Hill’s Café

 
When I first arrived in Austin back in the second term of Ulysses S. Grant (just kidding), there was an icon of a restaurant on South Congress called Hill’s.

Hill’s was to South Austin what the original Threadgill’s was to North Austin: a place to chow down on some serious comfort food, socialize, and generally have a swell time. On top of that, it had another singular benefit, it stayed open late.

When Hill’s closed its doors for good back in 1989, actually around the same time that the venerated Nighthawk bit the dust, many brushed it off as the byproduct of an expanding urban culture. Perhaps Austin had just gotten too sophisticated for an old “chat and chew” to survive.

Well, 13 years later, Hill’s is back. Reborn, reconceived, rededicated, this restaurant at 4700 South Congress has become the current passion of longtime Austin radio personality Bob Cole. He’s expanded the building, added live music, and from what I can see, has the joint jumping!

And after a massive lunch I had there recently, I’m here to tell you that with only one exception, the food was darn good. The Cartwright Sausage was savory and tender, no hard casings. Wonderful! The Beef Ribs were great as well. I’d rank them just under County Line’s in quality (and you know how fanatical I am about the Beef Ribs at The County Line). And you must sample the breaded and deep-fried sweet corn nuggets.

I had a fried catfish that was moist, very flavorful, and cooked perfectly. Another treat was a grilled catfish smothered in a crawfish etoufee. This might have been my single favorite entrée. Sensational flavor and consistency. I also tried the famous Hill’s famous Greezy Truckstop Enchiladas. These cheese enchiladas, smothered in chilli were as billed. They were a bit greasy and caloric as all get out, and I loved ’em.

About the only thing that didn’t really move me was the Chicken Fried Steak. Go figure. It’s their biggest seller and most historical dish. But I like mine deep fried, breaded in flour with a white gravy and Hill’s grills theirs, coats them with fresh cracker meal and serves a yellow gravy. Can’t please everyone right?

You will either love the chicken fried steak or not like it at all. No in betweens here.

But that being said, there is far, far more to like at the new Hill’s than to dislike. They stop serving at 11PM now, no more all nights. And south Austin is a far, far better place for the revival of Hill’s.