The purpose of this blog is to let readers know about all the wonderful little hidden gems this city has to offer in terms of great food and drink. And one of my pastimes is going out to eat and finding new places to enjoy. A new restaurant opened up on Burnet Rd recently in my neighborhood and of course it is my duty to check it out.
The place is called Pappy’s Bar and Grill and it inhabits this inconspicuous corner in a strip mall by the Allandale HEB that seems destined to fail. In the 9 years I have lived here, I have seen that corner spot change hands so many times. Not sure why, could be that it’s not easily visible since HEB commands the major presence there or the fact that it’s near Kids n Cats, a store that on the inside looks like a yard sale vomited or where the “Made in China “crap goes to die. In fact, the owner of Pappy’s apparently was getting really desperate to get customers through the doors that he decided to park himself up on the roof and play his guitar to get people’s attention. Gotta give him props for trying.
So he got my attention and Ross and I decided to give Pappy’s a shot. And I really, really wish I had good things to report. But not in this case. Oh where should I start?
First off, the place was dark. Not dark as in mood lighting – dark as in, is this place actually open? Part of the restaurant looked like it was closed off due to construction or a hazmat accident – not really sure what to make of that. The waitress comes over right away – okay, prompt service, that’s a plus (though there really wasn’t anyone else commanding her attention). She takes our drink orders and hands us the menu. This is where we should have faked an illness and walked out. The menu did not give me any confidence in the food since it was a laminated card displaying large photos of the food. If you’re going to have photos, be sure they are representative of what you will actually be eating. You can probably guess by my tone that they were not. Plus, the menu just looked cheesy. The food options were incredibly unhealthy – not a single salad or vegetable on there. Only a burger, a couple of sandwiches, chicken strips, pizza, hot wings, queso – you get my drift.
Then we got the food. I ordered a cheeseburger with fries and I think the only way to accurately describe it is to say it was the same quality you would get at the concession stand at the zoo. Seriously. The meat patty didn’t even come close to covering the surface area of the bun. Ross ordered the chicken strips and they weren’t bad, but hey, they’re chicken strips.
Come on Pappy, this is Austin. If you are planning on serving up some American grub, you’ve got to do better than that, especially when you’ve got an awesome burger joint practically next door (Phil’s Icehouse). But I don’t want to just dish out the bad, I want to give a solution for you Pappy. Because I want to see you succeed -the more restaurants I have in my backyard, the happier I am.
So I’ve got two words for you: Sports. Bar. If this place was changed up to a sports bar I bet it would rock! First of all, this endeavor would not require much. The space at Pappy’s is ample – in fact, they already have a room set up with two very nice pool tables and darts. Done. Second, there is also already a very long bar with three huge flat screen TV’s. Done. All you need are more TV’s along the other wall, add more brewery taps, improve the food quality with some healthier options and serve up good drink specials during game days and you’ve got yourself a business. Besides, who doesn’t love a sports bar in this town?
I doubt the owner of Pappy’s Bar and Grill will ever read this, which is a shame because I think it would work. Hmmm…maybe after the place goes under, I’ll take over the lease and turn it into a sports mecca. Who’s in?
Get Happy Austin 