they have a variety of soups that look good.

Have eaten here a few times now and over all the food is ok but a bit pricey. The food over flavor and portions are fair but priced a bit too high.
The service is friendly and pretty prompt which is great.
Over all I would suggest this I’ve most places in the are for a quick bit too eat. I would drive out of my way to eat here.